House Tarth (The Grand Campaign)

Lord Selwyn of The Straiths of Tarth (Lived: 7980-8004 Ruled: 7988-8004)
Lord Selwyn of Tarth inherited the Straiths of Tarth on his eight nameday after his Father, Lord Daven, died in an accident. Though, the following eight years he took little part in actually ruling his lands, instead, he improved his skill with the sword and became the squire of an old Knight and by the age of 16 he already was knighted himself. It was also then that he came back to Evenfall Hall to rule. Not many expected the young Lord to prove himself an able ruler, but he did exactly that. First, he proposed a marriage between himself and the younger sister of Lord Quentyn from House Wylde who ruled over the Rainwood. The young woman may have not been known for her beauty, but the alliance was a desirable one. Also, he didn't put it below him to actually listen to his wife, who turned out to be a woman worth being called a genius.

The young Lord was also in luck because the wife of Storm King Argilacs recently passed away and proposed to marry Selwys Sister. Of course, they thanked his Grace for this proposal and accepted. A bond between the Houses was sure to secure Tarths standing. Selwyn was also named Castellan as well as Hand of the Stormking. For that, he began to admire the Stormking and began to fashion his hair and beard in his style.

Shortly after, the marriage to Lady Brenna of House Wylde Selwyn got her pregnant and soon after that their first son was born, named Matthos. Even though she just had born a child for him, Brenna announced a few months after the birth that she was pregnant yet again. Around the same time King Argilac also impregnated his young wife. In January of the next year, Selwyns niece, Myrcella, was born and he immediately proposed a betrothal between the newborn girl and his heir, to strengthen the the bond between House Durrandon and House Tarth. Since Argilac did not have a male heir at that time and his oldest daughter, Argella, was pregnant, he wanted to wait until that child was born and if it was a son he would agree to the betrothal.

Before that, the second child of Lord Selwyn was born: a girl they named Rhea. Always aiming to secure alliances and the strong standing of his House in the Stormlands he betrothed that girl with the heir of Lady Arianne of Kingswood. A few more months passed and Princess Argella had a son, so the betrothal between her younger sister Myrcella and Matthos Tarth was set. Everything seemed to go well for Lord Selwyn, at least if one only looked at the Stormlands, but the world was in turmoil. The Targaryens of Dragonstone had begun to conquer the other Kingdoms of Westeros. Mountain and Vale where the first ones to bend the knees with little resistance. He continued to swallow the kingdoms with the help of his dragons. The Kings of The Rock, The Reach, Dorne and of course the Stormlands were rallied by Lord Gardener to combine their forces and fight back the dragons. That alliance was known as the Shield of Westeros. Lord Selwyn was an active part of the Stormlander Forces and forced every able man to fight in the war, since he was convinced that Aegon was a threat that had to be stopped now or never in his lifetime. He was present in the battle at The Antlers and saw the king he loved die in the field. After the Shield of Westeros had been broken, the Reach bend the knee and the Lannisters also joined the self proclaimed of Westeros after joining Houses by marriage the Stormlands and Dorne were the only Kingdoms to remain independent. Lord Selwyn continued his work as Castellan as well as Hand of the queen for the daughter of Argilac. Storm Queen Argella was two years older than he was and an attractive young woman. Even though he only recently had another girl named Brienne with his wife Brenna, he didn't hesitate for one moment when the Storm Queen entered his chamber. After they spent the night together Lord Selwyn became the secret lover of his queen, until she became pregnant and it was apparent that the child couldn’t possibly be of her husband. She admitted to the affair, but both of them seemed to be serious about the feeling of love, since neither ended the dangerous relationship. After their daughter Lia was born under the name Storm, Selwyn pressed his lover to legitimize her which she did. Lord Selwyn also proposed few years later to divorce their respective spouses and let their love grow in marriage, but Argella declined claiming that she still needed the alliance to the Gardeners. After that, Lord Selwyn, who was a veteran of war, a knight and also known as a rather skilled fighter, challenged the Storm King to a 'friendly' duel, planning to cut his throat so he may take the wife he wanted. Storm King Gyles of House Gardener was not known as a great fighter, people even would mummer behind his back that he was a poor fighter and a craven, yet, he somehow managed to best Lord Selwyn and forced him to yield. He took the chance to strike Lord Selwyn down for good.

Lord Selwyn also had a daughter born to him in 8001 named Brienne, who had not been married at the day of his death. Another Daughter named Lysa was born in 8003 and married to Lord Arcon the trueborn son of Storm Queen Argella.

Lord Matthos of The Straiths of Tarth (Lived: 7997-8026 Ruled:8004-8026)
After his Father was slain by the Storm King, a 7-year-old Matthos inherited the Lands his father had ruled over for 16 years. He was personally chosen by the Queen to be her ward and spent the next two years learning in Storm's End. It was in that time that the Iron Throne had laid eyes upon the Stormlands and Storm Queen Argella died in the midst of Battle, which ended the War. Instead of her son Arcon, who was married to Matthos Sister, her legitimized bastard and also half-sister to Matthos, Lia was named Lady Paramount of the Stormlands. The young girl was soon taken by Orys Baratheon to be his ward, while Matthos was sent back to Evenfall Hall and became a Squire to an old knight in his court. He learned to handle a sword decently, but grew up to be an angerful, ruthless and cruel young man. After his marriage to Myrcella Durrandon, the aunt of Lia and also her heir, he started to plan for her an early death. He confined Symon of House Bywater into these plans, but soon after that he received word from his sister, who was being tutored all the way in the Iron Isles that she heard of his plans. Lord Matthos suspected the Bywaters to have betrayed him, but never bothered to gather proof for his suspicions. Instead the young man expressed his concerns that she was being influenced by the Targaryens who crushed their proud Stormlands and killed her mother.

He actually listened to the young girl telling her that the Baratheons were not the same and persuaded all his co-conspirators to give the girl a chance and let her prove that she actually had the old blood of Durrandon in her veins - and also the blood of House Tarth. When Matthos finally reached adulthood he bribed a Septon to knight him, because he himself believed to be worthy of such an honor and that he just had a lot of bad luck proving his worth. He also had a son with his wife Myrcella and named him Argilac after the last Storm King of House Durrandon. When his sister reached the Age of 14 she was sent back to Storms End by Orys Baratheon, to marry and rule the Storm Lands. Matthos took his sister as his own ward, while trying to claim the Lordhip of Dragondance, to lies and briberies. When he declared his war against Lord Tristan's of Massey's Hook to add Dragondance to his own domain, he tried to make his sister look the other way by knighting her. Even though he was her big brother, with the same father, she still acted as a Lady Paramount should and at least scolded him for waging war inside her realm, just to expand. While that hurt the pride of Lord Matthos, he was proud of his soon to be Lady Paramount. It only took a short amount of time for the forces of Tarth to lay waste to all of Lord Tristan's land and the ambitious Knight took what he claimed, after which he named his son Argilac Lord of Dragondance. However, shortly after the war a lot of soldiers from the Hook reported the treatment they received as prisonders, especially by Lord Matthos himself and soon the Realm knew of his fondness for torture. It was not long after that, that something happened in lands far away that would shake things in the Stormlands. Aegon Targaryen faced his own brother Orys Baratheon, who was like a father to his sister after both her parents were dead, in a Trial by combat in which Orys stood for his daughter, who was accused of being unfaithful. Matthos himself was not present, but he heard the storys how Aegon drove his sword through his brothers chest. That event sparked the, as it later would be known, Year of the Revolts. Rebellion after Rebellion sparked and Lia confined in her trusted advisors, namely her brother Matthos and Symon Bywater, in her thoughts of claiming independence. At first both men agreed that it was the perfect time to be freed from the white haired King once again, but soon word reached the Stormlands that the King and his Dragon already had put down most of the men, who dared to revolt. Symon Bywater advised Lia to be patient and not fight a war, that couldn't be won, but it was Matthos who seemed to be gripped by vengeance. He had an outburst at the counciltable, shouting, swearing and even insulting his sister. The young woman, who may have known his temper and cruel tendencies, was never before a victim of his wroth and it doesn't seem unlikely that she was pressured by that outburst to declare a War for Indepence and even put a crown of a Storm Queen on her Head. Lord Matthos was named Hand of the Queen, but that didn't mean much, since shortly after the declaration of war a Gardener host crushed the unprepared armies of the Stormlands. Lia Durrandon was imprisoned, stripped of her status as Lady Paramount and executed at the age of 18. Lord Matthos himself never spent any time in a prison, but he was furious after the death of his sister. Courtiers reported to never have him seen as angry, stomping up and down the hall, screaming and shouting, destroying chairs and smashing plates. It took him hours to calm down and he immediately send out a raven to the King, asking him to grant the Stormlands to him, in exchange for loyalty. Not only did he refuse his request, he even made his own son Vaemond Lord Paramount. That made things a lot worse, especially after his wife was stripped of all the titles she inherited by Vaemond. The young Lord swore to drive the "whitehaired dragon-scum" out of the stormlands.

Not long after that he created a faction to put his wife Myrcella Durrandon into power in the stormlands. House Bywater of Kingswood and House Carron of the Dornish Marches backed him in this matter and immediately after they declared their backing Matthos, claiming he heard the voices of the seven telling him to, declared war on his Lord Paramount. The plan was to gather the armies on the Island of Tarth and destroy the forces of Vaemond and his Brother Lord Jahaerys of Dragonstone when they tried to take the island, but the Bywater forces were crushed before they could organize and while House Caron rallied his banner and marched for the Island, he got discouraged after hearing that the enemies had twice the men his side had and went back to his homelands, leaving Matthos to fight the war by himself. The Chances of winning at this point were probably already non-existent, but he went ahead with his plan and fought the Targaryen men. His mainforce was crushed and pursued relentlessly ending in the capture of Matthos and therefore the end of the war. The Lord of Tarth himself at least had a small victory, since Jahaerys Targaryen fell in the battles of the war. As soon as the Rebellion was declared crushed, Matthos demanded a trial by combat, asking to be his own champion. Vaemond accepted his request to fight for a Judgement by the Seven and chose one of the Kingsguard as his champion. When the two men met to fight, Matthos suddenly started attacking the older man viciously, seemingly not caring about his own safety. His gamble seemed to pay out and the man of the Kinsgsguard could'nt adapt to the reckless attacks, leaving him dead on the ground after a short fight. Matthos was allowed to leave for Evenfall Hall and did not suffer any more consequences. Still, as soon as he was back at his ancestrial seat Matthos began to make plans against Vaemond once again. At this point his councillors were pushing him to be less aggressive and just accept the fact that the Targaryens were too powerful a dynasty to bring them down as a single highlord. They wanted him to listen to reason, but by then the man only listened to the council of the voices in his head.

In the end he sent a raven to Storms End. He wrote that at this point two Durrandons were alive. The brother of the last Storm Queen Lia, who was already a known pirate at that point and his wife, whose children were of his and her blood. He claimed that the stormlands should be ruled by him and his children after him. Knowing that he couldnt meet the Targaryens in war, he demanded that this matter would be settled in a duel to the death. Probably to ensure no further defiance of his rule Vaemond accepted and named his father Aegon the champion of this fight, who in turn demanded that Matthos would fight on his terms: in the dragon pits of oldtown. Matthos was delighted, thinking that he would not only gain the stormlands to rule, no, he also would be able to slay the man that conquered the seven Kingdoms. He immediately rode for Oldtown, where he met Aegon Targaryen for the first time. King and Lord aliket hurled insults at each other before descending into the pits. where one of them should meet his end. Most people expected the legendary Aegon Targaryen to win, but some actually believed that Matthos might have the backing of the seven, after he came out unhurt after his last personal combat. This seemed to be untrue though, since only seconds into the fight Matthos already lie to Aegons feet, apparently only waiting to be finished off, when he suddenly rolled out of the way dodging a fatal blow, but still suffering considerable damage to his leg. One lucky dodge proved to be not enough and Matthos was quickly killed by a second attack of the king.

Some of the men who travelled with Matthos to Oldtown, claimed that he fell ill the day before the fight. Even the ones who believe in that story, have admitted that it was unlikely that it effected the outcome.

Lord Argilac of The Straiths of Tarth (Lived:8014-8075 Ruled: 8018-8075)
Argilac was only four years old when he was named the Lord of Stonedance by his father after he conquered it from Lord Tristan. So it was unsurprising that his regend had the actual power in that time. He also acted as his educator later in life, to strengthen his influence over the young boy. It was not until he was twelve years old that his father died fighting Aegon Targaryen and he inherited all the lands of his father. That actually made him the oldest Lord at point of inheritance since his great grandfather Daven inherited the Straiths of Tarth at the age of 16 over 50 years ago. He moved to Evenfall Hall, taking his regent with him. Two years later he received word from Lord Paramount Vaemond, asking how he was doing and asking about his loyalty, since his father was not known as a loyal man. Argilac was later quotes as saying ' My father is also one of the most dead man I know ' and later adding in another letter send to Lord Vaemond 'I do not love your family, but I love living '. He was actually quite liked because of that since the lords of his lands were tired fighting a lost war against the Targaryens, at the command of his Father who many after his death whispered was the most despicable man on the planet only not rising to fame for his cruelty and madness because he was born in a time where the Targaryens held him down. Two years later, when Argilac turned 16 and finally took over full reign of his domain, he send a letter to Lord Vaemond stating his intentions to connect his lands, because the Lordship of Stonedance was separated from the rest. He never got a reply from the Targaryen Lord and just assumed it was okay. At the same time he married Catelyn of House Terrick who was recently widowed and twice his age. Three years later the woman was pregnant and to please the ruler of the Stormlands, Argilac was asking if he was allowed to name the child after him. The Lord Paramount agreed and so Vaemond of House Tarth was born. One year later finally declared his war against Lord Grance of Masseys Hook for the Lordship of Wendwater, planning to connect his lands, but then received a letter from Lord Vaemond asking him to stop the war. The young man did as he was told, but immediately seeked out the Targaryen. Telling him that he informed him of these plans years back, but Vaemond told him he changed his mind and that the balance of power in his realm was good at it is. For nearly four years Argilac continued to haggle with Vaemond which ended with him being allowed to take Wendwater and only Wendwater. He declared war on the grandson of the man who already lost Stonedance to House Tarth and took both his remaining provinces Wendwater and Sharp Point, because while he actually came to respect Lord Vaemond, he still felt he was being held back because of his fathers ill-doings.

It was in the same year that he divorced his wife, after she became to old to bear children for him and instead married young Barbrey of Downdelving who just turned 14. He got scolded by Lord Vaemond for breaking his word and also taking Sharp Point, Argilac claimed that he felt it would be an insult to Lord Grance to banish him to just have a small piece of land and instead took all of it. The Lord Paramount was still not pleased, but Argilac continued to apologize and in the end nothing came of it. The young ruler decided to grant the Lordship of Wendwater to a knight who had proved his worth in taking it and also named him his chief general. He then granted Sharp Point to Dywen of House Sharp Point who he had married to his mother matrilineal a few years back in an effort to let the Durrandon name continue.

When conflicts arised with the Lord of the Dornish Marches, since he expanded without Vaemonds consent and was evidently worse at handling him than Argilac was, the Lord of Evenfall Hall rallied his troops in an effort to show his Liege how true he would stay to him, since his request at being allowed further expansions were all denied. He marched his troops south, but missed all the big battles only adding to the men sieging the seat of House Caron. It was around the same time that after seven years of marriage his second wife gave birth to a daughter which they named Argella after the last Storm Queen who ruled over a truly independent realm. Also a surprising offer of betrohal came all the way from the Isles of Orys where Orys II proposed to marry his sister Lia to Argilacs son Vaemond. Without thinking about it for too long he accepted and asked that Lady Lia was sent to Evenfall Hall so that she could get to know her future husband. After her brother agreed and sent the young lady to Tarth, Lord Argilac took over his own son as a ward, since he was educated away from home before.

After his wife died from Illness in the same year she gave birth to their daughter Lord Argilac married once again, this time a lowborn dornish woman who was known for her wits. The marriage held for two years in which a daughter named Myrcella was born to the couple. Only three months after the birth the woman annouced she was pregnant again, but it was with the child of another. Argilac converted to 'R'hllor' only a few months back and saw the perfect opportunity to give the Lord of Light an offering. He immediately imprisoned his unfaithful woman and demanded her executed without a trial. He went on a hunt, planning to burn her uponi his return, but the man at his court knew of his plans and while they knew they could not save the woman without risking their own lifes, they at least spared her being burned alive and beheaded Lady Dorea. When Lord Argilac returned he thought the septon that was still allowed to council him responsible and removed from any position of power and replaced him with a red priest. He also took a woman from Myr as his wife, since he did not plan on having his wife backstab him in the plans to convert the court. He also got a marriage offer from the Northern Reach where Lord Paramount Dickon proposed that his secondborn son married Argilacs Sister Argella, to which he agreed.

House Tarth did not pariciapte in the Quarrels between the Reach and the Stormlands concerning the Dornish Marches and Blueburn, claiming that they were friends with both sides and believed in a peaceful solution. Less peaceful was his way to deal with a intrigue of his bannerman Lord Gowen of Parchment. He tried to have him imprison, but the Lord declared a rebellion saying the accusations were falsed. Lord Argilac sent a raven to Vaemond, asking him to intervene, but Lord Gowen preferred to be branded a traitor to the realm for which Vaemond granted the Lord of the Straiths of Tarth a claim on the province. After he crushed the rebellion of the Lord he revoked the Title and named his son Vaemond, 20 years at that time, the new ruler of the lands.

Months passed and the Lands of the Tarths were in a stable condition. Lord Argilacs son won in the Grand Tourney of Storms End that their liege lord held and Argilac himself was watching how the new rulers of the Kingswood, the House Langward, slowly expanded and was feeling his Status as the second strongest Man in the Stormlands threatened. A status he never bragged about, but he quite liked it. Around the same time Lord Vaemond decided that Argilacs Brother should be the new ruler of the Dornish Marches. More important to the man himself though was a sudden boost in trust in his person, because Vaemond invited him to Storms End and promised the Head of the House Tarth 2 Gifts. The first one was a claim on the Bronzegate, which was a delight to Argilac since he always wanted to expand his domain and the second gift was the honor to be the Captain of Lord Vaemonds Household Guard. Of couse Argilac accepted such gracious gifts. The invitation to Storms End was not only about that though, since Lord Vaemond also asked the other man to do something. He began talking about his nearing end and his concerns about his son. He confined that he hoped the lad to be a bastard, but not believed in it. But he feared for him to be like the late King Aegon. Being loyal as ever to Lord Vaemond promised to be loyal to his son and guide him on his way to be a good ruler. That was not what the Targaryen intended though. He asked of Lord Argilac to kill his son, if the need arises. Cautiously the younger man promised to do just that, but spoke about how he would rather not have to do such a vile thing.

After that the House of Tarth finally declared war for the Bronzegate, quickly crushed the few men that dared to resist them in the fiel and laid siege to the castle when suddenly he heard word that Langward was rallying his troops, intending to defend the Lordship. Enraged Argilac send a raven to the Lord Paramount, asking him to make the Langwards stop. He was ready to break siege and destroy the enemy troops in the field once again, when just before the battle, he got an answer and the men of the Kingswood actually put their weapons down. That incident probably was the one that led to House Tarth having a grudge against the new powerful house. It was only a few years later that the Lord of Kingswood intended to take the Lands of Hadlows Keep (lands that Lord Argilac also laid eyes on) and was already laying siege to the castle when Argilac actually gathered his men in full strength and marched to lift the siege. While in the midst of battle with the weaker host he actually got a message from Vaemond, who he respected very much but he didn't always agree with him. He knew he would be branded a traitor if he flatout denied him, though so he was playing a risky waiting game. He crushed the army of Kingswood and relentlessly pursuited them to kill as many men as possible before answering the king that he would put down his arms. The raven was on his way, but only a few hours later actually a second message arrived. Lord Langward actually had already put down his arms aswell and an agreement was made that nobody should take any lands in the stormlands as long as the old Lord Paramount lived.

It was in 8068 that Vaemond passed away and his son Baelon inherited the Stormlands. Immediately Argilac tried to approach him and assure his loyalty, but the lad was as paranoid and mad as his father had feared and actually accused the man of conspiring with the ghost of his uncle to kill him. So Argilac left Storms End again. Over the next weeks he constantly tried to reason with the man and at last he had him convinced that he meant him no harm and just wanted to serve him loyally. That he didn't have the ability to speak and conspire with ghosts. Still he was concerned about the young man. Many, Maesters and common folk alike, question his loyalty to Baelon, his father and the Targaryens in general because of Argilacs actions later in life, but at that point he thought about how he could help the Realm and the boy at the same time, since he really was agains the idea of having him killed. He started a war with Hadlows Keep on which he had fabricated a claim years back. Two times the Lord Paramount stopped him in his tracks, but even going so far as to provoke further anger Lord Argilac went to war a third time, and this time he actually managed to get prisoners of war before having to put down his arms. He still clung to his faith of R'hllor and his Red Priest assured him that the Lord of Light looked kindly upon him. Argilac had heard storys about the powers his god possessed and he even claimed to have had survived a battle in war just because he had him on his side, so he was willing to sacrifice innocent people to heal Bealon of his madness. The young Lord Paramount refused him though, claiming that Argilac tried to kill him with R'hllors power. He tried to convince him and had a second noble burned just so that he could help his Lord. He refused him again though and a first revolt broke out. The men of the Straiths actually helped putting down the small rebellion and after burning his final noble prisoner Argilac asked Baelon once again, hoping he would accept now, but once again he refused to have his soul healed.

Just a few weeks later the two big revolts broke out. The first one was against the rule of Baelon and keeping true to his promise Argilac rallied his men to defend their Liege. The second rebellion claimed a woman the rightful ruler of the Stormlands. Argilac remembered that his mother was the second daughter of Argilac Durrandon, the man he was named after, still he marched to defend. It was only when he saw the massive amount of soldiers that had gathered under enemy banners that he thought at that time to be the most kind thing he could do to Baelon. He was not fit to rule, but he didn't deserve to die. He might have been plagued by paranoia but Argilac meant the young Lord no harm. He himself had said to his closest advisors that he intended to take the Storm Lands by Force for himself. He would keep Baelon safe in prison, so the King would listen to him. He was never intending to hold the Storm Lands for long and would have given them back to the Targaryens peacefully if they would put his rightful heir on the throne. At least thats what he claimed, something which many people, especially those that doubt his loyalty, do not believe in.

So, even after assuring his Liege that he would help crush the revolts, Lord Argilac of Tarth declared his own war, failing to inform anyone of his plans. He called the Northern Reach and the Claw, his stronges allies in the war and both of them sent their troops to fight his war. The rebellions thought them enemies and fought even against the troops that supported Argilacs claim, but in the end he had the most men for his cause. They took the Stormlands and Argilac named himself the new Lord Paramount of the Stormlands.

It was now that a series of unfortunate events that made many question if Argilac was the best men House Tarth had or the worst. The first thing was, that Baelon immediately escaped Argilacs Prison with the help of people still loyal to him. Then the King immediately asked him to let go of the titles that he had fought for. In fear that Baelon would be in power immediately again and definitely strike against him (remembering that the man had killed his own daughter and asked Argilac to burn the body for him) he refused, which put the realm in a state of war.

Once again he asked for the help of the Northern Reach and the Claw, but this time both his allies refused. Argilac hoped he could've stalled the Kings Men long enough to open discussions, but without his allies he had no choice but to try and fight. Obviously that was a battle he had lost before it even begun and his men were slaughtered. The King and his dragon were marching for Evenfall Hall, threatening to burn it down to its walls, but before that would happen Argilac already surrendered everything.

After his Reign that wasn't even a year long Argilac rotted in King Daemons' dungeons, while Baelon got control over the Stormlands back. It seemed like Daemon intended to keep the R'hllor favoured Argilac in his dungeons, but after Baelon pressing for it Argilac was sentenced to death by Daemon and fed to his dragon. That way Argilac was the third generation of Tarth to die an unnatural death.

Lord Vaemond of Massey's Hook (Lived: 8033-8082 Ruled: 8075-8082)
Lord Vaemond was already a well-known man, at least in the Stormlands, when he inherited the lands of his father at the age of 42. He was known as one of the most skilled Knights in the whole realm and everybody agreed he was close to a true Knight. He was a brave man, always kept to his vow to never lie. Dutiful and diligent. A man of moderation, a great talker and to top it all of he was a humble man. He seemed to be destined to be one of Tarth greatest rulers, a destiny that never fulfilled itself. Because of his fathers actions a lot of the Stormlord were suspicious of the able man. He himself found himself in a state of depression after his fathers death and the fact that his Liege Lord forced him to give up the rule of the Straiths of Tarth. The High Lordship was then granted to House Langward for their help in the war against Argilacs short run as Lord Paramount. Vaemond however still held the Lordship of Parchment and of course his ancestral seat the island of Tarth. Over the next few years there were disagreements with the Lord of the Kingswood where he claimed that Parchment and Tarth should be under his rule instead. It was around seven years later, that Lord Maelon (who inherited the Stormlands after Baelon was killed, an event that Vaemond wasn't too unhappy about) summoned both lords to Storms End for a trial, where an agreement to this situation was supposed to be found. But on the way from Parchment to Storm's End Vaemond, who was also wounded from a previous engagement, took his last breath of life after living many years in depression. Instead his son Orys was thrown into a position where as his first act as Lord had to face a trial.

Lord Orys of Massey's Hook (Lived: 8048-8087 Ruled: 8082-8087)
The silver-haired Orys rode to Storm's End and took part in the trial. He claimed that the Island of Tarth was his ancestral seat and that nobody even remembered if the House was named after the Island or the Island named after it's ancient rulers. That convinced the Jury, but they did rule that everything else in the High Lordship, namely Parchment which was still held by Orys' first son, shall be under the Lord of Kingswood Rule. Grudgingly Orys agreed to that Judgement. Sadly on his way back to his Island's they were ambushed by robbers when they passed through Kingswood Land and Orys, even though he survived, lost one of his legs in the fight. There never was strong evidence supporting that claim, but many of those loyal to House Tarth whisper that it was the doing of Lord Langward. After only 5 years of rule a weakened Orys died without ever accomplishing much for the glory of his house.

Lord Andrew of Massey's Hook (Lived: 8073-8094 Ruled: 8087-8094)
Andrew was only 13 years old when he as the second born was named the new Lord of Massey's Hook probably since his older brother was under the control of House Langward. He was a diligent and ambitious child, faithful to the seven. Despite this much like his father his impact on the history of the Stormlands was non-existent. Despite never being prone to illness, he practically just died when he was only 21 years old. Patience was one of his virtues, but life was cruel and took him before the patience paid off.

Lord Sarmion of the Straiths of Tarth (Lived: 8093-8113 Ruled: 8094-8113)
Sarmion was barely one year old when his father died. He grew up without a father and was raised by his mother Myrcella Tarth all alone, while a regent ruled in his stead, like it was common. When he turned six years old though something happened that nobody expected. Lord Maelon, still the Ruler of the Stormlands, offered to take the young Sarmion as his ward. Delighted by this prospect Myrcella agreed and the young, silver-haired boy was sent to Kings Landing since Maelon spent most of his time there as Hand of the King. The old man became like a father to Sarmion who had grown up without ever knowing one. Shortly after being sent back to Evenfall Hall though, Sarmion was shocked to hear that Maelon had passed away after contracting the bloody flux. While he saw a father in Maelon he had little to no relation to his son Aegor. However, after not even a year, a time in which Sarmion couldn't even think of how to approach the man who was a real son of his so called father that man died and left a young child to rule in his stead. Without much hope of his proposal to be accepted he asked to take the young ruler as his ward and actually was granted the honor of raising the new Lord Paramount. He talked a lot with the young Lord about his grandfather and came to like him. But still he also used his position of Influence for his own means. Sarmion was known as a rather proud man and he wanted to claim back the lands of his ancestors. The Lordship of Darkship had already fallen back under his control through inheritance and he declared war on House Langward to claim back his old province of Parchment. The enraged Lord of the Kingswood complained to the young Lord that Sarmion was breaking agreements. Aenys himself though was accompanying Sarmio on his conquest. When they met Sarmion mockingly asked Aenys in front of Lord Barristan ”I don't remember agreeing to anything, do you Aenys?”. Since Sarmion also had the help of the Dornish Marches, who were also held by a member of House Tarth, the ambitious House Langward who had clawed their way to one of the strongest Houses in the Stormlands were beaten back and surrendered Parchment, still fueling the hatred both of the families had for eacht other.

It was a glorious day for House Tarth and especially Sarmion though because he proclaimed the High Lordship of the Straiths of Tarth to be existent again, after the Langwards' destroyed the title to strengthen their rule on the lands. Sarmion, still under twenty years old, seemed to be willing and in a position to restore House Tarth to it's glory before Argilacs downfall but then he fell into depression. It was not following a tragic event, the young man just felt depressed daily, every day more and more so – when he fell ill a few months later it didn't help to lift his mood. After a blazing start into his rule, he suddenly stopped and in October 8113 when he was 20 years old he also stopped breathing. Only 22 days after his death his pregnant wife gave birth to a second son, who had the silver hair of his father.

Lord Paramount Selwyn of the Stormlands (Lived: 8110-8178 Ruled: 8113-8178)
Lord Selwyn did not have the silver hair of his father but instead he had auburn hair. He was only three years old when he was named ruler of the Straiths of Tarth and Masseys' Hook and a few weeks later a brother was born. He didn't understand the situation and was known asking where his dad was a lot of the time. Selwyn grew up without his parents. His father died as previously described when he was only three years old and his mother was a Lady in the far north ruling over a Lordship under a Bannerman of the Starks. He had multiple educators over the years, while none of them replaced the lack of a loving parent they all were kind to him. Kindness was one of the first things the young Lord learned. He grew close to his brother most of all people, but Andrew contracted greyscale at a young age and died shortly after his sixth birthday when Selwyn was only nine years old. That fed into his tendency of being shy around people, preferring to stay alone. He also grew up to be a moderate and content adolescent. His regent though tried to push his dejure-claim on Haystack Hall, but the Regent of the Stormlands, the wife of Maelon, denied the request multiple times. When Selwyn turned 14 he married the two years older Marya Baratheon, a daughter of the then ruling Lia Baratheon of the Isles of Orys. He fought House Langward twice for Haystack Hall. The first time Lia Baratheon, his mother in law, decided to side with his enemy straining the relations between the two houses. When instead her son Robert came to power he challenged the Kingswood once again, this time claiming the last province that was part of his dejure lands. It was already granted to the man who would later become the High Septon known as 'the pointless one' who was allowed to keep the lands and became Selwyns spymaster until his election as High Septon.

Selwyn – even though his advisers advised him to push his advantage – was rather happy with what he accomplished. He wasn't too friendly with Lord Paramount Aenys, who refused to help him against the Langwards even though they took no part in a war the Stormlands were involved in, but after he died Lia Targaryen came into power and he respected the woman. House Tarth was strong. He himself controlled Straiths of Tarth and Massey's Hook while a kinsman ruled the Dornish Marches and another one Brightwater. If it would've been up to him things would have just stayed that way for the rest of his lifetime. But things weren't up to him. In 8140 many of the Lord Paramounts were fed up with Aeryn's Rule of Westeros and instead wanted to put Robert Baratheon, who was an ancestor of Aegon after all, on the throne. Lia Targaryen fought for her King and Selwyn fought for Lia. When possible Selwyn didn't take part in the battles themselves but he provided men and strategic insight in battles. Overall his part in the War was obviously rather small, but his dedication brought him respect from fellow Stormlanders. The royal Targaryen family lost the war, but Lia Targaryen and her bannermen, Selwyn included, were spared by the new King Robert. Shortly after the rebellion Selwyn visited Storms' End and, astonishingly to a lot of people, challenged her to a friendly duel. While he put up a decent fight, Lia was not only more skilled with the sword but also less afraid of being hit by one and swiftly won the duel. Some people suspect that Selwyn had something like a 'late crush' on his Lady Paramount. Whatever the reason behind the duel was, the Lord of Evenfall Hall returned to his home and a time of relative peace began. After Robert died and the King called Bloody Ben ascended to the throne, Selwyn had to deal with a few acts of aggression against his rule of both High Lordships he held, but Lady Lia always intervened and stabilized his rule.

Again he could've lived like that until the end of his days which were already pretty long for a man of House Tarth in his direct line, but after Bloody Ben died his son Stannis came into power. It was nothing special, Selwyn had seen rulers die and their heirs come into power multiple times, but Stannis as an heir to the royal family tried to tame the dragon Blackwing and got eaten by it. That led to his one year old son Maric inheriting and the Lords of the Realm question the legitimacy of his rule. Since Aegon every ruler was a dragon rider, but Stannis had failed. The northern Reach proposed that Lia Targaryen, Selwyns Liege and only dragon rider in the world left, should be Queen of Westeros.

The following eight years the realm was in a state of constant war, except for the Westerlands since Lord Tywin Lannister decided to be neutral and support neither side. Like in the wars before Selwyn decided to fully support Lia. Not only did he provide the men he was obliged to provide to Lia, no he rallied the rest of his able soldiers and commanded them himself. First he drove the Pirate King of Storms' End when he tried to sack it and then he embarked his whole army and sailed for Hammerhorn. He helped in the siege of Hammerhorn only to be crushed by the royal army. He and his army fled back into the Stormlands where he engaged a dornish army, but also lost this battle. They managed to flee into their homelands and tried to recruit more young soldiers. With around four thousand men at his disposal Selwyn marched to Storms' End where Lia had reassembled her soldiers and followed the army of his Queen. They won a few victories in the Northern and Southern Reach, before being catched by another royal army. While most commanders, including Selwyn, managed to escape most of the common soldiers died in that battle. Since the war went on and victory seemed pointless many of the commonfolk thought that Lia should just surrender and be done with it. Since she never did a giant peasant army rose up and lay siege to Storms' End. Even though they were no organized army, the Lords of the Stormlands seemed to lack the organization and manpower to lift the siege. After a few years the peasants actually took the city and the leader named himself Lord of Storms' End. It was about the same time, that the supporters of Lia's claim lost all hope and were beaten on all fronts. They surrendered.

The Claw lost lands and were given to a new ruler. The Northern Reach was also given to a new House. Most surprising to Selwyn though was the fact that after Lia was stripped of her status as Lady Paramount, he himself was granted the Rule over the Stormlands. 95 years after Argilac had gained control over the Stormlands by force House Tarth was granted the Lord Paramouncy. His first act of new ruling Lord Paramount of the Stormlands was to attack Storms' End since the peasants had declared themselves as independent from the realm. It didn't take long for the combined force of the Stormlands to siege the castle, but since Selwyn was a kind ruler he allowed the Lord to hold the castle if he would bend the knee to him, an offer he accepted. Lia Targaryen though pressed her claim shortly after and took Storms' End for her own again.

With his old liege now under him he explained to the Lady that he didn't wish for this and he greatly respects her, but that he also had to respect the Kings decision, therefore he and his descendants would rule the Stormlands from now on. However he did promise that Lia Targaryen and her line will always be treated respectfully.

One of his vassals soon inherited land in the Riverlands, after which Lord Tully approached him. He even asked if Selwyn wanted to be compensated, but the relatively fresh Lord was eager to improve his standing with the old houses of Westeros and agreed to hand it over without any compensation.

On the other end he reached out to the northern and southern Reach respectively and asked them if they would return lands they inherited to the Stormlands. The Northern Reach, holding one Lordship, agreed to hand it over just like that – but shortly after he inherited two more Lord Ships, which Selwyn offered a monetary compensation for.

The southern Reach, held by his own grandson, asked for gold in return for the two Lordships, a deal that Selwyn agreed to without much hassle.

After he received the Lands from both Lord Paramouncys of the Reach Selwyn ruled peacefully for two more years, before dying peacefully in his sleep at the age of 68.

Lord Paramount Aenys II of the Stormlands (Lived: 8134-8195 Ruled:8145-8195)
Aenys was born in 8134 as the son of Selwyn and Marya Baratheon. When he was only 11 years old and still a shy young boy his grandmother, the Lady of Withered Heart died and his father Selwyn inherited the lands. He thought that he shouldn't rule them himself and instead decided to send Aenys north. For a few years he ruled in his fathers name and as an official part of the Stormlands, but soon after coming of age and therefore actually ruling himself the Starks got the ruling Targaryens of the Stormlands to return him under their rule.

Aenys grew up in the north and while his Faith and most of the southern customs held true for him, he turned into a real man. In a few short years his master at arms formed him into a skilled swordsman. He even was knighted later in his life, which was not that uncommon seeing how he still clung to the faith of the seven. At least that was his official stance, since personally he had a more cynical outlook on the world and the existence of gods. He took the Lady of Deepwood (a Forrester) as his wife and ruled in the north until news reached him of his fathers death. He had not seen the man in 33 years so it would've been a lie to say he actually griefed, but he felt a moment of sadness. Still he was the rightful heir and so he left the North, but not before renouncing his claim on Last Hearth, so it may remain under Stark rule. In the Stormlands Aenys was called the second of his name, since he was named after one of the Targaryen Lords, which his father tried to please. Most of his rule was certainly pretty peaceful, trying to hold the realm stable. He granted the Targaryens back all the lands of Shipbreakers Bay. On the other Hand the Dornish Marches received all provinces of Summerfield except for Blackhaven, since it was ruled by Lia Targaryens Son Aeryn. Lord Endrew Tarth demanded that he was also granted Blackhaven, since he held the rest of summerfield. Aenys though invited but of the men to Evenfall Hall. After their arrival he made his stance on this clear. He forbid any actions of war between the two, claiming that the commonfolk had suffered enough under the war of the nobles. Instead he ruled that Endrew has to come to terms with the Targaryen himself or he simply wont rule the land. The two argued for two days, back and forth without any progress when Aenys proposed settling the matter in a duel. The possible outcome would certainly favor his kinsman, but Aeryn was known as a better swordsman. The silverhaired Lord was actually ready to agree, but Endrew wasn't confident enough. After Aeryn returned to Storm's End, taunting Endrew to come and fight him if he dares though the Tarth finally agreed and rode after him. In the end Endrew actually won and therefore gained the Lordship of Blackhaven.

It was in Aenys time as Lord Paramount that King Rodrik came into power. Some of his High Lords, mainly Aenys Targaryen, whispered to him. About how the King was mad. Served the wrong god. Unfit to be a ruler. However he explained that as long as Rodrik didn't do anything unjust (since he didnt take his faith too seriously he could't care less about the faith of his king) he would not dare to do anything against the King. Three years later his wife died and Aenys married the at the time 15 year old Randa Belmore and even got a child with her, before passing away in 8195, leaving his son Selwyn to rule.