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Victory is mine, whatever the cost. |  | |
| - Gwent: The Witcher Card Game Audio version: | |||
Viraxas was the third King of Kerack. Returning from exile where he spent his time as a mercenary, he claimed Kerack's throne after his father Belohun's "unfortunate" death.
Viraxas' efforts to save his kingdom's economy would eventually drive him into cruel conflict and mutual hatred with the dryads of Brokilon.
Biography[]
Youth and exile[]
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Parents often envy their children's strength and vigor. And children rarely notice it. | | |
| - Gwent: The Witcher Card Game | |||
Viraxas was born as a legitimate son of King Belohun[1] and he spent much of his youth outdoors, practicing with a wooden sword. The young prince was vigorous and strong – traits that his aging father viewed with envy.[2] Growing quarrels between the two eventually led Belohun to furiously banish Viraxas without a judicial sentence and, as Viraxas left the palace, the prince stole a number of belongings, including his brother Egmund's Viroledan sword. Belohun went as far as forbidding the mention of Viraxas' name at court,[1] though this didn't stop the gossip that spread, believing the reason for the banishment was the king's jealousy towards the vital son.[2]
Adventure, love, and triumph[]
The energetic prince did not wither during his exile. Through hardships abroad his skin became weathered[1] and through adventures as a mercenary he learned unconventional fighting techniques and ways to inspire people under his command.[2]
At one point, Viraxas met Ildiko Breckl, a young woman expelled from Aretuza for petty thievery. The two become partners and developed a deep love towards each other.
Despite all this, he did not forget his father's injustice. He eventually came in contact with the Chapter of Mages' agents, who promised to return him to the throne of Kerack in exchange for significant privileges in the kingdom's trade network. The deal was sealed, and the mages, through their facility in Rissberg, produced a magical necklace that was to choke Belohun when gifted to him by yet another of his brides-to-be; it was arranged for the bride to be Ildiko.
With the Chapter's money, Viraxas hired Acherontia, a famed pirate frigate. Ildiko, believed by Belohun to be a simple 17 year old wench rather than a bright 25 year old Aretuza ex-student, convinced the king to "hire" the frigate in order to help him with the other two traitorous sons, Egmund and Xander. The climax occurred on Lammas, just before the planned wedding ceremony: the brothers were successfully arrested, the king unfortunately died from "apoplexy" while trying the necklace on, and Viraxas was appointed his successor nemine contradicente by the still shocked court.[1]
King of Kerack[]
Viraxas with Ildiko
Immediately following the court meeting, Viraxas ordered to cancel the planned wedding ceremony to mourn the death of the groom, and declared to share the already prepared wedding food with the poor of Palmyra, the capital city's slums. He also decided to restore the supposed ages-old tradition of Kerackese kings, that is in case of the groom's death his closest male relative was to marry the bride; while the "tradition" was obviously invented out of the blue as the Kingdom of Kerack was not even a century old, the courtiers did not object and promptly agreed with their liege's decision. The marriage between Viraxas and Ildiko was combined with the coronation ceremony.
The first days of rule were harsh for the young king. The capital city was ravaged by a tsunami just hours after his father's assassination; many ships in the port, including Acherontia, drowned, and the slums area was swept from the ground. In order to finance the reconstruction and repay the debt he owed to the Chapter, Viraxas raised the custom duties and port fees and ordered the confiscation of nonhuman possessions. He also declared that mages in Kerack were not allowed to possess land or estates; this in particular was targeted towards Lytta Neyd, the only mage to own property in the kingdom, as Viraxas' wife and counselors were jealous of Lytta and outraged by her open abortion practices. To compensate the severe edicts, the king proclaimed his coronation date as public holiday and announced amnesty for criminals.[1]
The need to repay the loan eventually led Viraxas to expand his realm eastwards, coming into inevitable conflict with Brokilonese dryads. Conflict, while at the beginning a strictly economic-driven pursuit for timber, would eventually develop into an ethnic war, driven by mutual hatred. Deep grievances arose, and Viraxas grew so hateful he never even sent an envoy to Queen Eithné.[3] Severe stress resulting from the ongoing conflict worsened his health and made his hair turn grey prematurely.[4]
Viraxas was involved in a number of incursions into the forest in cooperation with Verden or the Order of the White Rose,[4][5] including the one during which Eithné's daughter Morénn was killed.[2] In 1262, after a number of indecisive conflicts, Viraxas prepared a blitzkrieg into the forest: simultaneous attacks from multiple sides carried out by the armies of Kerack, Verden, and Maribor with Temeria's silent agreement, in order to achieve the "final solution to the dryad question". His plans however would ultimately prove to be his own undoing.[4]
Death[]
In 1262, Viraxas and his firstborn son Tarrand attended the wedding of Prince Fulko of Redania to Princess Frisanna of the Mariborian branch of Temeria. What Viraxas wasn't aware of was the fact that the princess was in fact a dryad herself, being the result of a summer romance of Maribor's Duke Jurkast, and had accidentally overheard the negotiations about the planned attack on Brokilon between Viraxas' ambassadors and King Foltest of Temeria.
During the lavish ceremony held in Tretorian Kreve cathedral, after the marriage vows, Viraxas was murdered by Frisanna who recognized him among the quests and went rampage, drawing her husband's ceremonial sword and piercing the Kerackese king's heart. Viraxas died in suffering and terror, next to his son yelling "treason".[4]
Legacy[]
Although Tarrand was outraged by the murder, he lacked his father's will. The king's bright commanders were replaced with Tarrand's flatterers who were unable to continue the crusade and the successor's sentiments prevented him from fulfilling Viraxas' genocidal plans. Until the Northern War II, Kerack and Brokilon were in uneasy armistice.[4]
Videos[]
