The Izmer Campaign
The Izmer campaign is based on the D&D Movies. As Izmer, the setting of the D&D movies was inspired by Alphatia, the Izmer Campaign is an homage to the perhaps not too successful movies.
Part I: The Rod of Savrille
The events of part I of the Izmer campaign are set in Alphatia AC 910*
The young empress Savina is ruler of Alphatia at this time. However, she is threatened by the head of the Council of Wizards, Lord Profion and his ally Lord Damodar, who seek to overthrow her. Empress Savina possesses a sceptre that controls Gold Dragons. Lord Profion therefore seeks out the the Rod of Savrille, a Rod that gives the wielder control of Red Dragons. In the end the empress gains control of both rods, defeating Lord Profion. Seeing that all is lost, Lord Profion curses Lord Damodar, forcing him to spend a century in the Entropic Plane of Pyts as an undead.
*Note: Since Lord Damodar will be imprisoned for 100 years, it is only fair to have him be released again in AC1010. The AC900 era was also a surprisingly quiet time in Alphatian history.
Part II: Wrath of The Dragon Fiend
The events of part II of the Izmer campaign are set in Surshield in AC1010
Due to the magical disruptions caused by the Doomsday Machine, Damodar is released from his long time imprisonment in the Plane of Pyts after 100 years. Since Alphatia is destroyed, he finds his way to Bellisaria. Lord Damodar is now a servant of Entropy and he attempts to summon a gargantuan Black Dragon named Faradul to destroy Bellisaria. He is also aided by Klaxx the Malign, a Lich of unknown origins. Sadly, his plot is thwarted. Falazure is slain and Lord Damodar is imprisoned.
Using the Movies
The first movie was very generic with only locations to worry about in terms of using the plotline and characters. The second movie had several D&D/Greyhawk-ish references, but most were just that – references, having little or no impact on the actual plot. Here are my suggestions for substitutes.
The Empire of Izmer (DDI) – Empire of Alphatia
City of Sumdall (DDI) - City of Sundsvall, capital of Alphatia
The Kingdom of Ismir (DDII) – Kingdom of Surshield
Queen Melora of Ismir (DDII) – Queen Gratia of Surshield
Obad Hai (DDII) - Ordana
Jubilex(DDII) – Jammudaru(Vaprak)
Drow (DDII) -Shadow elves. Hardly the same creatures, but it makes no difference in the movie.
Håvard
1090 BC: On the Alphatians' world, the Followers of Flame begin their serious rivalry with the Followers of Air. (DotE)
1050 BC: Great wizards of the Nithians, inspired by the Immortal Pflarr's servant race (the Hutaaka), create the gnoll race by magically blending trolls and gnomes. But they've been deluded that the results might be an equivalent servant-race for the Nithians; instead, the gnolls turn out to be savage, strong, warlike, and prolific. They rebel; they escape and later invade Karameikos. Nithian priests visit the Shamans of Oenkmar. Atzanteotl is increasingly offended.
1027 BC: On the Alphatians' world, sporadic violence breaks out between the Followers of Flame and Followers of Air. (DotE)
1010 BC: On the Alphatians' world, a temporary peace results from one academian's proposal of the Flame vs. Air essay debate. (DotE)
1009 BC: On the Alphatians' world, Emperor Alphaks I arbitrarily declares the Flames to have won the debate. Outrage, protest, rebellion and revolt result; the Followers of Flame war with the Followers of Air. (DotE)
1000 BC: On the Alphatians' world, the war between the Followers of Air and Followers of Flame reaches its zenith. The Followers of Flame are defeated. Alphaks is banished. Old Alphatia is destroyed; the Followers of Air come to the Known World to settle on the great continent they name Alphatia, bringing along natural strains of wolf and tiger lycanthropy. They proceed to build a mighty empire based on magic. (DotE)
192 BC: The Alphatians, annoyed by the piratical activities of the Thyatian tribes, launch a campaign to conquer Thyatis. (DotE)
190 BC: The Alphatians complete their conquest of Thyatis; Thyatis is now part of the Alphatian empire. (DotE)
2 BC: Lucinius Trenzantenbium, a Thyatian-born, Alphatian-trained wizard, kills the Alphatian wizards in Thyatis and declares himself King of Thyatis; war breaks out between Thyatis and Alphatia. (DotE)
0 AC: The economies of both Thyatis and Alphatia have been wrecked by the war; the two powers conduct a peace treaty in the city of Edairo, the capital of Thothia (on the Isle of Dawn). Later, in Thyatis, General Zendrolion Tatriokanitas assassinates King Lucinius and several other kings gathered there, and crowns himself Emperor of Thyatis, Ochalea and the Pearl Islands. The Thyatians celebrate for weeks. Thyatians do some trading with Minroth islanders. (DotE)
250 AC: The Alphatians begin colonising into the northern and central coastal plain of Ylaruam, enslaving and scattering the indigenous population. Some of the Ylari driven out by the Alphatian and Thyatian aggression migrate to Darokin. The Alphatians also found the colony of New Alphatia on the Isle of Dread; Alphatian magic is adapted to seafaring needs. (GAZ2/DotE)
Alphatian settlers colonise the side of Trader's Isle left uninhabited by the Minroth traders. At first they fight, but soon trade wins over war. (DotE)
500 AC: The Colonial Wars. Thyatian and Alphatian colonies in Ylaruam begin what will become three centuries of warfare. The Alasiyan tribes are constantly feuding.
Conflict between Alphatian and Thyatian empires begins; Minroth traders maintain neutrality and dominate merchant shipping for both sides.
510 AC: A Northrock chief named Qeodhar organises his people and persuades the Alphatian emperor to accept his nation as a subject territory of Alphatia.
700 AC: Warfare intensifies between Alphatian and Thyatian colonies in Ylaruam.
728 AC: The Alphatian colonies in Ylaruam destroy the Thyatian colonies there; Thyatian colonists flee.
* 890 AC: Savina is born. She will be Empress of Alphatia during the Izmer campaign.
* 895 AC: Lord Profion becomes head of the Council of Wizards.
* 910 AC: The young empress Savina is ruler of Alphatia at this time. However, she is threatened by the head of the Council of Wizards, Lord Profion and his ally Lord Damodar, who seek to overthrow her. Empress Savina possesses a sceptre that controls Gold Dragons. Lord Profion therefore seeks out the the Rod of Savrille, a Rod that gives the wielder control of Red Dragons. In the end the empress gains control of both rods, defeating Lord Profion. Seeing that all is lost, Lord Profion curses Lord Damodar, forcing him to spend a century in the Entropic Plane of Pyts as an undead.
959 AC: Alphatia begins another direct war upon Thyatis.
1000 AC: Gazetteer Era
1003-1010 AC: Wrath of the Immortals. Alphatia destroyed.
*1010 AC: Due to the magical disruptions caused by the Doomsday Machine, Damodar is released from his long time imprisonment in the Plane of Pyts after
100 years. Since Alphatia is destroyed, he finds his way to Bellisaria. Lord Damodar is now a servant of Entropy and he attempts to summon a gargantuan Black Dragon named Faradul to destroy Bellisaria. He is also aided by Klaxx the Malign, a Lich of unknown origins. Sadly, his plot is thwarted. Falazure is slain and Lord Damodar is imprisoned.
Note: Timeline events were shamelessly cut&pasted from http://www.pandius.com/timepwa.html with the exception of the events marked with a * indicating them to be linked to the Izmer Campaign.
Håvard
Aside from the fact that I wish the D&D Movie had never existed, and don't want its wretched excuse for a plot anywhere near Mystara, I gotta point out one minor timeline bit that throws a rather large wrench into the works of the proposed timeline. Namely, AC 919 was the year that Tylion IV assumed the Alphatian throne, taking over for his mother Tylari who abdicated to quest for Immortality. (This doesn't appear in any timeline documents, but is referenced in Tylion's DotE writeup.)
If some Natalie Portman knockoff is supposedly the Empress of Alphatia in AC 910, then that gives us three rulers in less than a decade - pretty surprising, especially given the long lives of Alphatian wizard-lords.
Shane
Aside from the fact that I wish the D&D Movie had never existed, and don't want its wretched excuse for a plot anywhere near Mystara,
That is IMO the main point: the movie is so bad that, if I were Havard, I'd be looking out for Greyhawk connections just to shake it off Mystara :P
If some Natalie Portman knockoff is supposedly the Empress of Alphatia in AC 910,
Yeah, I suppose it doesn't hold. (It would if it was the real Natalie Portman, though ;) -- so Havard & Shane, why don't you try finding connections between Star Wars and Mystara :P ).
Havard, you're starting to scare me, man.
Hehe, yeah I know :D
Although I care as little for the movie (the first one anyway) as you do, I like exploring Mystara apocrypha, which is the term I have begun using for these items that may have some Mystara connection though not an explicit one.
Ofcourse, I was further drawn to Izmer after discovering the files written by Dave Arneson. Also, the second movie wasnt THAT bad, though it has even less of a connection to Mystara. Giampaolo: This is where it is easy to find GH references.
Aside from the fact that I wish the D&D Movie had never existed, and don't want its wretched excuse for a plot anywhere near Mystara, I gotta point out one minor timeline bit that throws a rather large wrench into the works of the proposed timeline. Namely, AC 919 was the year that Tylion IV assumed the Alphatian throne, taking over for his mother Tylari who abdicated to quest for Immortality. (This doesn't appear in any timeline documents, but is referenced in Tylion's DotE writeup.)
I knew I should have investigated the Royal NPCs. This was actually another reasony why I wanted to do this timeline. The existing timelines on Alphatia seem to be extremely lacking in detail.
Some more elements that should be included in the timeline:
AC 919: Empress Tylari abdicates to quest for Immortality. Tylion IV becomes the new Emperor.
AC 920: Eriadna the Wise is born.
AC 960: Emperor Tylion IV blamed for the failed attack on Thyatis and forced to step down. His daughter Eriadna the Wise becomes the new empress.
If some Natalie Portman knockoff is supposedly the Empress of Alphatia in AC 910, then that gives us three rulers in less than a decade - pretty surprising, especially given the long lives of Alphatian wizard-lords.
Yeah, that doesnt make sense. I'd say the best fix is either to make Empress Savine Emperess Tylari or Empress Eriadna. My favored choice then is actually the latter. If one still wants to make use of the plot from the second movie (with Damodar's return) can easily ignore the 100 years of inprisonment reference. If the movie events occur just after Eriadna assumes the throne, then he would have 50 years in Pyts before returning in AC1010.
Håvard
1090 BC: On the Alphatians' world, the Followers of Flame begin their serious rivalry with the Followers of Air. (DotE)
1050 BC: Great wizards of the Nithians, inspired by the Immortal Pflarr's servant race (the Hutaaka), create the gnoll race by magically blending trolls and gnomes. But they've been deluded that the results might be an equivalent servant-race for the Nithians; instead, the gnolls turn out to be savage, strong, warlike, and prolific. They rebel; they escape and later invade Karameikos. Nithian priests visit the Shamans of Oenkmar. Atzanteotl is increasingly offended.
1027 BC: On the Alphatians' world, sporadic violence breaks out between the Followers of Flame and Followers of Air. (DotE)
1010 BC: On the Alphatians' world, a temporary peace results from one academian's proposal of the Flame vs. Air essay debate. (DotE)
1009 BC: On the Alphatians' world, Emperor Alphaks I arbitrarily declares the Flames to have won the debate. Outrage, protest, rebellion and revolt result; the Followers of Flame war with the Followers of Air. (DotE)
1000 BC: On the Alphatians' world, the war between the Followers of Air and Followers of Flame reaches its zenith. The Followers of Flame are defeated. Alphaks is banished. Old Alphatia is destroyed; the Followers of Air come to the Known World to settle on the great continent they name Alphatia, bringing along natural strains of wolf and tiger lycanthropy. They proceed to build a mighty empire based on magic. (DotE)
192 BC: The Alphatians, annoyed by the piratical activities of the Thyatian tribes, launch a campaign to conquer Thyatis. (DotE)
190 BC: The Alphatians complete their conquest of Thyatis; Thyatis is now part of the Alphatian empire. (DotE)
2 BC: Lucinius Trenzantenbium, a Thyatian-born, Alphatian-trained wizard, kills the Alphatian wizards in Thyatis and declares himself King of Thyatis; war breaks out between Thyatis and Alphatia. (DotE)
0 AC: The economies of both Thyatis and Alphatia have been wrecked by the war; the two powers conduct a peace treaty in the city of Edairo, the capital of Thothia (on the Isle of Dawn). Later, in Thyatis, General Zendrolion Tatriokanitas assassinates King Lucinius and several other kings gathered there, and crowns himself Emperor of Thyatis, Ochalea and the Pearl Islands. The Thyatians celebrate for weeks. Thyatians do some trading with Minroth islanders. (DotE)
250 AC: The Alphatians begin colonising into the northern and central coastal plain of Ylaruam, enslaving and scattering the indigenous population. Some of the Ylari driven out by the Alphatian and Thyatian aggression migrate to Darokin. The Alphatians also found the colony of New Alphatia on the Isle of Dread; Alphatian magic is adapted to seafaring needs. (GAZ2/DotE)
Alphatian settlers colonise the side of Trader's Isle left uninhabited by the Minroth traders. At first they fight, but soon trade wins over war. (DotE)
500 AC: The Colonial Wars. Thyatian and Alphatian colonies in Ylaruam begin what will become three centuries of warfare. The Alasiyan tribes are constantly feuding.
Conflict between Alphatian and Thyatian empires begins; Minroth traders maintain neutrality and dominate merchant shipping for both sides.
510 AC: A Northrock chief named Qeodhar organises his people and persuades the Alphatian emperor to accept his nation as a subject territory of Alphatia.
700 AC: Warfare intensifies between Alphatian and Thyatian colonies in Ylaruam.
728 AC: The Alphatian colonies in Ylaruam destroy the Thyatian colonies there; Thyatian colonists flee.
AC 919: Empress Tylari abdicates to quest for Immortality. Tylion IV becomes the new Emperor.
AC 920: Eriadna the Wise is born.
959 AC: Alphatia begins another direct war upon Thyatis.
AC 960: Emperor Tylion IV blamed for the failed attack on Thyatis and forced to step down. His daughter Eriadna the Wise becomes the new empress.
* 960 AC: Empress Eriadna is threatened by members of the Council of Wizards, Lord Profion and his ally Lord Damodar, who seek to overthrow her. Empress Savina possesses a sceptre that controls Gold Dragons. Lord Profion therefore seeks out the the Rod of Savrille, a Rod that gives the wielder control of Red Dragons. In the end the empress gains control of both rods, defeating Lord Profion. Seeing that all is lost, Lord Profion curses Lord Damodar, forcing him to spend a century in the Entropic Plane of Pyts as an undead.
1000 AC: Gazetteer Era
1003-1010 AC: Wrath of the Immortals. Alphatia destroyed.
*1010 AC: Due to the magical disruptions caused by the Doomsday Machine, Damodar is released from his long time imprisonment in the Plane of Pyts after 50 years. Since Alphatia is destroyed, he finds his way to Bellisaria. Lord Damodar is now a servant of Entropy and he attempts to summon a gargantuan Black Dragon named Faradul to destroy Bellisaria. He is also aided by Klaxx the Malign, a Lich of unknown origins. Sadly, his plot is thwarted. Falazure is slain and Lord Damodar is imprisoned.
Note: Most of the timeline events were either shamelessly cut&pasted from http://www.pandius.com/timepwa.html or from DotE with the exception of the events marked with a * indicating them to be linked to the Izmer Campaign.
If I were to reconcile the events of the movies (or at least the first) with Alphatia's history, I would prefer to put it all rather early in Alphatia's history on Mystara, since it's both a period we know very little of, and it would also explain why there are name shifts. Perhaps some of the founders preferred "Izmer" and officially named the new empire so, but it didn't stick, and everybody just called it "Alphatia" like they were used to. Of course, it still has to be long enough after landfall to establish a few old wizards in the empire, or we'd have no Rod of Savrille.
What I don't get is the reference to Damodar as a wizard. Judging by the first movie, I would have thought he was a warrior. I mean, he's leader of Izmer's elite fighting unit, the Crimson Brigade, so how can he be a wizard?
Also, IIRC, there were scenes deleted from the first movie or perhaps just from the script which establish that Savrina is empress because her father was assassinated, and that he was secretly killed by Damodar on Profion's orders. Not sure where I read that, but it might have been on the movie's site when it came out... Still there is mention of it here:
http://www.hallofhero.com/dndmovie/savina.cfm
I don't see why you're so eager to put the events of the second movie (which I should admit that I have not seen) in AC 1010. Is there some special reason for that?
No major reason. The arguments I'm considering for the placement in time of D&D2 are:
* Damodar is imprisoned for 100 years after D&D1
* Ismir/Izmer is said to be a kingdom in D&D2
* I don't want this movie set too far into the future of the Mystara timeline.
So the AC1010 placement is not neccesarily something we have to use.
If I were to reconcile the events of the movies (or at least the first) with Alphatia's history, I would prefer to put it all rather early in Alphatia's history on Mystara, since it's both a period we know very little of, and it would also explain why there are name shifts. Perhaps some of the founders preferred "Izmer" and officially named the new empire so, but it didn't stick, and everybody just called it "Alphatia" like they were used to. Of course, it still has to be long enough after landfall to establish a few old wizards in the empire, or we'd have no Rod of Savrille.
I noticed that you mentioned something like this in one of the other threads from way back. Do you have any suggestions for a date where it could be placed?
What I don't get is the reference to Damodar as a wizard. Judging by the first movie, I would have thought he was a warrior. I mean, he's leader of Izmer's elite fighting unit, the Crimson Brigade, so how can he be a wizard?
You are right. I seemed to recall him casting a spell or two, but I havent watched it in years. The link you provided also has him as a Rogue/warrior.
Also, IIRC, there were scenes deleted from the first movie or perhaps just from the script which establish that Savrina is empress because her father was assassinated, and that he was secretly killed by Damodar on Profion's orders. Not sure where I read that, but it might have been on the movie's site when it came out... Still there is mention of it here:
http://www.hallofhero.com/dndmovie/savina.cfm
These facts should also be worked into the campaign if possible I agree!
Thanks for the URL. Quite useful!
Håvard
No major reason. The arguments I'm considering for the placement in time of D&D2 are:
* Damodar is imprisoned for 100 years after D&D1
* Ismir/Izmer is said to be a kingdom in D&D2
* I don't want this movie set too far into the future of the Mystara timeline.
What I'm really wondering here is whether Ismir and Izmer is the same. There is little doubt Izmer is an empire in the first film seeing as how Savina is an empress, unless the title is more based on hereditary customs dating back to the empire of Old Alphatia, while Izmer/Ismir really hasn't grown to a size in population or landmass that would support the idea of it being an empire. Somehow arrogant presumption like that is appropriate to very traditional Alphatians, particularly among the more arrogant wizards.
Either way, it all seems to beg an explanation as to how Izmer/Ismir went from an apparent empire in the first movie to a "mere" kingdom in the second. The easiest explanation is that the wizards were just so arrogant that they insisted on calling their nation an empire, I think.
I noticed that you mentioned something like this in one of the other threads from way back. Do you have any suggestions for a date where it could be placed?
Well, not particularly, but it always struck as odd how Ridley (the protagonist of the first movie) was eager "give those mages some payback" in the first movie - for a rogue in a very old Alphatian empire that would seem to me to be a very strange idea. Another reason is the thieves guild we see in the first movie, and Ridley even introduces himself as a member of the Sumdall guild. Yet DotE tells us that there are no such guilds on the Alphatian mainland because the concentration of mages hunts them down with spells like ESP and so (DotE, player's guide to Alphatia, p.19 under "Criminal Societies").
And yet I agree that if Izmer/Ismir is Alphatia, then naturally Sumdall must be Sundsvall, so it makes sense to me only if it is all set very early in the days of the new empire while it was still just establishing itself and conquering the local "barbarians".
Another thing to consider is that the opening of the first movie actually says that "the empire of Izmer has long been a divided land," yet there is no real description of what that means. One clue could be that the first movies tells that the Rod of Savrille that the heroes seek caused "The Great War". Of course, that's a very convenient thing to say, but since one point of the first movie is that control of dragons impacts magic and that Savrille was cursed for making a rod that controls red dragons, the war would seem to one that involved dragons. Personally, I would think that the only conflict worthy of that title would be the war between the Followers of Air and the Followers of Fire on Old Alphatia, but it is also possible that the Alphatians had an internal war upon arriving on Mystara.
Maybe the Alphatians did found a new Alphatia, but divided into different nations that had no official connection to each other, and Izmer is simply the more central and traditional nation, later divided into several new nations, at least one of which would be Vertiloch.
As to where to place it on the timeline, that's a good question. I'd prefer it to be pretty early in Alphatia's day, but as I said before, there needs to be time for ancient wizards like Savrille to die and create their tombs. That said, Savrille could be a wizard who survived the destruction of Old Alphatia and then went to Mystara. That would make him a great archmage, which would also serve to explain why he could create a rod that controls dragons when Profion - said to be the most powerful wizard of his day - could not. Simply put, Savrille knew arcane magical secrets from Old Alphatia that are lost to Profion. Conveniently fitting somehow, I think.
So, I'd put the whole thing somewhere after BC 900, but before the Thothians join the Alphatian Empire in BC 500. If Profion had Damodar kills Savina's father, then he could have been Kerothar II or III, if we are to reconcile it all. Still, it naturally means that Savina's dream of making commoners and aristocrats failed. Or maybe she was just a really sly young woman who used the whole matter to rid herself of the Grand Council that would check her power, as I recall someone once suggested. Then again, that would completely contradict the movie and any description of Savina. It's more probable that the council eventually turned on her and banned her idealist notions of equality. Though she may have won the war and killed Profion, mages tend to be sore about that sort of thing, particularly in Alphatia, and her harsh use of force might have united the otherwise quarrelling aristocrats against her, and eventually forced her resignation or death. I'd say put the first movie around BC 750 and the second around BC 650.
You are right. I seemed to recall him casting a spell or two, but I havent watched it in years. The link you provided also has him as a Rogue/warrior.
Yeah, I think it's very strange that it lists him as a rogue/fighter. When did Damodar ever do anything that would suggest he was a rogue (even a partial one)?!? He did cast a few magical effects, but I always had the impression (from the first film) that these were merely powers bestowed upon him by Profion through spells or through magical items.
These facts should also be worked into the campaign if possible I agree!
Thanks for the URL. Quite useful!
My pleasure. Still, I do find some of those stats questionable. I mean, is Damodar really a dual-classed fighter/thief? If so, then why is he apparently a wizard in the second movie? And Profion being list as merely level 19 seems a little low, when OD&D wizards must usually be level 36 to be on the council, and Profion is said to be the most powerful wizard around... Not that the stats matter much, though.
EDIT: If you're doing a campaign based on the first movie, you'll definitely want to check out this link: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/article.asp?x=movie/mx20001208c
Personally, I would think that the only conflict worthy of that title would be the war between the Followers of Air and the Followers of Fire on Old Alphatia, but it is also possible that the Alphatians had an internal war upon arriving on Mystara.
There seem to be definite implications of such a thing, notably in Aasla's founding of Haven and the wall between that land and Vertiloch. There are also noticeable walls between some of the southern kingdoms, such as Randel and Theranderol. And they're not small walls, either- they're on the order of the Great Wall of China size (or at least Hadrian's Wall size, if they aren't necessarily gigantic fortifications). Either way suggests some degree of unrest.
Yeah, I think it's very strange that it lists him as a rogue/fighter. When did Damodar ever do anything that would suggest he was a rogue (even a partial one)?!? He did cast a few magical effects, but I always had the impression (from the first film) that these were merely powers bestowed upon him by Profion through spells or through magical items.
The stats on that page seem to be just some fan's idea of what/how the characters should appear. The official stats for Damodar (from issue #280 of Dragon Magazine) list him as a 10th level Fighter.
(Also, in case anyone is interested, Ridley is a Ftr1/Rog2; Snails is a Rog3; Marina is a Wiz3; Norda is an elven Rng7; Elwood dwarf Bbn3; Profion Wiz15).
There are several articles in Dragon about the movie that you might want to look at if you wish to flesh things out- #251 has an interview with Justin Whalin, Dragon #278 has an interview with "Elwood" and some info about the movie, Dragon #279 has an interview with "Damodar", and the aforementioned #280 has stats for the major characters, some info on magic items (Royal Rod of Dragon Control, Portal Dust, Quicksand Rug, Rod of Savrille), an interview with "Marina", and some other tidbits.
While I never saw the first movie, I did see the second, and I'm pretty sure that Damodar is a wizard of some sort in that one (I don't remember too many details about the movie). They make a big deal about multiclassing in the second movie (with the wizard/cleric character), so I suppose Damodar must have picked up some tricks from Profion, and become a multiclass Ftr/Wiz somehow during his imprisonment? (Or else, he always was, and just never really used his magic in the first movie).
There seem to be definite implications of such a thing, notably in Aasla's founding of Haven and the wall between that land and Vertiloch. There are also noticeable walls between some of the southern kingdoms, such as Randel and Theranderol. And they're not small walls, either- they're on the order of the Great Wall of China size (or at least Hadrian's Wall size, if they aren't necessarily gigantic fortifications). Either way suggests some degree of unrest.
I know, but I always got the impression that those walls and fortifications were made from later hostilities among the nations, once the empire had grown so big, that the rulers focused more on fighting each other than on conquering new lands away from the mainland. Certainly the massive defenses of Randel and Theranderol seem to have come about over centuries of conflict.
Not so sure about Haven and Vertiloch, though... Given the Immortal Alphatia's philosophies, I don't find it unlikely that she might have been someone more inclined to follow Savina's ideals - if to a lesser degree, since Alphatia doesn't actually preach equality between commoners and mages - and so found the city of Aasla on similar principles. But over the centuries, Alphatia just found common ground, or at least managed to set up ways of settling their disputes in less destructive ways. Dueling might be one way.