Ovis is an island nation located at the north of Galicia, featured in Tactics Ogre: The Knight of Lodis.
Legend of the Fallen Angel[]
In the distant past, shorty after or during the legendary Ogre Battle, an envious angel named Shaher rebelled against God, and was cast away from Heaven as punishment. As he fell from grace his heart and body turned black, a long horn sprouted from his head and he was stripped of his power and beauty. Before falling into complete darkness God sealed him within an icy prison known as the Angel's Headstone.
This myth became a part of Ovis' tradition and folklore, despite its significance and credibility having been lost to history. This lasted until the Reformation, which forcibly phased out local beliefs and stablished Lodisism in its place.
Mermaid War[]
Ovis was originally inhabited by an unnamed clan of mermaids. 400 years before the events of the game, a group of settlers from Galicia colonized the northern region later known as Rananculus. They faced resistance from the mermaids, who believed the island to be their birthright. While advantageous at first, the mermaids counterattacked with the Longicolnis, a mysterious and powerful lance, which decimated the human forces; however Lucius Batraal, leader of the settlers, gained the affections of the mermaid Berevra, who stole the Longicolnis to protect him. Without their legendary weapon, the mermaids were defeated and forced to retreat to the seas of Rana.
After the humans took full control of the island, the Batraal Family stablished themselves as ruling clan of the Rananculus region, while a smaller group made their home in the southern region of Anser; the latter eventually came to aggresively oppose the former, in a conflict which spanned centuries due to the island's complicated climate and geological conditions.
Reformation[]
Ovis was one the first nations to fall to Lodis' expansionist campaign. 15 years before the events of the game, Lodisian troops quickly started pouring into the shores of Ovis with strict orders to force the people to accept the rule of Lodis and doctrine of Lodisism or be obliterated for disobedience. One of the most notorious examples of their aggressive campaign was the town of Blete, which was completely razen and all of the townspeople killed.
At first the region of Rananculus took arms against the empire, but their fewer numbers and weapons meant that a complete defeat was inevitable. William Batraal, patriarch of the Batraal Family and ruler of Rananculus, choose to surrender before Lodis crushed them completely, signing a treaty which declared that the island would submit to the empire and their religious doctrine, in exchange of being allowed local autonomy.
As part of the negotiations, Ostorea Castle was visited by the Duke of Felis and his young son. During this visit, William divulged the legend of the Longicolnis to the duke, which had been passed down the Batraal Family since their foundation. Years later, the duke would act upon this information, directing his son to secretly recover the lance for his own purposes.
However Naris Batraal, William's brother, was furious at the treaty. To usurp the throne of Rananculus, Naris had his brother secretly poisoned, passing it as the result of illness. William's wife, inexperienced in politics, didn't protest Naris' rise to power, and neither could her daughters Ivanna and Malicia, who were too young at the time. William's wife and Malicia were sent to live in a villa in the outskirts of Ostorea, while Ivanna began her training and a Knight. Ivanna suspected Naris of foul play, but was unable to act in fear of her family's wellbeing.
For the next 15 years, Naris plotted a counterattack against Lodis. He intended to find the legendary Longicolnis and use it to gain power. While he was sure of its existance thanks to the legend being passed down his family, he was unable to find more information on it. Some undetermined time later two mysterious veneficus, Lethe and Cirvante, contacted Naris and offered their services to locate the Longicolnis.
Aftermath[]
After Shaher's ascension, the Order of the Sacred Flame attempted to arrest Alphonse under the charges of murdering Rictor and seizing controls of their strongholds. He escaped before the Order arrived, and returned to Lodis with the Longicolnis. He later brought it to Pope Sardian, highest authority of the Lodis Church, and pledged his allegiance to him; in turn, he was knighted by the pope and received a new name: Lans Tartare.
Perhaps as a result of Alphonse's report, the Duke of Felis came under investigation by the Lodis government, lost his position, and had his lands confiscated. Presumably, this also meant the disbandment of the Order of the Sacred Flame.
With her mission accomplished, Cybil and Shiven defected from the Hand of the Pope to lands unknown. As for the Hand, they eventually succeeded in facilitating Sardian's rise to power.
Neither the Batraal Family nor the region of Rananculus were punished by the Lodis Empire, since the upriser, Naris Batraal, had been already slain. Ivanna took over as Lady of Rananculus, reestablishing trade relations with southern Ovis, and peaceful relations with the Empire, hoping to be allowed local autonomy. It's not known what happened after the Duke of Felis, the treaty's negotiator, was deposed, but since Lodis agreed to send ambassadors to meet with Ivanna directly, it's possible that Rananculus managed to keep good relations with the Empire.
The mermaid queen, Chloeri, passed away shortly after Shaher's ascention, along with her sister. Her second-in-command, Aerial, took leadership of the mermaid clan. Either way, the mermaids kept to themselves in Rana.
Factions[]
Political Factions[]
- The Batraal Family
- The people of Anser
Military Factions[]
Other Groups[]
- The Ovis Mermaids
- Followers of Shaher