Setting Information

MKFH, Iberian Peninsula, 1066.

Sancho Garcés III, king of Navarra, was the greatest king in Spania, everyone looked up to him, from the Mediterranean to the tomb of Apóstol Santiago in Compostela. He did as he wanted, such was his power and influence. His sons received a handsome inheritance: the bastard, Ramiro, got Aragón, Segorbe y Ribagorza; Fernando got Castilla as his own kingdom; and the oldest of the brothers got Navarra, his birthright, but much diminished as he was unruly and cruel and the least favorite. Fernando was much as his father: he went and killed his own brother-in-law, Bermudo III of León, and robbed his kingdom, becoming king of both Castilla and León. At least everything from the Pyreness to Galicia was a single political unity. But, it was not to be, when Fernando I died he bequeathed a swathe of territory to each of his sons, every one of them becoming a king in their own right: Sancho II ruled Castilla, Alfonso VI ruled his mother's realm of León and García, the youngest, got himself carved a kingdom of Galicia. Now, the house of Jimena holds all the Iberian kingdoms, yet every one of them are at each others' throats, always fighting to reclaim inheritances or become the most powerful monarch in Spania. On the meanwhile, the moors are yet an imposing force and even if humbled and subject to tribute many are regaining strenght and across the Strait lays the greatest threat, the Empire of the Almoravids, seeking to reclaim the lost land in Iberia, to restore Al-Andalus and the caliphate.

Dramatis personae (abridged):

-Sancho II of Castilla: you are the eldest son of Fernando I, yet your inheritance was unrightfully divided among your siblings, of them two Alfonso, your father's favorite and dearest son, got Leon, the imperial seat of your mother's kin. You are proud, ambitious and headstrong, will kneel to no-one or stop at nothing to regain all the kingdoms under your crown.

-Alfonso VI of León: you are the second-born, the dearest child of Fernando I, who made you king of León, the mightiest realm in the peninsula. You are not only the smartest of all your kindred, but also brave and stubborn as a raging bull, from head to toe determined not only to rule, but to rule over them all. Your brothers be damned, yours is the lion's share and yours should be the empire of All the Spains.

-García I of Galicia: your kingdom was made for you, carved from your brother Alfonso's kingdom. It is a fragile dominion, but you hold the tomb of the Apostle in Compostela and the lands beyond the county of Portucale might be your chance to grasp glory and avoid being engulfed by the war that will soon rage between your older and far more ambitious brothers.

-Urraca of Zamora: your father left you a wealthy domain, centered around Zamora, yet he forbid you to marry, else the city and its lands go to someone too daring and claim the kingdoms of your brothers. You are as close as a most beloved sister can be to Alfonso of León, your cherised brother, who you counsel and support against your older sibling, Sancho of Castilla.

-Elvira of Toro: you got the same deal than Urraca, yet you are less dubious and scheming and decided to be content with your lot of inheritance, not having intervened yet in the fraternal conflicts unfolding before you.

-Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar: you are Sancho's standard-bearer and right-hand man. A valiant, brave, yet slightly unscrupulous and dubious and arrogant. You are member of the highest and most powerful aristocracy in Castilla, both in the maternal -your mother was daughter to a lord, Rodrigo Álvarez- and the paternal sides -your father was of the Flaines of León, counts and high lords in the kingdom. You are poised to glory at Sancho's side and undoubtedly you are a very strong warrior.

-Gonzalo Núñez de Lara and Iñigo López, señor de Vizcaya: you both are two influential lords, first of your line to reach true prominence. You are crafty and well-liked, maybe you will be the start of two families of power in the Iberian kingdoms.

What will you do? Unite the realms? Help one brother against another to gain power? Will you push the frontiers of Christendom to the South? The Iberian Peninsula stands on its crossroads...