Lore:Rowolan

Chief Rowolan
Race	Reachman	Gender	Male
Born		1st Era
Died		1st Era The Reach
Resided in		The Reach

"Rowolan sought to kill a king; And free a people; His cause is ours." —The Song of Gwyna

Chief Rowolan was a legendary figure from the oral tradition of the Reachfolk. He was featured prominently in The Song of Gwyna, an epic poem told by Reachfolk Vateshrans throughout generations in numerous different forms. He was a powerful warrior and descended from the demigoddess Dearola.

History

Markarth, the city of the 'king below the rock'

"Chief Rowolan lies dead
Arrow-blinded, breath stilled within
His sons and daughters all around him
As leaves around a mighty oak"

"The massive bough is now fallen
The leaves are fallen with him
So ends the line of Rowolan
His was the blood of Dearola
Daughter of Hircine"

"The Horn-Stride was beaten back
But our heart was cut from us
We smile to one another in victory
The season will pass on to winter
And by next spring we will be gone
As fog in the light of day"
—The Song of Gwyna.

Although no exact date of Rowolan's birth or death is provided, he lived no earlier than 1E 930 and long before 2E 302, when tales of his deeds were considered ancient.

As of 2E 302 numerous stories of Chief Rowolan were already widespread in the Reach, and their translations were published by scholars outside of it. Edited versions of the translation, published in 2E 322 were still commonly found in 2E 582.

Chief Rowolan frequently appeared in various oral tales, though his depictions varied wildly from work to work. One of the preserved fragments of one of the versions of the tale of Chief Rowolan was written by legendary Vateshran Tosmorn and then translated by a foreign scholar Xandier Edette. According to this account, as well as the more modern depictions, Rowolan's near-mythical prowess in battle was attributed to his descent from the demigoddess Dearola, the daughter of the Hircine. In this version of the legend, Gwyna, another prominent figure in Reach tales was depicted as kindred to the Rowolan and his clan as opposed to a huntress of the Horn-Stride clan, a role much more commonly attributed to her in other stories.

There are several different versions of the song, all of which lead to Rowolan's bloodline being killed. Some sources attributed his fall to the Horn-Stride clan to the betrayal on the part of Rowolan's seventh daughter. Other retellings claimed that his fall was caused by his failure to observe the omen of the white hart. Some scholars theorized that his death could be attributed to yet another, hitherto unproposed cause.

The translated fragment of The Song of Gwyna presented one of the ends of this tale, and the demise of Rowolan's bloodline. Chief Rowolan succumbed to his wounds during the battle between his clan and the Horn-Stride clan. The song is narrated by Gwyna, who describes the burial ceremony during which the chief is surrounded by his kin who lament his death and recount the names of the fallen. His clan emerged victorious, but suffered great losses.

Although the clan emerged victorious, Gwyna did not believe that they would survive the upcoming winter. She urged the family and clan of the fallen chief to carry out the next, and the last battle, against the Markarth and the 'king below the rock'. They planned to administer a powerful concoction, that would grant them strength to fight against their powerful foe, but at the cost of their lives, as the draught was a poison that caused their bodies to slowly rot from the inside and their blood to burn akin to fire. Before his death, Rowolan sought to kill a king and free the people of the Reach from tyranny and Gwyna decided to make Rowolan's dream come true. They did not plan to overtake the city and sought no spoils from it. Their goal was to defeat the tyrant. The final stanzas of the song depict Gwyna making her resolve, but the outcome of the tale remains unknown.