Vellesarto
The First EmberThe first recorded Rey emperor of Ilizania, he united the warring clans of the Golden Plains under his banner. It was Vellesarto who first bonded with a Horned Cat after paying everything he had to save a young cub from being slaughtered for it's jewel-like bones when he was a boy. He was a man who would give his everything for love and he loved his family and his people. It's said that when his beloved, youngest son was kidnapped by a rival clan he made a pact with the All-Devourer to retrieve the boy safely, promising in return the Rey's worship forever and the bounty of all of Ilizania in return. He soon rescued his son and proceeded to conquer every clan in Ilizania, placing himself as Emperor of the Golden Plains. Afterwards it's said that few if any fires would burn a Rey. He spent the rest of his life carefully establishing Ilizania as an indispensible trade partner to nearly every other nation on the Greater Continent amassing such a wealth that he was able to afford to have Golden Rock Castle built.
Vithendae I
The SparkThough there have been many High Kings of the Greater Continent going back long before recorded history in Uhldrenn, none of them were conquering emperors, but rather peacemakers and a banner for the various countries to rally behind, Vithendae was the first to change that. He was a merciless conqueror, overthrowing the old High King and setting out to bring the other nations to heel. His reign marked the beginning of the wars between the Rey and the Velenzi.
Ordonnyo
The Fallen KingNot as strategic or powerful as his grandfather or father, the third Rey Emperor lost the throne almost as soon as he gained it, only days after his coronation the Velenzi army, which had been gaining ground since Vithendae II's health had begun to fail, breached the walls of the Carved City and overthrew him. He retreated to Golden Rock and spent the rest of his life throwing the armies of the Rey and their vassal cities at the Carved City until his sudden illness and death. While it was never confirmed it's thought that one of the vassal kings had him assassinated. He died without children, so his younger brother, Jehaero I, ascended to the throne of the Rey.
Jehaero I
The Returning KingOverthrew the Velenzi High King and took the throne for the Rey once more, he wasn't as bloodthirsty as his father and grandfather but managed to hold the power of the High King into his elder years when at last he was overthrown by his hated rival Diarmai Madadh. Then he retreated to Golden Rock where while attempting to strategize a way to retake the Carved City, he had a heartattack and died, leaving his kingdom and revenge to his middle son Aeliksii.
Aeliksii
The VengenceBorn and raised during the conflicts between his father and Diarmai Madadh, Aeliksii despised the Madadh more than even his father, but he was as patient as he was cruel he waited until Diarmai was on his deathbed to open hostilities against the Madadh. The battles between him and Rudraikh Madadh are some of the bloodiest in the history of the Greater Continent, leaving animosity between the Rey and the Madadh that would last for generations. Eventually he drove Rudraikh from the city and took over as High King, but the war between the Rey and the Madadh would continue long after Aeliksii's death.
Jehaero III
Flame TyrantGrandson of Aeliksii and the last Rey High King of the Greater Continent, a victim of his grandfather's obsession with destroying the Madadh, he considered every country and city who didn't side with the Rey against the Madadh as traitors. He believed it was the divine right of the Rey to rule over all of Uhldrenn, he had brought much of the Greater Continent to heel when rumors of a young man who had bonded with a dragon and taken over the small neutral nation of Caeldadhn. In his arrogance he dismissed the threat of this even when one of the only survivors of the dragon's attack confirmed the rumors as true. When an army from Caeldadhn arrived to attack the Carved City with the dragonrider at their head, Jehaero III rode out unafraid, only to be confronted and surrounded by the first truly united force of three countries. When his pride refused to allow him to back down the Dragon loosed a stream of fire directly down upon him burning him to ashes.
Adanmos
The WiseNephew and heir of Jehaero III, had been against his uncle's wars from the start, he stayed behind when his uncle rode out to confront Morrikhan Skiathin's dragon and army. Watching all that happened from the gates of the Carved City, seeing his uncle's death imminent he attempted to ride out to stop it, hoping to convince his uncle to surrender, but he was too late. Instead he ordered the remaining imperial army to drop their weapons immediately and dismounted his horned cat to lower his head to the four armies entreating for the lives of his people. Though some of the vassal kings seethed at this surrender, seeing it as a humiliation to throw down their weapons and bow their heads, it spared hundreds of lives and won Adanmos the title of The Wise, a moniker he would live up to throughout his long life. He became a trusted advisor to Morrikhan when he was made High King and generally spent his time repair relations and trade partnerships broken during the reigns of his predecessors though tensions between the Rey and the Madadh remained understandably high.