he current protectorate of Keril is situated directly west of the capital, close to the city of Mountain's Reach and Rennod Pass, the major pass through the Sword of the World Mountains. It is based upon the ancient kingdom of Keril, although the borders have been substantially modified in recent times, as we shall see below.
The Kingdom of Keril first appears to recorded history in 1064 BA, when it is briefly mentioned in the Luce Grammarye. It seemed already to be known as a bitter enemy of the neighbouring Fen'neko; indeed, Fen'neko records mention hostile contacts between The People and Humans in the Fen'neko province of Low Norlan as early as 1140 BA (see the map of The People's territories before Mobius).
It is clear that The People and Humans fought continually over the area of land between the two rivers, and just to east of the present day city, Mountain's Reach. At times the upper boundary of Keril extended all the way almost to the borders of The People's province of Yamar, while at other times The People controlled everything north of the Aethry river. By about 800 BA the border between Human and People territory seems to have been established at the place shown on the map. The capital city of Keril (the eponymous city of Keril), was established by King Helm Lavrastuys in 760 BA on the southern bank of the Aethry river, and, after a further series of conflicts with The People of Low Norlan, his grandson Helm II founded the fortress city of Mountain's Reach in 735 BA.
Mountain's Reach was designed principally as a fortress, rather than a place of commerce, with its principal purpose being to protect the northern borders of Keril from excursions from The People of Low Norlan. It's original plan was that of a fortified city enclosing a citadel fortress on the acropolis, and this plan has been mostly retained to the present day. The most drastic change was made by the High King Forthar MacFearson, who, after the disastrous battle of Norlan Creek in 329 BA, strengthened and extended the fortifications of the city and the citadel. The citadel was reconstructed in a concentric plan, the sides of the acropolis were steepened, and a new citadel keep (modelled after the famed keep of Makchatun) was constructed by imported Dwarven Engineers. To this day, the citadel of Mountain's Reach has never been taken by storm or siege, and stands as an enduring symbol of military might.
During the first Unification War, Keril was conquered in 655 BA by the First High King, Balmord the Red, but played no significant role in this war. Balmord had ambitions to conquer The People, but his premature death at the siege of Makchatun prevented their realisation.
During the second Unification war, Keril was conquered again in 344 BA by Forthar MacFearson. In 330 BA Mountain's Reach and Keril were used as important staging posts for the invasion of The People's territory. However, upon the defeat of Forthar MacFearson at the battle of Norlan Creek the border between Keril and Low Norlan remained unchanged.
Keril did not rise to prominence again in Human affairs until the wars of Mobius against the Darshak. Keril was one of the Human kingdoms that joined with Mobius, and fought on his side in the Battle of Tears. The Kingdom of Keril was turned into the protectorate of Keril, but its borders remained essentially unchanged from their ancient positions.
In the year 233 the Ghorak Zo invaded Shan Deral, and Keril appears once more as a major player on the historical stage. Upon the defeat of the Ghorak Zo (a story to be told in detail elsewhere), they were given the city of Mountain's Reach, and charged with the defence of the Ascendancy. The People's province of Low Norlan, the northern portions of Keril around Mountain's Reach, and one of the Halfling protectorates were given also to the Zo. The transferral of the fortress city to Zo control caused tremendous anger in Humans across all the protectorates, not just in Keril itself. For so many years Mountain's Reach had stood as a symbol of Human might, of the ability of Humans to protect their territory against The People, and as a monument to the thousands who had perished in the incessant and bloody wars of Keril and Low Norlan. This anger erupted in the Uli rebellion, beginning in the city of Keril, but spreading quickly to other protectorates, Human, Halfling and Fen'neko. The full story of the Uli rebellion will be told elsewhere; suffice it to say here that the rebellion was finally crushed by the power of Mobius and the Dark Sentinels, and Mountain's Reach has remained in Ghorak Zo hands to this day.
