RP SAMPLE: See previous iteration of the Alamgir Chronicles
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Character Name: Roandriana “Savyarani”
House/Clan/Family: Hova
Religion: Khodaism (Publicly)
Age: 24
Gender: F
Role/Occupation/Titles: Amira-e-Haram, Princess (formerly Empress-to-be)
Description: By any account, Princess Roandriana is regarded as a resplendent addition to the royal harem. Once described by a southern noble as, “a woman molded as if one of the Sangam poets spoke her into being,” Roandriana certainly can be said to live up to this high praise. As described by one of the previous Emperor’s scribes, “[Roandrianda] is of modest height, with delicate hands and feet alike—well suited to the palace life after years of scrubbing away those pesky calluses of her youth.
Her figure is not necessarily slender, but indeed pleasantly proportioned. Her waist is slight, though just a bit soft if one sees her clothes taut when she sits. It flares out pleasantly into wide, childbearing hips, though her widest point is slightly lower in the thighs. Her breasts are, by all accounts, modest in size, though one could imagine that they might become greater once she is with child.
Her waist-length hair is perfectly black, with moderate curls and a strong sheen, not unlike that of some southerners. Her skin tone, similarly, is somewhere between uncooked rakthashali and red kaje rice, though her complexion is said to have been significantly darker in the past when she did not shun the sun. Her eyes are pleasant, if among the less remarkable parts of her form. They are large, certainly larger than one would expect them, and dark brown in color. Her lips are, as has been said in pagan texts, like the bimba fruit. In terms of facial features, perhaps the only aspect of her which can be spoken of in a negative light is her nose. It is decently proportioned at the top, and not at all crooked, but does become somewhat too wide at the base.”
Beyond her physical appearance, Roandriana is fond of most jewelry, though she merely tolerates necklaces. She always wears the same ornate earrings, ones ordered custom-made from a jeweler that are made from glass beads, ivory, and carved cow teeth, which she privately regards as talismen. She regularly wears kohl, though she insists on having an attendant apply it for lack of confidence in her abilities. She is very appreciative of high quality fabrics, often having more interest in the quality of the fabrics and the composition of her clothes than its appearance.
While not opposed to the luxury of the court, Roandriana often seems a bit lost as to what to do with all the opulence present, though enjoys its benefits nonetheless. Her bearing is rather artificial, characteristic of behaviors learned later in life. Her manners are more than sufficient, but were she placed in peasant’s clothing, she would likely not stand out as anything more than the daughter of someone reasonably well-to-do. She presents herself as modest and placid, but through interactions with her, it may become clear that her demure, friendly smile only represents her feelings on her own position, not her feelings towards others.
Though her voice is quiet and she is rarely seen to raise her voice, Roandriana still makes an effort to maintain an imposing presence worthy of the highest ranking woman in the empire. She regards the harem as her own realm, in a way and privately values peace above all else. Her methods of maintaining this peace, however, are far from gentle. Her position is fairly unthreatening to most ambitious concubines, as she is barren, and her apparent lack of ambition only furthers this. Using this common perception, Roandriana makes a point of being a good listener and befriending servants to pick up on whispers of power plays. Her private endeavors consistently center around the problem of picking out instigators of conflict and figuring out how to neuter or even get rid of them so that interpersonal conflicts are minimized. This task may be never ending, but she dedicates herself to it nonetheless.
Roandriana does publicly practice Khodaism, though it has been often said that she does not appear particularly dedicated to it, or at the very least does not understand the significance of the faith. In fact, she does partake willingly in Khodaist practices, but has not abandoned her past beliefs, and remains quite superstitious. She is not particularly skilled in most areas of magic, but nonetheless practices the craft on occasion, relying mostly on her childhood memories and trial and error to do so. Out of all her magical endeavors, her greatest successes have been in potion-making and the creation of animate clay figurines, though they have never been much more than simple pawns that can hobble around and perform tasks for her. Though she regards her rituals as important, she approaches the practices of magic more as hobby than as work, and so progresses slowly outside of the few areas where she has a strong foundation and interest in the matter.
Backstory: Little is known about Roandriana’s days before coming to Bhadristan, and is somewhat avoidant of royal historians who try to learn more from her. Little more is known of her childhood than what has been coaxed out of Roandriana by royal historians.
“My early years,” Roandriana has recounted, “I remember with little clarity. It is like a dream—something which is not real in this time and place. I was born on an island far from this land, in the capital city of a great kingdom that ruled the highlands. My father dealt in agriculture, handling shipments from great rice paddies of slaves. We were Hova, in that place and time. We resided outside of the City of the Thousand, but visited often. I was the eldest of my siblings, so I recall…Three of them. I had two brothers and two sisters. Yes, that’s correct, I believe. I will not speak the names of my family, for I am dead to them now and I do not wish to pull those who are dead so far from their graves.
I was a young girl, too young to marry, too young to leave home, you see. I would watch over my siblings as my mother saw to the home when my father was out working. That was the way of things, often, but one day it was not just workers in the fields. Soldiers from the Princes of the Many Ports came. These men had not come for conquest, like how my people had come to the Highlands. They came for slaves, to take and sell to the merchants that come to their ports. My caste was above slaves, but invaders are not so picky, are they? In any case, my mother, I believe, was cast down. My siblings were able to hide, but I was perhaps foolish and tried to help my mother. I recall, one of them spoke of my face. They said it was pretty, and took me with the slaves they seized from our farm.
From there, we traveled to a port city. My name comes from that journey. I do not use my old name, for it died with me when I left. Roandriana was once a nickname, a mockery given by the men I was traveling with, but now I have found victory in it, seeing my position now. Regardless, I was sold to a merchant who never told me his name. I starved in the brig of a ship, in chains, with many others. My eyes grew accustomed to the darkness, my stomach to the burn of hunger, and my lips to the lack of water.
It was an eternity, in my mind, before we arrived at port. It was a great port; I believe it was the port of Gopurat. There, I was held for auction, still but a young girl. As it was written in the skies, it seems, I was happened upon by the local governor. He purchased me and brought me to his home, where I was placed under the care of one of his daughter’s tutors. I could not speak Ardu, or any other language known well in these lands, for that matter. The woman, who I still know only by the name Teacher, saw to it that I learned only the most proper Ardu through vigorous drilling. I was well fed and well-groomed, and as this kind but stringent woman watched me grow older, the tutelage grew more intense, for she said to me “You are to be a gift to the Emperor from the governor when you come of age. When that day comes, you must be ready.”
After my first menstruation, she doubled-down once again, saying “You are yet not ready. Your speech is facile and your smile insincere.” And so we continued. She taught me to read, so that I might learn proper diction even while she was occupied and so that I could study scriptures on my own. I was brought before a priest, tested on Khoda’s words, inspected, and told I was “Sufficient” with a disinterested shrug. I was only told that I had done well that next year. One day, as she examined me, looked at every detail of my skin, measured every part of my body, tested my manners in every way imaginable, Teacher’s stern voice turned gentle.
“My dear, you may yet in this lifetime be a worthy gift for the Emperor, may peace be upon him.” Those were the kind words left with me before I was returned to the governor. He sent me to his wife, who inspected me once more with the help of her sister. I was, they said, finally a suitable wife.
We journeyed together to Khusraubad at the earliest opportunity.”
It is said that Jahanagir Shah received Roandriana warmly, though it was soon decided that she would make an excellent wife for the young Alamgir Khan, due to her beauty and quiet demeanor. Until shortly before Alamgir ascension, it was believed that Roandriana was to be Empress when Alamgir ascended to the throne. However, after some time of fruitless consummation, it became clear that something was awry in the bedroom. As Alamgir had other consorts, the problem was eventually determined to be with Roandriana. A court physician determined Roandriana to be barren, though she still remained Alamgir’s primary consort for a time, for in the time surrounding his father’s death, it was unwise to display weakness, such as a barren wife.
Once Alamgir’s position was secured, however, the state of affairs could not remain. Roandriana was demoted to the rank of Princess—still among the Emperor’s favored wives, but no longer at such a high rank as the one she was previously intended to reach. Soon after, the previous Amira-e-Haram was sacked after being caught conspiring to overthrow the Emperor and replace him with one of the pretenders. In order to avoid another similar incident, Roandriana was placed in the position of Amira-e-Haram, for it was believed that she would remain unproblematic and trustworthy to the Emperor due to her barren womb and apparent lack of ambition.
As the Amira-e-Haram, Roandriana has largely lived up to this expectation, though she has personally surprised some in her competence. She keeps excellent records, and has on several occasions tipped Amir Kud off to potential troubles with pretenders. Under her, the harem has grown more quiet than it previously was, though the size of it still inevitably makes a lasting calm untenuous. Her work, while never done, is kept up with, and she has privately spoken with some sympathetic figures on the matter of purging the harem of the old Emperor’s wives and stripping away even some of the current Emperor’s consorts, if possible.
Strengths & Flaws:
Magic: Though by no means an expert in the craft, Roandriana is skilled in potion-making and has experimented with alchemy, crediting much of her success to her earrings, which she considers to be talismans.
Unsuspecting: Roandriana is misunderstood by many to be an inoffensive, easily ignored factor when making plans. She seems passive, unobtrusive, and is thus often underestimated. Secrets tend to slip out around her, even if she hasn’t used a truth potion. After all, who would worry about a barren Princess, unable to gain power without an heir?
Sangam Idol: Through natural looks and the strict regimen she endured as she grew up, Roandriana is widely considered to be a jewel in the Emperor’s harem, even as her barrenness has become somewhat common knowledge around court. To many, she is no more than a statue, a trophy, as it were, for the Emperor to hold around him. She is simply a feather in the Peacock Throne; many pretenders regard her more as a prize to be claimed than anything of notable threat.
Undervalued: Though Roandriana’s unsuspecting, shoulder-to-lean-on persona has its benefits, it also brings about its own share of problems. Those members of court who do not know better may miss vital information or valuable assistance through ignoring Roandriana, and there is little that she can do to acquire the respect of those who do not respect her unless she wishes to reveal her hand.
Syncretism: Roandriana is not, strictly speaking, Khodaist. Or rather, she is not only a Khodaist. On her own time, she regularly breaks commandments surrounding the worship of Khoda, particularly when it comes to idolatry and worship of other gods. To her, he is merely one god incorporated into a pantheon that she has worshiped from youth. He is nothing more than the god of Bhidrastan, not of creation, or of other things. Though she does not express this opinion publicly, the notion that this is how she approaches religion has been suggested by some who have been able to observe her closely.
Code for tracking purposes: Alamgir16
