King Orys Baratheon, first of his name, is the current king of the Kingdom of the Iron Throne, second child and first son of King Steffon I Baratheon and Queen Hanna Hayford. He led the Kingdom of the Iron Throne through the Second War of Reclamation.
Biography[]
Early Years[]
In the third moon of 349 AC, Orys Baratheon was born to Hanna Baratheon and Steffon Baratheon. His birthing was troublesome, due to the large size of Orys, but his mother was able to recover with the help of Grandmaester Robyn. As years passed, Orys would continue to be troublesome. He never took well to his studies or learning proper courtly etiquette either. Instead Orys took pleasure in his strong physique and his natural height advantage [Monstrous] and would often use his gifts to torment the other children around him.
As Orys grew older he found that the children his age, and even some that were older, were no match for him when it came to a brawl. This changed in 355 AC when Daemon Blackfyre and Mace Tyrell became wards for Orys’ uncle. The boys were far older than him and Orys was told to not squabble with them as he did with the other children in court. Orys complied and promised to not start any fights. Instead, Orys would watch the two of them practice and would loudly ridicule their performance, Daemon Blackfyre’s in particular. Despite his behavior towards the pair, watching them practice sparked Orys’ interest in swords.
The following year, 356 AC, The Dornish Rebellion broke out, which led to much of the focus of the court being on war. Orys watched as increased martial training and protection came to King’s Landing. Tales of the war began flooding in and inspired Orys to learn how to wield a sword, just like the knights in the stories. His antagonization of the boys around him continued, this time with a wooden sword in hand. Moons passed and The Dornish Rebellion came to an end, along with the life of the king soon after. With the death of King Loras, Ory’s father became King. This proved to be problematic for Orys as his studies and amount of tutoring increased in order to groom him as an heir.
Squire at Storm’s End[]
In 358 AC, Orys’ father found himself to be quite busy as king and decided to send Orys to Storm’s End in order to squire for Lord Steffon Baratheon. At first Orys was against the idea but upon arrival he quickly befriended Theodan Baratheon, his kin only a year older than he. Over the next years the pair grew close and were taught the proper way to yield a sword. While most of the squires around him took a liking to swords, Orys decided to instead focus on two-handed weapons, large warhammers specifically, as he was inspired by the tales of the kings before him, namely King Robert Baratheon. While Orys continued to excel in combat, it became clear to him that his companion Orys’ did not seems as skilled as he. Nevertheless, their friendship continued despite their differences as Orys was often amazed by Theodan’s wit.
Throughout his time at Storm’s End, Orys began to tone back some of the behavior he displayed at King’s Landing. Instead of bullying those he deemed as weak, he found the value in what they could do, much like he found value in Theodan. Despite this, Orys’ temper still remained and whenever slighted he wouldn’t hesitate to use his brute force. Countless times Orys would fend off those trying to insult him or Theodan.
At the age of four-and-ten, Orys made his first visit to the taverns after hearing so much about it from the guards. Much to his delight, Orys found the tavern to be exactly the way they said it was: plenty of booze, women, and good cheer. It was on that visit that he had his first taste of ale and later that night he had his first experience with a woman. Relishing his first experience, Orys became a frequent visitor of the local taverns around Storm’s End. While this certainly brought much joy to the smallfolk, seeing as they were able to share a drink with none other than the crown prince, his constant visits became burdensome on his body. After moons of this behavior, no one could disprove that Orys was addicted, and it clearly showed when it became harder for him to fulfil his responsibilities as a squire.
Traveling Knight[]
In 365 AC, Orys and Theodan were knighted on Theodan’s nameday. While Theodan managed to get knighted while also being a year younger than Orys, he didn’t mind. Orys wouldn’t have it any other way. Now that the pair of them were knights they could travel the realm together to attend tournaments and weddings. Many nights of drinking, fighting, and whoring were had. One night Orys even helped Theodan bed his first woman. The two Baratheon cousins shared a close bond and when Lord Cedric Tully proclaimed he was hosting a tournament for all of Westeros, the pair traveled to partake as well.
Their relationship would soon come to an end, however, in the following year. Daeron Martell, Theodan’s squire, made a quip about Orys’ directly to his face and stirred the stag’s rage. In a fit of anger, Orys stormed the boy which caused Theodan to intervene. Had it not been for Ser Damon Hightower the, at the time, Kingsguard holding back the crown prince, Orys would’ve murdered his cousin and the squire. The two parted ways and Orys returned home to King’s Landing.
Not wanting to lose the dreams of traveling Westeros and one day reuniting the kingdoms, Orys’ found a new companion: Edric Storm, his uncle’s bastard. Despite being a Storm, Orys took a liking to the boy as he had a lot of the same interests as he. The two caused trouble in Flea Bottom, often getting into tavern brawls with the other patrons. One fateful night, Orys managed to steal an expensive wine barrel from a wealthy merchant’s ship. The crime became well known and fingers were pointed at the crown prince, who had garnered a reputation for such antics. Martyn Westerling, the Master of Whispers, approached Orys about the crime and they decided to instead pin the blame onto his companion, Edric Storm. The bastard was sent to the Wall and Orys vowed to try his best to not commit a crime again, but more importantly, he began to see the value of his father’s Small Council, namely Martyn Westerling.
Life continued for Orys in King’s Landing, though he began to grow bored of the courtly lifestyle. Despite the news that his father became sickly, Orys thought nothing of it and expected a quick recovery. Unbeknownst to Orys, his father’s illness weighed heavily on his father’s mind. Wanting his son to be wed to a loyal family, King Steffon arranged a betrothal to Orys and the Hand’s daughter. Orys was not pleased by this decision and, putting his own needs first, he began his travels around the realm once more. He attended more tournaments and neglected his responsibilities to his father. Later, in 369 AC, Orys managed to achieve one of his goals and “Made the Eight,” a feat that he made sure to boast about often.
The Coronation and War[]
In 370 AC, following two years of illness, Orys’ father passed away. His reign was short but overall he was considered to be a respectable ruler. Orys returned to King’s Landing for his coronation and before the ceremony even began, there were those that were suggesting war against the Winter Kingdom while they were preoccupied with the Targaryens. Seeking the counsel of those he respected, he appointed his old friend Theodan Baratheon to the position of Master of Laws in hopes that they could put the past behind them and achieve their goal of reuniting the kingdoms once again. Disappointingly, Theodan as well has Lord Velaryon, the Hand, were some of the more vocal opponents to the idea of going to war. Enraged by this, King Orys dismissed both of them from the Small Council and declared war against the North. Without the knowledge of who to trust, Orys appointed one of the few people he could trust, his sister Jocelyn, as the new Hand and replaced Theodan Baratheon with Daemon Blackfyre, who seemed more than eager to fight in the war.
With the banners summoned and ravens sent to the lords of the realm, King Orys marched off to war. Eager for bloodshed, King Orys and the Crownlander army easily took Maidenpool. Soon after Lord Frey responded to the seizure of Maidenpool and marched to meet Orys and his army in the field. In the thick of the battle, King Orys and Lord Osmund Frey engaged in a duel but before a victor could be decided, a riderless horse interrupted the duel and the two lost sight of one another in the chaos of battle. Orys was infuriated by this outcome, despite winning the battle, and Lord Frey proved to be a troublesome one as they harried and slowed down the advance of the King’s army.
News reached Orys that Lord Tully landed on the Claw and he opted to bring the Martell reinforcements, including Lord Yronwood, with him to deal with the trout. The two armies clashed and King Orys fought fiercely. Many corpses littered the battlefield as a result of the King, but Orys would have been one of them had Lord Yronwood not pushed the King out of the way of a fatal arrow shot from Lord Tully. Despite the impressive display of loyalty from Lord Yronwood, neither side could claim a victory. Both armies regrouped and days later Lord Tully was able to break through the King’s army and march to safety to retake Maidenpool.
Further enraged by the outcome of another battle, Orys threw a fit in the war tent. Those that stood beside their King were remembered for their loyalty. With their army around Maidenpool, keeping the trout trapped, Orys fired an arrow with a fish impaled through it into the keep to remind Lord Tully of their presence. Lord Yronwood continued to prove his loyalty to Orys and after a long discussion, Orys agreed to a betrothal to his daughter as a show of gratification for saving his life. Eventually, Orys grew tired of waiting and ordered Lord Yronwood see to it that Lord Tully and his army surrender while he marched off for more bloodshed.
King Orys and his army regrouped with Lord Tyrell’s army following their defeat at the Battle of the Red Fork. With a major defeat and the news that Lord Tully was able to break out of Maidenpool, more arguments were had in their war tent but ultimately it is decided that they would take Raventree Hall. When news of the Ironborn capture of Highgarden reached the army, Lord Tyrell demanded that King Orys take action. Annoyed by the request, Orys stated that they cannot abandon their efforts in the Riverlands and that Highgarden would have to wait, especially now that Lord Lannister was taken hostage.
The army marched onwards and picked their next target: Lord Arryn’s host. The King’s wrath proved to be blinding as the army was flanked by Lord Frey. The Southron army was slaughtered and they retreated back to Darry where it is said that the King refused to get out of his battered armor until they came up with a plan to finally capture Lord Frey, who had been a thorn in Orys’ side throughout the whole war. As this happened, the Martell army joined them and more war plans were discussed. A fierce argument broke out between whether to go with the King’s plan or Princess Martell’s. In the end, it is decided that they would go with Princess Alysanne’s plan and the discussion ends with a crude remark about the King wanting to bed all three of the Martell triplets at once.
The opportunity to enact the plan soon arose and the rest of the King’s army marched to meet Lords Arryn and Frey in the field. With a stomach full of ale, King Orys charged into battle with the majority of the remaining Southron army. Lord Celtigar proved his usefulness to King Orys by charging in alongside King Orys, a feat most were too afraid to do. In what became known as The Battle of Lord Harroway’s Town, they finally managed to take Lord Frey, as well as Lord Arryn, hostage but not without significant losses on both sides as well as the capture of brave Lord Celtigar.
While some expected the King to immediately execute his hostages, he was urged not to by his advisors, especially his Master of Whispers. Regardless, Orys sent an envoy to King Stark threatening to kill heirless Lord Arryn unless Stark surrendered. Stark responded with a threat of executing all of the hostages he had and it was settled that the two armies would meet in the deciding battle of the war. With both sides exhausted, but with victory on the line, the battle lasted for days. Despite Orys’ best efforts, the battle was lost. The stag wouldn’t give up, however, and had to be dragged off of the battlefield by his Kingsguard, including Ser Damon Hightower.
With their army and their options exhausted, Martyn Westerling, Master of Whispers, led the war tent discussion and convinced King Orys to surrender. The peace talks between the two kingdoms were tense. King Stark made a remark about the hostages and provoked King Baratheon into rage. A shouting match between the two kings occurred, which included Orys making a comment about King Stark’s dead uncle whom was killed in the war. After Orys was held back by his Kingsguard, the peace talks resumed and the advisors to each king negotiated the secession of the Claw.
Peacetime[]
Following the war, King Orys returned to King’s Landing and found himself swamped by a new set of challenges. While his sister proved to be a useful member of the Small Council, it became clear that adjustments were needed. Orys dismissed his Master of Coin in favor of Lord Brynden Connington, a man who had always agreed with him in the war tent discussions. Ser Armond Swann, his Master of Ships, was almost replaced as well but a profuse exclamation of his loyalty, especially during Ory's father's reign, ensured his stay on the Small Council. Lastly, Orys promoted Ser Damon Hightower to fill the vacant Lord Commander position that was left after the death in the war. Despite the new Small Council members, managing the realm proved to feel a lot less rewarding to Orys than winning battles and he delegated a lot of the work to his Hand.
Respite soon found Orys as he met his betrothed for the first time in 374 AC. He was taken aback by her beauty and her youth. Overall, Orys found her to be quite pleasant and vowed to never treat her poorly, yet he couldn’t help but retain his same vices of drinking and whoring.
As time continued on, The Kingdom began to recover from the war and preparations were soon made for the Royal Wedding as well as a tournament. Ravens were sent to every lord and lady of the realm and now people flock to King’s Landing for the celebration.