Caius Vallerion

High King Caius Vallerion of Cyrodiil was an Imperial ruler and revolutionary in the Second Era. He was critical to the success of Caius' Rebellion, a peasant uprising against the King of Nibenay that put him on the throne. From there, he led a grand conquest of the province of Cyrodiil, culminating with the Battle of the Imperial City and his coronation as Cyrodiil's High King.

He is known by many as "The Unbroken" for his unwavering spirit and valor in battle. Behind his back, however, many called him the Kingslayer for having killed Nibenay's former king, Venaros III, in single combat.

Early Life
Caius was born in the slums of Leyawiin, a poor and corrupt city in Nibenay. His parents were both farmers and thus he had little opportunity for a formal education. His lowborn status would make him the ideal leader of his rebellion later in life.

From an early age, Caius was incredibly strong and good with a blade. Upon turning 16, he had very few choices in life aside from joining the king's army or becoming a farmer like his parents - a life he had no interest in. Thus, he became a soldier: cannon fodder to be used in the king's endless wars.

He did not face such a fate, however, as Caius quickly proved himself to be a formidable fighter and thus rose through the ranks with relative ease. Eventually, he was even granted knighthood, and by the time he was 20 he served in the Kingsguard: the highest honor a soldier could hope to attain.

Caius' Rebellion
Though Caius was grateful for the king's generosity, he saw firsthand just how cruel his liege really was. King Venaros was a ruthless and brutal man, spending hours in the dungeons creating new ways to torture his victims. He had little regard for his peasants, only concerned with their ability to wield a sword in his name. He was incredibly greedy as well, hoarding money and titles for his own personal use. He was corrupt to the very core, and while the peasants wanted him gone, they had virtually no power to do anything about it.

Caius was no different. Though he was sworn to protect the king without exception, he secretly began plotting to overthrow him. After traveling through all of Nibenay on personal leave, Caius covertly gathered an army of farmers, miners, fishermen and other peasants to rise up against the king. In total, he raised about 30,000 men - large in number but weak in experience and strength. When the time came, the horde of commoners marched on the king's palace and demanded that he abdicate in favor of a more fair ruler. When the king refused, a civil war that would be known as Caius' Rebellion broke out.

Caius was the only experienced general that the peasants had on their side. He struggled to lead such a massive army on his own, and thus faced a series of defeats in the early years. However, the tide turned in his favor when the peasants won a major battle at Bravil, sending the king's largest force retreating to his capital. Caius' army followed them and cornered eventually had them cornered in the king's palace. The siege of the palace lasted for almost a month, but in the end Caius led a massive charge into the throne room, where he challenged the king to single combat. Caius won, leaving an empty throne and a crown without a head to sit on.

Upon being urged to take the seat by his peasants, Caius gladly accepted the crown and the throne. He became the new King of Nibenay, and promised to be a fair and just ruler.

King of Nibenay
Upon winning the throne and ending his rebellion, the numerous vassals of the former King Venaros pledged loyalty to Caius. They knew that if they refused his rule, they would face a continued rebellion and would likely lose their power as well. By the time Caius had accepted his new vassals' pledges, he had assembled one of the largest armies that Tamriel had ever seen (moreover, he had the largest fighting force in the world at that time). Taking advantage of the situation, the king began a massive conquest known as the Unification of Cyrodiil in which he began to take over his neighbor's lands one-by-one.