Lynnar Lochatlan

Lynnar Lochatlan is a ruined fortress located deep in Ythail Forest, in the Three Fingers region of Anglunia. The keep, built as a defensive bastion of the Yirsi during the times of the human invasion approximately 1600 years ago, switched hands between a number of powerful families of the North before it was ultimately destroyed and nearly levelled to the ground.

Etymology
In olden days the forest where it was built bore the name of Lae nei Aetlaaniya, 'Forest of Secrets', therefore, upon its founding, the fortress was named Locta nei Aetlaaniya, 'Castle of Secrets'. However, as centuries passed, its name was eventually simplified into Lochatlan. After that, every family that ruled over it was commonly referred to as 'the house of Lochatlan', which eventually transformed into the name of the single noble house that ruled over the keep longer than others, House Lochatlan.

Early history
Lynnar Lochatlan was first founded in the age of human invasion, presumably in order to serve as a border fortification. The name of its original founder has been lost to time, but it is generally considered that they were a member of one of Three Fingers' many minor families that were vying for control over the region.

Little notice remains of the castle's many owners, but the family chronicles of House Lochatlan say that it was claimed by a guardsman by the name Valeon, who served under the commander of Locta nei Aetlaaniya about 900 years ago. One night, when the castle was heavily stormed by a large warband, the attackers broke into the courtyard and managed to kill the commander who was personally leading the defence. Valeon, facing a close defeat, took the command and held the castle until reinforcements from a nearby settlement came to their aid. The enemy was bound by fight, and Valeon led a sortie to pressure them on both sides. Eventually, the warband routed, Valeon was praised as the saviour of the castle and chosen to supervise it by his comrades.

The new commander, a valiant soldier and a wise leader, took a daughter of the previous commander as his wife, and, a few decades later, proclaimed that the ownership of the castle is to be passed down within his family. Many were unhappy with such a decision, but, eventually, the commander's seat was obtained by his son, and his son afterwards.

Centuries later the castle's garrison started a mutiny that ended with death of the commander. His family fled the castle and took residence in a village a few miles north of it. The person who took over the keep crowned himself the lord of Lynnar Lochatlan and demanded that every settlement of Three Fingers obeyed him. However, one of Valeon's descendants by the name of Betlian called upon those who declined the lord's demand and rallied an army to reclaim the castle. The war was long, its battles fierce, but eventually, not Betlian but his son Liannest won the castle back. The new lord united the settlements around it and declared that from that point forward they would live and fight together, with him being the sovereign lord of Lynnar Lochatlan, Liannest nei Betlian nei Lochatlan.

Destruction
In the year 72 TE, the lands controlled by the lord of Lynnar Lochatlan were attacked by the forces of the newly founded Kingdom of Anglunia. Elinnon Thalyr-Lochatlan, Liannest's grandson, led a successful defence, backed by the minor houses of Three Fingers. Although the forces were far from matched, few in numbers, the troops of Lochatlans knew their lands better than anyone else and fought back fiercely. The enemies to the West were stopped and Elinnon, intoxicated with his success, personally led the counterattack to once and for all drive the invaders away from the region. However, his rashness led him to pay dearly when, in the heat of battle, his personal guard got surrounded and the enemies cut off the way out. It wasn't long before Elinnon's head was taken off and mounted on a pike, his army routed and the invaders marched straight on the castle, now led only by Elinnon's niece, Pelira.

The army of Lochatlan was scattered, and the castle was manned with a little over 800 guardsmen. Anglunians drew in more forces and launched a siege of Lynnar Lochatlan, a siege that lasted over two years. The castle was suffering from attrition and famine, its last days were drawing near. Facing an impending defeat, Pelira fled the castle with a bunch of her loyal servants, leaving Lynnar Lochatlan to its fate. Eventually, during its last battle, the fortress was destroyed, and with it Lochatlans lost all their power.

Reclamation
One century later, Onsyr of the nearby town of Norstaeyya Hadanna Alsey-Lochatlan firmly decided that her family was going to restore Lynnar Lochatlan to its past glory. She tasked her daughter Mash Dardellan-Lochatlan with the responsibility of rebuilding the castle in order to reclaim the lands of her ancestors. They made an appeal to yirsidan Zehros Elzar-Rezuraia to recognise the castle as a separate fief, thus making Mash its cayraesan. However, being a modest woman and a priest of Arternaia, Mash wasn't interested in having a castle of her own, so she kept delaying the preparations for years, until in the year 178 TE she suffered in a fire and became incapacitated. As a cripple, she lost all her will for life, and rebuilding the castle now was the last of her concerns.

But with the return of her daughter Silikko Warrie-Lochatlan, the house got a new heir that was still standing on her feet. Mash passed down her title to Silikko, and the latter decided to make the idea of their ancestral home's restoration come true.