Norrath

Overview

Norrath is a high fantasy setting where magic is common, inhabited by numerous races who coexist in various stages of war and peace. The gods are whimsical and occasionally directly intervene in the lives of mortals, and the mortals occasionally return the favor. In every setting most of the civilized world is concentrated in a handful of besieged cities, and the overall effect is one of a world ruled more by chaos than not. Anyone willing to risk their life beyond the walls of the cities stands to make a fortune, and many have.

The Creation

In the silent, infinite void of the universe, there existed an entity known simply as The Nameless. Its power was immeasurable, but it did not understand its own reason for existence. The Nameless searched for a reason and eventually discovered the elements of space and time, which immediately filled the void. As the energies shot throughout the universe, they weaved together creating light, warmth, and the elements that formed the countless stars and unique planets. The Nameless soon realized the chaos it had unleashed had to be tamed, and thus it took pieces of the four raw elements of earth, fire, air, and water and created the Gods of Power to govern these same elements from which they each were made.

The Gods of Power

The first of The Nameless' creations was a council of thirteen that would govern the solid element of earth. The council was tasked with maintaining order in the universe, and would become known as The Rathe.

The second of The Nameless' creations was tasked with shaping the universe through the element of fire. Fennin Ro soon gave light and warmth to the earth established before him.

The third of The Nameless' creations was a triumvirate given the responsibility of maintaining the ever-changing element of water. Tarew Marr accepted the larger task of overseeing the liquid form of the element. E'ci took the solid state of ice. And Povar silently assumed the role of governing the vaporous state. Together they blanketed the earth throughout the universe with the catalyst of life; water.

The fourth of The Nameless' creations was tasked with placing all things in their respective places. Xegony used the wind and air to put the finishing touches on the shape and design of the universe.

The Gods of Influence

The Nameless was saddened by the fact that despite having discovered the elements and creating a means of governing them, The Nameless could not experience them itself. So, The Nameless commanded the Gods of Power to use the elements given to each of them to begin making their own creations, through which they, along with The Nameless, could live vicariously. These creations would become known as the Gods of Influence.

The Gods of Influence were carefully created by the Gods of Power as a means to keep a balance between the light and dark, creation and destruction, life and death, good and evil. The Gods of Power knew there needed to be shades of gray as well, and thus several of the Gods of Influence were created to toe the line of neutrality in the universe. These new gods would directly affect the lives of the mortals of the universe, while the Gods of Power oversaw the balance of the scales from a distance.

The Age of Scale

As the Gods of Influence began to battle amongst themselves in a vie for power, one of the neutral gods ignored their bickering. Veeshan was her name, though many would come to call her The Wurm Queen. She took to the skies of the cosmos seeking planets that could support life. It was Veeshan's goal to keep watch over the world she claimed as her own. Marking such planets with a swipe of her enormous claw, she then planted the seeds of her own creation; the dragons. These creatures, known throughout Norrath's history as The First Brood, were the first beings to roam the lands and skies of the world. Powerful not only in sheer strength but also in intelligence and wisdom, the dragons were crafted by Veeshan with world domination in mind. And that they did, for many centuries.

The Ring of Scale

In the beginning, all of the dragons of Norrath were of one faction. This all changed when two dragons of opposite elements mated, which was strictly forbidden by the council of elders. From their egg hatched a crystal dragon, resembling Veeshan herself, whom they named Kerafyrm. When the Arch Priest of Veeshan, Kildrukaun, learned of their defiance, he sentenced the two lover to death. Ironically, he took pity upon the young prismatic dragon, and took great interest in its growth. It was during this time that the dragons split into two factions and the Ring of Scale left Velious for the continent of Kunark. Kildrukaun believed that Kerafyrm would lead the Claws of Veeshan in a great civil war against the Ring of Scale and successfully reunite all dragons under the same banner. The council of elders disagreed with this view, as they saw Kerafyrm as a threat that had to be silenced. So, the Ring of Scale were left alone to rule Kunark. Once the other gods came to Norrath, though, things would never be the same.

The Elder Age

Eventually, the other Gods of Influence took notice of Veeshan's work and set forth to balance Veeshan's power of worlds such as Norrath. The Duke of Below, Brell Serilis, was the first such god. He planted the seeds of life for a number of creatures deep within the world, then returned to his realm, the Underfoot. He then called a meeting of the pantheon to discuss this potentially powerful world.

Brell, Tunare, and Prexus agreed to divide the world among themselves and give it life. Unbeknown to Tunare and Prexus, Brell had already done so. Rallos Zek was at this meeting, but did not agree to their pact as he did not trust the other three. Tunare, the Mother of All, was given the surface and created the elves and a myriad of plants and beautiful creatures. Prexus, the Ocean Lord, was given the oceans and seas where he created the kedge and various lesser aquatic creatures. Brell, of course, claimed the underground caves and caverns that stretched far and wide below the surface and created the dwarves in his likeness. The three agreed that this all must be done to keep Veeshan's power in check.

Rallos Zek watched and waited, seeing the works of the other three gods. Despite not being a part of the original pact, he then took action by creating the giants in an attempt to dominate the new world himself. He placed the giants in the forests and plains in the northern portion of what would become known as Tunaria. There, unbeknown to the other races of the world, the giants constructed great castles and towering cities in honor of The Warlord. Being children of Zek, the giants were also quick to establish an organized military the likes of which the world would not see elsewhere for quite some time.

The Age of Monuments

The Corruption of the Elves

Over time, the rest of the gods began to take notice of Norrath as well. The balance of good and evil led to the arrival of Innoruuk, the Prince of Hate. The grace and elegance of Tunare's elves drew his ire. Fueled by his hatred of Tunare and the jealousy of not being included in the original pact, Innoruuk kidnapped the king and queen from the elvish capital city of Takish-Hiz. Over the next three centuries, the elven royalty were tortured both physically and mentally as Innoruuk twisted them to his own spiteful image. He called them the Teir'Dal, and returned them to Norrath where they would more commonly be referred to as dark elves.

A Second Pact

The next two gods to arrive were Fizzlethorpe Bristlebane and Cazic-Thule. As the King of Thieves and the Faceless arrived, they were greeted by Brell Serilis. He sought to form a second pact in order to have the permission for what he'd already created in the depths of the Underfoot. This time, Rallos Zek also joined in the pact, seeking to add to his creations.

Brell released the gnomes from beneath the earth. They were small race of grizzled people focused on the power of intellect more so than brute strength. Gnomes were also more interested in tinkering and inventions than the mining and smithing of Brell's earlier creations, the dwarves.

Cazic-Thule discovered a fondness of the marshes and swamps of Norrath, and it was in these humid regions of the world that he created trolls and many variations of lizard people, including the shissar and iksar, that would instill fear and dread in all others.

Bristlebane plotted out a beautiful riverside grassland nestled between the mountains and thickets, and here he created the halflings. They were a small race of humble, laid back people. Most thrived as farmers, fishermen, and craftsmen, while those that did venture outside of the Vale exceeded by using their exceptional agility, dexterity, affinity for nature, and mischievous fun.

Rallos Zek continued to fortify his army with the creation of the mighty ogres, a highly intelligent and barbaric race of people. The ogres primary focus, like their creator, was war and conquest. They built a home for themselves in the jungles of Norrath and began their plans for world domination. Zek also gave life to the orcs and goblins, both being a more simple-minded yet fearsome race of warmongers.

The Shissar Empire

All of Cazic-Thule's creations were ruthless and savage, but none matched that of the shissar. A race of snake-like people that Cazic-Thule placed on the continent that would become known as Kunark, they honored the Faceless by devoting themselves to the dark art of necromancy, enslaving other races, and instilling fear and dread into all of whom they encountered. Other than Veeshan's dragons, the shissar were the first dominant race of Kunark. They quickly established several cities, most notably their capital, Chelsith. They enslaved the Iksar, a race of lizard people also created by The Faceless. Their quick rise to power drew the attention of the dragons, from which the shissar learned everything they could, and used it to their advantage. Combining the newly discovered magic from the dragons with their own aptitude for necromancy, the shissar created the world's first liches and blood golems . With their increased might, they struck fear in the dragons, driving them back to a solitary corner of the continent. After establishing their dominance of Kunark, the Shissar Empire, led by Emperor Ssraeshza, sailed north in search of new lands to conquer.

The Rallosian Empire

Civilization thrived throughout Norrath, most notably with the races born from the original pact. As kingdoms grew, it was inevitable that races and cultures would clash. The ogres were the first to establish an empire. By combining the might of all of Zek's creations, the Rallosian Empire, led by an ogre named Murdunk, quickly established dominance over the known world, a continent known as Tunaria.

When contemplating their next continental conquest, they were challenged by an invading force from the undiscovered continent of Kunark, the shissar. Murdunk met with Emperor Ssraeshza and convinced him that a war between their empires would get them nowhere. Murdunk had much bigger plans. The Rallosian Empire set forth a plan to invade the planes of the gods themselves.

While the shissar took to the lesser planes of now forgotten demigods, the Rallosian armies went straight to the top, the elemental Plane of Earth. Zek watched with pride as his creations challenged the greater gods, but even Zek did not fully comprehend the power of the elemental gods such as The Rathe. The Rathe consisted of thriteen members of a council, and each time the army defeated a member, another would immediately sprout up from the ground. The army retreated in defeat much to the dismay of Zek.

Rallos Zek himself led a second invasion of the Plane of Earth, flanked by the powerful orc brothers, Vallon and Tallon. They captured one of the Rathe councilmen and brought it back to Norrath. The councilman was tortured and eventually slain, and as he fell to the ground, a massive range of mountains sprang up from the earth, thus creating the Rathe Mountains of southern Tunaria. The tears of the mourning twelve Rathe members rained down, thus creating the largest lake on the continent, Lake Rathetear.

Rallos Zek's actions angered nearly the entire pantheon of the gods. The Rathe and other gods combined their might to curse Zek and his creations with limited intelligence. Thousands of ogres were slain and the Rallosian Empire collapsed. The giants, also stricken with the curse, were scattered across the globe as the gods struck their lush lands with deadly ice, thus creating the Everfrost Peaks. A great many giants attempted to escape the curse by setting sail, but the gods of power saw this and called upon Prexus to summon a hurricane of devastating proportions that would destroy their armada. A handful survived the storms, a third of which crashed on the eastern shores of Tunaria. Another third washed up on the northern coast of Kunark. And the last third was carried by the wind of Xegony to the harsh, icy continent of the dragons, Velious. As for the goblins, their curse included the loss of all of their written language and history, leaving the once formidable threat of the goblin horde as a mere nuisance to rest of the world.

The shissar's part in all of this was not forgotten by the gods either. But rather than being punished by the gods of power, Cazic-Thule took it upon himself to reprimand his own creations. The Faceless was embarrassed by the arrogance of the shissar, and thus he set forth a plan to ruthlessly eradicate them from existence. He granted the iksar, the race enslaved by the shissar, with a biological weapon that would become known as the Greenmist. This airborne plague disintegrated any shissar who inhaled it, ripping their souls away and delivering them directly to Cazic-Thule in the Plane of Fear where they would be tormented for eternity. Emperor Ssraeshza and several other high ranking members of the shissar empire escaped, as the great pyramid of Chelsith was inexplicably summoned into the sky.

Finally, a barrier was erected that would keep mortals and even the gods of influence from ever attempting an assault on the Planes of Power again. Thus ended the Age of Monuments.

The Age of Blood

The Tribes of Trakanon

Other than the fact that Cazic-Thule created the trolls, much of their origin story was kept secret from the rest of the world. The truth lies on the continent of Kunark of all places. It was on the shores of the Murkdweller River in what would become known as the Swamp of No Hope that the Faceless used foul magic to twist and corrupt the creations of the Marr twins. But, with the attention that the shissar and iksar drew, Cazic-Thule abandoned the trolls. As they struggled to survive in the swamps of Kunark, they were discovered by one of the mightiest dragons of the Ring of Scale, Trakanon. He saved the trolls by placing them safely on a series of islands off the coast of Kunark and supplied them with food and water. In return, the trolls worked as the dragon's servants, for they believed Trakanon to be one of the gods of influence. Eventually, after several centuries, Trakanon also abandoned the trolls. Forgotten and nearing starvation, the various tribes of trolls began fighting each other. Trakanon watched from high above as over two dozen distinct tribes of trolls dwindled down to merely seven.

The Troll Migration

After several decades, even the surviving seven tribes began to die out. In an act of desperation, the trolls of Kunark moved north towards the shores of the Timorous Deep. On the beaches, one final battle was waged between the dying tribes. Trolls were always savage people, but the dire situation had led to cannibalism in order to survive. Many of the starved, exhausted trolls were driven to madness in the heat of battle. Warriors began swinging their blades and hammers wildly, with no attention given to whether their targets were friends or foes. Seeing that this would be the end of the troll race, the two remaining tribal chiefs, Nalikor and Kateera, met. The terms of the agreement were forever disputed, but the result was the younger chief, Kateera, being beheaded. It was clear to the two chiefs that in order for the troll race to survive, there could be only one chief.

Troll shaman had prophecized for decades that the sole survivor of the tribal wars would be awarded immensely by Trakanon, but the dragon never came. Having lost all hope for the return of either of their saviors, Nalikor marched through the jungle into the realm of Trakanon. The mighty dragon was impressed by Nalikor's bravery, and gifted the troll with a powerful, magical blade. The dragon was brutally honest in telling the chief that the trolls would receive no further help from him, but Trakanon did reveal to Nalikor the existence of the other continents of the world. When the chief returned to his people, only a few hundred of which still survived, they used the last of their supplies to construct five ships that would allow them to escape the forsaken land of Kunark.

After weeks of aimless sailing, the trolls' ships crashed on the shores of the Broken Skull Rock islands off the southern coast of Tunaria. The trolls did not arrive unnoticed though, as the ogres of the nearby jungles had seen the incoming ships early enough to prepare for war. The ogres were surprised by the size and strength of the invading trolls, for the ogres had not battled foes of equal stature before. On the brink of starvation, the trolls held their ground, but many perished. So many died, that the nearby river became known as the Greenblood River for the centuries that followed. Nalikor, having lived his entire life in the face of extinction, sent a messenger to meet with King Gharn to make truce. Shockingly, the ogre warlord agreed. Gharn came to respect the trolls' tenacity and then welcomed them as like-minded allies. The ogres helped the trolls establish their own kingdom and the city of Grobb within the Innothule Swamp. In return, the trolls struggled to teach the dimwitted ogres the skills necessary for becoming shaman. Nalikor even gave Gharn the magical blade of Trakanon as a token of peace between the two races. Despite every possible threat of extinction, the trolls had survived and found a place where they could flourish.

The Marr Twins

The atrocity that was the invasion of the planes drew the attention of another wave of gods taking interest in the world of Norrath. Mithaniel Marr and his twin sister Erollisi sought to tip the balance of the scales in the favor of all that was good, valorous, and loving. Innoruuk, already having corrupted the elves, sought to do the same with Tarew Marr's children. This time Innoruuk employed the help of the god of fear, Cazic-Thule. Erollisi Marr saw through Innoruuk's deceptions and escaped the Teir'Dal armies, fleeing to Tunare's children in the Eldarr Forest. Cazic-Thule sent serpents, ghosts, and various frightful creatures to capture Mithaniel Marr. He was too strong of will, and could not be terrorized by the Faceless' minions. They were successful, however, in luring Mithaniel to the swamps of Norrath where an army of trolls, lizard men, and creatures of forgotten history were able to subdue him.

Terris Thule, seeking approval of her father, was able to enter Mithaniel's dreams and steal the gift of life from his body. Morell Thule, seeking to thwart his father's plans, was able to steal the gift of life from his sister, infuriating his father as well as the Prince of Hate. Knowing that his father and sister would soon find him, he divided the gift of life in half and scattered one portion across the swamps of southern Tunaria, which gave life to the frogloks of the world. He then visited Erollisi Marr in her dreams and supplanted the second half within her. The elves quickly realized that the god among them was pregnant. The elves escorted her to an uninhabited area of the frozen north were they could hide and protect her. Meanwhile, Morell Thule visited the growing frogloks in their dreams giving them visions of their imprisoned creator, therefore instilling the sense of honor and valor that would lead the young race to take up weapons and learn the magic necessary to assault Cazic-Thule's realm and free Mithaniel Marr. For many years, the frogloks battled the Faceless' minions, but they were unable to reach their father. Eventually, a new army arrived on the borders of swamps to aid the frogloks. They were the Northmen, barbarians, the children of Erollisi Marr, guided by visions from Morell Thule as well. Together they were successful in freeing Mithaniel Marr after defeating the Avatar of Fear.

The Iksar Empire

With the shissar eliminated, the Iksar empire began to rise. They spread far and wide across Kunark by establishing five separate tribes; Jarsath, Kunzar, Kylong, Nathsar, and Obulus. The Kunzar tribe is arguably the most prolific, for it was the tribe from which Venril Sathir rose to power. Sathir's knowledge of the dark arts of necromancy were unrivaled. He was able to raise an entire army of undead to fight alongside the Kunzar military in order to conquer and unify the four other tribes. Under Sathir's rule, the iksar built a magnificent city in the southeast known as Sebilis. Following in the shissar's footsteps, the iksar of the Sebilisian Empire utilized slavery, via giants and frogloks , to build and maintain their elaborate cities and forts. As Venril Sathir began to age, he became obsessed with eluding death. He was successful in forging an unholy pact with the Prince of Hate, Innoruuk , which would allow Venril to live forever as a powerful lich. Rile, Venril's eldest son, quickly realized that he would never get his turn on the throne and sought to thwart his father's plans. Rile successfully interrupted the dark ritual and trapped his father's soul in an amulet, then burned the corpse. Rile ruled much like his father. The Sebilisian Empire spread across the entire continent by the raw power of fear and dread. Only a handful of giants' tribes remained free, and of course the dragons were still present, although silent.

The Ring of Scale had watched quietly throughout the fall of the shissar and the rise of the Iksar. For the most part, neither of Cazic-Thule's creations ever attempted to disturb the dragons' home in Skyfire Mountains. At the height of the Sebilisian Empire, the dragons had seen enough. It was clear to many of them that, if left unchecked, the iksar would soon have the forces necessary to threaten the mighty dragons. One of the members, Trakanon, recommended crushing the iksar in a pre-emptive strike. This notion was voted down by the Ring of Scale in favor of a more indirect intervention. Despite this decision, Trakanon led a small group of like-minded dragons into the Timorous Deep where they created a squall that swallowed Rile Sathir's warship, killing the Sebilisian emperor. The rebellious act of Trakanon led to a war that would go on for nearly fifty years.

Atrebe Sathir, Rile's eldest son, quickly took the throne but was more introverted than his father or grandfather. Atrebe was obsessed with necromancy, and often kept to himself, locked in his chambers conducting experiments. Through these experiments, Atrebe was successful in creating various unnatural hybrid races. The most notable of these abominations was the Sarnak, a combination of iksar and dragon blood. These bipedal dragons would prove to be great warriors for the Sebilisian ground forces. But Atrebe knew that the dragons' main advantage was flight, so he created a hybrid of dragons and frogloks, calling them Sokokar. The iksar were able to ride these flying mounts into battle, greatly diminishing the dragons' primary advantage.

Ganak took the role as emperor following Atrebe's death. Ganak was a legendary warrior, and well suited for the ongoing war with the dragons. He led the entirity of the Sebilisian forces to the northern shores of Kunark and into an epic aerial battle over what would later become known as the Field of Bone. The battle and the war ended tragically for both sides. A duel between Ganak and the leader of the Ring of Scale, Jaled'Dar, ended when both were incinerated in an explosion of arcane magic. The dragons solemnly retreated back to Skyfire, while what was left of the iksar made their way back to Sebilis with a heavy sense of loss.

The Iksar decided to alter their politics upon the death of Ganak. They created what would be known as the Emerald Circle, a council of five nobles dedicated to advancing the iksar empire not only in sheer size but also in infrastructure, architecture, technology, tradeskills, and establishing a more substantial navy for exploration. Differences in opinions among the high ranking officials of the empire eventually led to the iksar reverting back to consisting of five separate tribes, each with their own ideologies. Unbeknownst to the iksar, many of these disagreements and squabbles were indirectly created by the Ring of Scale. The dragons, while recuperating from the loss of Jaled'Dar, had begun enacting their original plan to destroy the iksar before Trakanon had acted out on his own.

The end of the Sebilisian Empire came from within. The froglok slaves and sarnak warriors revolted, causing much destruction within the walls of Sebilis. To make matters worse for the Iksar, while their attention was drawn inward, the forest and mountain giants grew stronger and were able to take out many of the warlord outposts throughout Kunark. Then came the goblin lords from Faydwer, driven out by the dwarves and elves, in search of new lands to terrorize. The final straw though was a massive one. After remaining silent for quite some time, Trakanon saw that the iksar were vulnerable. He led a direct assault on Sebilis itself, destroying what was left and officially ending the Sebilisian Empire once and for all. Trakanon was mortally wounded in the attack, but felt fulfilled in his quest to eradicate the iksar.

The surviving iksar fled to the swamps in the heart of Kunark and established a fledgling city they called Cabilis. Some of the elders referred to it as New Sebilis though. Less elaborate than Sebilis, Cabilis was protected by towering stone walls built with the aid of froglok slaves which the Iksar still captured from the swamps on a daily basis. The remaining Iksar quickly had to come to terms with no longer being the dominant force on the continent. At best they were on equal footing with the Sarnak of Chardok, the frogloks of Sebilis, the giants of Warsliks Woods and Frontier Mountains, and the goblins of Droga. Of course, there was still the ever looming presence of the dragons.

The Lost Age

The Elven Exile

As the human race rose to prominence in the west, the elven empire of old quickly declined in the east. The largest continent of Norrath had become known as Tunaria not by just the elves, but by all the races that called it home, whether they liked it or not. In the lush Elddar Forest that spread across the eastern half of Tunaria, the elves had constructed the most elaborate and beautiful cities to grace the face of Norrath, Takish-Hiz. The elegance of the elves and influence of Tunare drew the ire and jealousy of Solusek Ro, the son of Fennin Ro.

Solusek Ro, the Burning Prince, used his power to alter the face of Norrath forever, literally. He summoned forth a new mountain range that would snake its way up and down the middle of Tunaria. Calling it the Serpent's Spine, Solusek had effectively changed the climate of the eastern half of the continent by blocking the cool winds and life-giving rains that once rolled into the Elddar Forest from the plains to the west. The intensified sun of Ro baked the forest, and, over time, the rivers evaporated and the enormous trees became brittle and withered. The most powerful elven druids did all they could to preserve the forest, but as the years passed, it became clear that the elves would be forced from Takish-Hiz, the Elddar Forest, and Tunaria.

With the humans quickly controlling most of the western side of the continent, and the vile trolls and brutish ogres inhabiting the south, the elves fled across the sea to Faydwer, the land of the dwarves and gnomes. That sea would become known as the Ocean of Tears in memory of elves that were forced to leave their homeland.

The Ogre-Dwarven War

As the elves settled in the forests of eastern Faydwer, the dwarves in the mountains to the west had their own problems. After being unearthed by Brell Serilis, the dwarves had established a sprawling underground castle they called Kaladim. Nestled in the Butcherblock Mountains, Kaladim served as the capital city of dwarven civilization. The nearby orcs and goblins of the region were a nuisance, but the true threat to the dwarves were the ogres of the Rakthok kingdom. Despite being stricken with the curse of limited intelligence, the ogres still possessed a sizable advantage against the dwarves in both strength and stature. Conversely, the ogres saw the dwarves as a threat due to their own tenacity in battle and the far superior equipment that they wore and carried. The ogres were also aware of the rich mines that lie beneath Butcherblock, and eyed them jealously.

In the culture that was the ogre's military, they chose Dagnor the Butcher as their fifth warlord. Dagnor proved to be far more outgoing and aspiring than his predecessors. He saw that decades of minor battles over territory with the dwarves had gotten the ogres nowhere, and that the only answer was a full-fledged war. Dagnor was wise enough to realize that a full-on assault of Kaladim would draw the attention of the elves, who were on good trading terms with the dwarves, and knew that his kingdom would not survive that war. So, he decided to set up a blockade that would effectively end all trade between the dwarves and elves, thus eliminating the elves' primary source of weapons and armor. This left the elves in dire straits with their own battles against the orcs and dark elves, thus incapable of aiding the dwarves if needed.

So, after preparing accordingly, Dagnor then led his ogre army along with many bands of orc slaves north towards the gates of Kaladim. The dwarves were blindsided by the size of Dagnor's attack. The ogres burned everything in sight and brutally slaughtered the ill-prepared dwarves. As Dagnor stopped to ensure every last dwarf perished throughout the Butcherblock Mountains, word got to Kaladim in time for the great city to prepare its defenses. King Grimmly Fireforge utilized his military experience to assemble a powerful defense force to protect the city. Dagnor did not expect this, so when his army was met by Fireforge's forces a mile away from Kaladim, it was the ogres who were forced back. The dwarves gave chase and battled the ogres for many nights in the Hills of Shade. In an attempt to turn the tides of war, Dagnor summoned most of his reserves from the Lesser Faydark, leaving only a few ogres and most of the orc slaves to guard the flank. King Fireforge sent scouts into the Lesser Faydark to propose an alliance with the orcs, something that no one could have forseen. The king promised the orcs freedom if they deserted the ogres and fought for neither side. The orcs accepted certain freedom rather than probable death and fled deeper into the Faydark while the dwarves assaulted the ogres from behind. The ogres were crushed between the might of both halves of the Kaladim army. Dagnor escaped temporarily, until he was met by King Fireforge himself on the shores of a lake with nowhere else to run. The dwarven king lodged a spear into the gut of Dagnor with such ferocity that the spear shattered, killing the mighty ogre instantly.

It is said that the ogre champion's blood heated the lake and turned its water red forever. The dwarves renamed it Dagnor's Cauldron to remind future generations of the triumph of the dwarves over the ogres. Only a few hundred ogres remained, where thousands once stood. The dwarves continued to pursue them, forcing the ogres to set sail and leave Faydwer. These ogres eventually found their way to the desert coast of eastern Antonica, wandered aimlessly south into the jungles, and founded the city of Oggok near the birthplace of the original Rallosian Empire.

The Orcan Exile

After being freed by the dwarves, the orcs understood fully that the dwarves were not their friends. Without masters commanding them, many of the orcs wandered aimlessly. Eventually, they formed three separate clans. The most notable of these were the Crushbone orcs that settled within the Greater Faydark led by a warrior named Gharol. The wood elf lord of Kelethin, Carandril, was quick to be concerned by the growing orc presence. Somewhat naively, Carandril sent several messengers to speak with Gharol about his plans in the area, but none of them returned. Gharol had convinced the other orcs that the elves had come from a far away land to steal the rightful lands of the orcs and that they must destroy the treetop city of Kelethin in order to reclaim it. The first waves of orc attacks were all but suicide missions. The rangers of Kelethin were able to simply take down the orcs one by one without ever leaving the trees. Gharol altered his tactics and sent waves of orcs bearing torches with orders to burn literally everything they could. The wood elf scouts and rangers were trapped high atop burning trees and many perished either by fire or by falling.

Carandril sent word to Castle Felwithe, the heart of the elves' empire in Faydwer, and the high elves of the city sent forth the king's personal guard, a prodigy in the field of military science. Though young in elvish terms, Edril had designed tactics no one had ever imagined. Edril brought with him one-hundred hand-picked paladins each with their best horse. He and his knights rode hard in the darkness of night from one orc camp to the next, often trampling defenseless orcs to their death. The wood elves of Kelethin referred to them as the Legion of Wind. The swift strategy kept word of their victories from getting back to Gharol. Still, many of Edril's one-hundred knights perished in the final battle against Gharol's camp. The orcs were defeated though, and driven out of the Greater Faydark. Edril was given the title of High Protector of Kelethin, while Gharol was eventually slain by his own followers for being seen as an inadequate leader.

The Kingdom of Gnomes

Ever since being unearthed by Brell Serilis, the gnomes of Norrath lived a mostly secluded life in the southeastern hills and mountains of Faydwer. Though small in stature, Brell created them to be highly intelligent, mechanically inclined, and adept in the arcane arts. For centuries, they mostly minded their own business aside from occasional trade with the dwarves. But, after the corruption of the elves at the hands of Innoruuk, it wasn't long before dark elves found their way to Faydwer. Followers of Mayong Mistmoore built a castle hidden in the darkness of the Lesser Faydark, which troubled the gnomes greatly. Many gnomes were captured and enslaved by the Teir'Dal. So many that, over time, the gnomes lost most of their own culture; the tinkering, the inventions, the magic. So, when the high elves arrived from Tunaria, the gnomes certainly did not mind having another ally nearby.

The first gnome to recognize the importance of a strong alliance with the elves was named Biddyn. Being from a long line of poor farmers near Lake Elizerain, Biddyn wanted to escape his destiny of hard labor not only for himself, but to restore the culture of his people. By studying the ways of the elves while on trips to their markets with his father, Biddyn built up the confidence to approach the king of Felwithe, Carandril. The former lord of Kelethin, Carandril, and the legendary elven knight, Edril, were charmed by the gnome's dedication to learning about elven culture. Biddyn requested their support in rebuilding the gnomish kingdom of old, and Edril enthusiastically agreed. After several days of deliberation, Carandril agreed to relinquishing a portion of his empire to the gnomes. The king sent five of his best guards with ten gnome settlers to scout the lands of southeastern Faydwer. The fifteen rode out from Felwithe cheered by hundreds of elves and gnomes alike, but it would be several months before they would be seen again.

Sadly, only one of the scouts returned. An elf, beaten and bruised, rode limp on his horse towards Castle Felwithe. He told a horrifying tale of a diseased dragon that tormented the party for weeks on end, slowly eliminating each member. The lone elf believed that he was only allowed to survive in order to inform his people that those lands belonged to the dragon. Much of the gnome population were angered, believing the elven king had knowingly gifted them cursed lands. Edril calmed the gnomes by volunteering to lead an attack on the dragon. Biddyn entrusted Edril with five of the sturdiest, grizzled gnome warriors to help in the daunting task. The fearless elven champion recognized the terror in the eyes of his band of gnomes as they approached the dragon's cave, so he entered alone. Two days later, Edril emerged dragging behind him the head of the plagued beast. Together, over the next few weeks, they cleared a safe path between Felwithe and the Steamfont Mountains. The gnomes soon founded their capital city, Ak'anon, which translates to "gift" in the gnomish tongue. Edril lived among the gnomes for a long period of time, lending a hand whenever needed while the kingdom was built. Biddyn was named the first king of Ak'anon by his people, and in his first act as king, he commissioned a statue to be built in honor of Edril. The skull of the disease dragon would also be displayed prominently in the city. When the elven knight finally returned to Felwithe after many years, he was honored as a hero for the second time.

The Rise of Humans

Across the plains of Karana, the remains of the human race after the fall of the Combine Empire began to establish new villages. In the west, led by Antonius Bayle, the humans thwarted possible extinction at the disease-ridden hands of a god known as Bertoxxulous the Plaguebringer. Bayle's leadership led to the founding of the jewel of human civilization, Qeynos, and, with the disappearance of the elves, the renaming of Tunaria into Antonica. In the east, on the edges of the new Desert of Ro and just south of the dark elves' Nektulos Forest, the humans built a city known as Freeport. From here, in the midst of danger, a handful of humans ventured across the sea, returning with tales of a mystical land and survivors of the elven race that taught the arcane arts.

Not all humans were on the side of good though. Many, especially in Freeport, joined cults that followed the ways of the darker gods such as Innoruuk and Bertoxxulous.

The Age of Enlightenment

The Erudites

Among the humans of Qeynos, there arose a group that felt they were the next evolutionary step. Led by a man of unmatched intelligence, Erud, his followers became known as the Erudites to others, but they referred to themselves as High Men. Their prudish nature was not welcomed by their fellow Qeynosians, and the Erudites became tired and agitated by the city, so Erud decided to lead his people west, across the Buried Sea, to the small continent of Odus.

Together they built a towering castle on the barren coast that would rival the elegance of the elves. The city within the castle was built around the largest library in the world. The Erudites sent forth a great number of spies who collected works of literature from all cultures and studied them within the great library. It was not long before they had mastered the ways of the arcane arts. They became first human wizards, magicians, and enchanters since the lost Combine Empire. The study of the arcane arts spread quickly to the humans of Qeynos and then to Freeport, which established an academy devoted to magic. But the Erudites were clearly superior when it came to magical prowess.

The Erudite Civil War

After many decades of a blissful existence in Erudin, a sect of High Men began to dabble in the dark arts of necromancy. Leading this group was a man named Miragul who had grown tired of what he saw as a narrow-minded view that his fellow erudites took on the arcane arts. This sparked a civil war among the erudites, one unlike any war ever fought on the face of Norrath. This was a battle fought exclusively with magic. Known as Heretics to those faithful to Erud's teachings, Miragul's followers were forced to leave Erudin after a battle where hundreds of men and women perished. Miragul himself, on the other hand, denounced his beliefs in the art of necromancy and rejoined the high council of Erudin. This was simply a ploy though, as he secretly gathered many of the rare and legendary artifacts and tomes from within the city. Miragul escaped via a small ship and sailed back to Antonica in an attempt to escape the Erudin spies that would certainly be looking for him.

Even without their leader, the Heretics entered into a massive final battle that resulted in unimaginable devastation. When the magic of thousands of casters collided, an explosion erupted that shook the entire continent. When the dust settled, an enormous portion of the earth had been launched into orbit leaving a seemingly bottomless pit that would become known simply as The Hole. Hundreds of kerrans, indigenous people of Odus, perished as innocent bystanders.

The shock of what both sides had wrought with their conflict curbed both sides' desire for war, while they still completely disagreed with each others' practices. The Heretics established a city within the cliffs of The Hole where they could continue to practice necromancy freely. Those in Paineel who delved deep into The Hole almost all perished when the denizens of the Underfoot were released from Brell Serilis' realm into the world of Norrath.

The Fate of Miragul

After escaping from Odus, Mirgaul settled in the frozen north somewhere between the barbarian city of Halas and Permafrost Keep among the ruins of the Rallosian giants from ages ago. After years in seclusion and pouring over every tome and scroll he had stolen from Erudin, Miragul's power had grown exponentially. Eventually, he was brave enough to overcome his paranoia and began travelling the world in search of more knowledge. It was his discovery of the halflings and their adeptness for sneaking and picking pockets that rekindled Miragul's paranoia. This led him back to the far reaches of the frozen north, further than he had ventured before. Now a complete recluse, Miragul built countless rooms and tunnels beneath the Frigid Plains where he kept his massive collection of relics and books. After decades in seclusion, and despite his knowledge in the ways of necromancy, Miragul eventually came to the realization that he would soon die. The thought terrified the mage to the extent that he spent all of his remaining time studying the theory of existentialism. It was not long before he was aware of the Planes of Power, Influence, and Discord.

Miragul was able to create portals to these other dimensions, and, eventually, he could even create portals within his own world that allowed him to effectively teleport himself to various locales throughout Norrath. This level of teleportation had not been seen on Norrath since the days of the Combine Empire. In a last attempt to escape death, Miragul decided to visit Paineel for the first time since abandoning his people. Hoping for further advancements in necromancy discovered in the depths of The Hole, he was met with trepidation by the city. A handful of necromancers and shadow knights welcomed the legendary man into their homes. While some thought Miragul's stories to be tall tales and fables, there were those that saw the potential of trading knowledge with him in order gain more power. This was how Miragul learned the ability to raise the dead, creating obedient minions out of the undead. Suddenly, it dawned on him that the undead never age, and it became his obsession on surviving forever as a lich. He returned to his menagerie beneath the ice via teleportation to make his final preparations. The experiment was a success in terms of transforming himself into a lich, but Miragul had made several unforeseeable mistakes. While immortal, Miragul's lich had no ambition for the acquirement of knowledge. His conscious soul was eternally trapped in an apathetic vessel, left to roam through his endless halls of rare collectibles.

Edril and the Prophecy of Trakanon

The elven king, Carandril, lived to nearly 500 years old, but when he finally passed, a grand funeral was held in the streets of Felwithe. A new king was selected and, therefore, a new general of the imperial army was selected by the new king. This left the legendary knight, Edril, without a purpose for the first time in a couple centuries. Having almost single-handedly saved his people, and the gnomes, on multiple occasions, Edril had no intentions of retiring his armor and sword. Edril decided to seek new adventures in the west and set sail for the human city of Freeport. While he could not go anywhere in Faydwer without being recognized, his legend was mostly unknown in Antonica. This soon changed.

Edril quickly became known in eastern Antonica for his efforts in defending the humans and halflings of the region from the dark elves and goblin horde. He also made a name for himself in the Desert of Ro for felling a mighty sand giant named Ragoth, and ridding Lake Rathetear of a tribe of evil frogloks. Edril eventually made his way across Antonica to the jewel of human civilization, Qeynos. There, he met a beautiful erudite woman, highly intelligent and adept in the art of summoning. Her name was Almaril and the two were soon married. Edril was so infatuated with her, he gave up his adventurous lifestyle for some time. One day, though, he received a letter from an old friend in Freeport informing him of a clan of troll thieves that were hijacking caravans in the Desert of Ro. Things like this were not uncommon, but the part of the letter that troubled Edril was that the goods and platinum were being stolen to fund a rebel troll army in the desert. Even the trolls of Grobb wanted no association with this band of trolls and their leader, Zisstrik the Insane. Not surprisingly, once Edril made it back to the desert, it wasn't long before he had slain the entire troop of trolls. Before Zisstrik died, though, he spoke of the diseased dragon Trakanon, saying that he came to Zisstrik in his sleep commanding him to cleanse the desert and swamps of the humans. Edril knew that Zisstrik was insane, but he was still intrigued and wanted to learn more about this second plague dragon.

Edril, fearless as ever, ventured into the swamps and to the troll city of Grobb. If any other elf has walked into Grobb and walked out alive, there is no known record of it. But there he was, requesting audience with the high shaman of the city. His request was granted, in return for dispatching Zisstrik and his band of rebels. Edril was on the edge of his seat, engrossed with the story of the trolls existence in Kunark, survival through war and famine, and defeating the odds by making it to Antonica. He immediately became obsessed with the notion of one final adventure, and although his wife begged him not to, Edril set sail for Kunark while his beautiful bride wept on the docks of Freeport. His shipped landed on the coast of the Field of Bone, and Edril wandered out alone towards the part of the Emerald Jungle that the trolls called Trakanon's Teeth.

After surviving countless traps and conniving puzzles, Edril had made it to the ruins of Sebilis where the undead dragon resided. But the elven knight did not slay the beast, for it was what Trakanon told him that was far more important than the triumph of bringing a dragon's head back to his ship. Trakanon's booming voice called out to Edril as if the dragon had been expecting the elf for some time. Trakanon spoke of the creation of the world and the Elder Age, explaining that he had been around since the beginning of time and would be at the end of time as well. Edril stood silently, somehow knowing in his heart that the dragon spoke truthfully. Trakanon went on to prophecize the destruction of Norrath. He claimed the world's fate was decided long ago in the eyes of the gods, and as the races of the world attempt to destroy each other, the gods of influence will become increasingly angry. Trakanon stated that there were a chosen few who were untouched by the gods, the saviors of mortal men selected by the great dragon himself. He lifted his enormous talons and ripped a hole through the floor of his lair. Edril peered over the edge into the glowing canyon and saw a man's face appear in the mist. Trakanon explained that the erudite man's name was Miragul, a master of all things magic and the ability to alter the laws of physics within the universe, but trapped in a soulless body left to wander helplessly in a dungeon. A second face appeared before Edril, and it was a scarred troll's face. When Trakanon spoke the name of Nalikor, the elf recognized the name from the stories in Grobb. The troll who survived the tribal wars to unite his people under one banner and find prosperity in a new land. Then, Trakanon explained that Edril was the third of the chosen ones, an elf who is constantly chased by death but evades it at every turn. Of the three chosen ones, the balance of the universe remained in tact between the truly good, the terribly evil, and the shades of gray in between.

Trakanon had revealed to Miragul the existence of the artifacts required for the progression of the use of magic in the world. For Nalikor, he gave a powerful sword that would unite a dying nation of people. To Edril, Trakanon gave a pendant that would allow the elf to speak to the dragon from anywhere. Trakanon warned the elf that the pendants power was limited by time, for the dragon could forsee that within the next age, the elder and new races of the world would rediscover Kunark, and eventually defeat him once and for all. The pendant would become useless, but not forever, because then the dragon made his biggest claim of all. Trakanon explained that his chosen will one day be reborn in the bodies of others and summon a fourth chosen one who will be tasked with collecting all three of Trakanon's gifts in what the dragon described as an apocalyptic event.

Edril accepted his fate and returned to Qeynos to be with his wife, never setting out on any grand adventures ever again. He and Almaril had a son, which had never happened between an elf and erudite before. Sadly, their son died at a young age from complications due to an unknown disease. Edril was heartbroken, and at the age of 405, the legendary knight from Felwithe died. The Bayle family of Qeynos made preparations to send Edril's body back to Faydwer where a proper funeral was held. Those coming to pay their respects included hundreds of elves and gnomes, many merchants and friends from Freeport and Qeynos, and even a few troll shaman were allowed to attend. Even a few dark elves observed from the shadows as a sign of respect, and to make sure the knight had truly died. Edril, still wearing Trakanon's pendant, received a king's burial in the Elizerain Lake.

The Age of Turmoil

The events of this age take place within the game EverQuest and its twenty-nine expansions.

Al'Kabor and the Kedge

Throughout the Age of Enlightenment, there were many powerful erudites graduating from the caster guilds within Erudin. None could match the capabilities of one particular wizard though, and his name was Al'Kabor. At the dawn of the Age of Turmoil, his research launched a new wave of exciting new spells for not just wizards, but magicians and enchanters as well. Al'Kabor learned all that he could from the enormous library in Erudin, but similarly to Miragul, he ventured out into the world thirsting for knowledge. Unlike Miragul though, Al'Kabor desired simply to understand the universe, not control it. The most intriguing cultures to him were the Combine Empire, a lost civilization whose remnants still littered the world, and the kedge, an aquatic race of people created by Prexus who were so rarely seen that most believed them to be a myth.

Al'Kabor sent letters to the various schools of magic around the world hoping for a lead on where he could find the kedge. He received a letter back from the Academy of the Arcane Arts in Freeport stating that one of their scholars had recently found an ancient scroll mentioning the kedge, but the scholar's boat had sunk in the Ocean of Tears on his way back to Freeport. One sailor of the ship washed up on the shores of the desert, miraculously alive, and was then recuperating within the city. Al'Kabor left Erudin immediately, gathering supplies and hiring a group of mercenaries in Qeynos for a trek across Antonica. After a long journey, Al'Kabor found the sailor, Tillerman, residing in a small home in the Commonlands just outside the walls of Freeport. He told Al'Kabor the horrifying tale of their ship being capsized while still in calm waters. Tillerman had swam through the night to one of the many islands and after several days, assumed none of his friends had survived with him. The sailor was riddled with guilt and terrified of the sea, but Al'Kabor explained about what he was seeking and how the sailors' deaths would not be in vain if this scroll was recovered.

Al'Kabor convinced the sailor to join him as a guide as they searched the Ocean of Tears for clues. Tillerman led them to the vicinity of the incident, and a druid among the mercenaries granted the party the ability to breathe underwater. Al'Kabor's ship dropped anchor and the entire crew dove deep into the ocean. It was not long before they discovered the cause of the squall; a massive water elemental. Tillerman and the mercenaries assumed they were doomed, but they had fully underestimated the raw magical power of Al'Kabor. The wizard summoned forth an ice comet from E'ci herself that obliterated the elemental instantly. After a short rest, the crew took shifts searching through the wreckage of Tillerman's ship. Soon they uncovered the captain's strongbox, which was the most likely place to keep important documents for it was sealed with wax. Among many other papers, Al'Kabor found what he was looking for. After paying Tillerman and the mercenaries for their services, the wizard quickly cast a teleportation spell that instantly carried him back to the great library of Erudin where he could study the ancient language of the kedge.

The Relic of Brell Serilis

Following the Ogre-Dwarven War of the Lost Age, the priests of Brell in Kaladim decided to nominate one of their own to carry the title of The Seeker, who would be responsible for searching for a fabled relic left by Brell Serilis himself. At the beginning of the Age of Turmoil, the current seeker was a cleric by the name of Duskan Stonegrinder. He spent most of his time in Dagnor's Cauldron combing the crevices and chasms for clues. The day that he finally felt he had picked up a trail, he was savagely attacked by a clan of aqua goblins. Duskan survived, but barely, and was found several days later by a search party from Kaladim and brought back to King Kazon Stormhammer. While being nursed back to full health, the king visited the seeker. Duskan told the king of what he'd found, and the king's eyes lit up with excitement. As soon as Duskan was able, he led a band of dwarves and a few elves back to Dagnor's Cauldron. They circled the rocky shores of the lake moving towards the entrance to the Estate of Unrest. The troop became more and more timid as they approached the cursed residence, especially when Duskan ordered them to set up camp just outside the tunnel leading to it.

Unrest was not Duskan's concern though. Soon he led the group underwater, where they encountered the clan of aqua goblins yet again. The elven druids quickly cast magical spells on the group allowing them to breathe underwater. As the goblins neared defeat at the hands of the dwarves and elves, a giant creature emerged from a cave adorned with ancient columns. The finned man in a long, flowing robe exclaimed that his was Phinigel, the last of the kedge. As the last goblin fell, the dwarves and elves turned their blades and spells on the mysterious creature. None seemed to be able to harm him in any way, for Phinigel's magical prowess allowed him to envelope himself in a rune spell that made him nigh invincible. Phinigel claimed that his secrets were not ready to be revealed, and then he disappeared in a whirlpool as quickly as he had arrived. Duskan, confused by the encounter, found a locked chest seemingly left behind by the kedge wizard. He recognized the seal on it immediately and quickly packed up camp to return to Kaladim.

Upon entering the Butcherblock Mountains, Duskan's crew were ambushed by a band of dark elves led by Ambassador D'Vinn. The expert assassins in D'Vinn's brigade quickly dispatched most of Duskan's crew. Fenric, one of the dwarves who survived the initial attack, played dead on the field of battle hoping to pick up on the dark elves plans. The Teir'Dal wizard of their group had been slain by Fenric, so he knew the dark elves had no means of a quick escape. The dark elves decided to carry the chest to Crushbone, where a dark elf emissary was residing with the orcs as they conspired to destroy the wood elven city of Kelethin. After the dark elves left, Fenric gathered the few survivors and began to slowly chase the assassins down. One assassin ran ahead to inform the emissary in Crushbone of the importance of the incoming catch and that she would need to teleport them to Nektulos Forest immediately upon arrival. Seza, the dark elf wizard, sent forth a small army of orcs to clear a path for D'Vinn, but even though the assassins had traveled at a blistering pace, Seza had been slain in one of the skirmishes in the Greater Faydark. D'Vinn, realizing they had no means of escaping Faydwer, prepared for the inevitable arrival of dwarves from Kaladim searching for the chest.

Fenric did not take the time to return to Kaladim though. He garnered support from the high elves and wood elves of the forest as he passed through on his way to Crushbone. The coalition of dwarves and elves were able to defeat the dark elves and retrieve the chest. Upon returning to Kaladim, the king discovered the chest could not be opened without a special key. It was at this moment that an out of breath dwarven rogue came running into the room claiming to have seen a single dark elf setting sail not far from the docks in Butcherblock. It was clear to King Kazon that this dark elf carried the key and was attempting to make it back to Neriak on his own. The chase quickly ensued and, upon arriving in Freeport, the dwarves hired some seedy mercenaries at the docks to accompany them on the way to Nektulos. The dwarves were successful in intercepting the dark elf at the last moment, and immediately returned to Kaladim with the key. King Kazon Stormhammer slowly opened the chest and withdrew a mighty hammer of divine power. Holding the hammer, Kazon recited a long-forgotten tale from King Grimmly Fireforge, who reigned during the time of the great ogre war. The high priests of Kaladim at the time had prayed to Brell Serilis to grant them the ability to defeat their much larger foes. The Butcherblock Hammer was bestowed upon them by the Duke of Below, but the priest was slain defending the king the Battle of the Shattered Spear. King Kazon gifted the hammer to current dwarven champion and leader of the warrior's guild, Grundel, to carry in defense of the city and the dwarven people.

The Child of Hate

The very existence of the elves had always been a thorn in the side of the Prince of Hate, Innoruuk. Try as he might, his corruption of the elves in the creation of the Tier'Dal had not completely eliminated the high elves and wood elves from the world of Norrath. Innoruuk's next step towards total domination was the birth of his daughter. Born from a devout high priestess of Neriak hand-picked by Innoruuk himself, Lanys T'Vyl was her name. When she was old enough, Innoruuk sent her away from the Plane of Hate and into Norrath. He entrusted her with the greatest warrior in the dark elves' military, Laarthik K'Shin. In a dream, Innoruuk came to Laarthik and gave him this task, and the warrior shot out of bed immediately to prepare. Word traveled fast, and the dark elves of Neriak gathered in the middle of the night to hear Laarthik's announcement. He then presented to them the mistress of envy and daughter of the Prince of Hate, Lanys T'Vyl.

Lanys spoke to her people and advised them that to reach her full potential, they must recover the sacred armor known as the Armor of Darkness, which had been in held in safe keeping by a fanatical sect of Innoruuk's followers known as the Crimson Tier'Dal. Lanys, along with Laarthik, led a group first to Befallen, where she defeated the first of the Crimson warriors and took his bracers. The second target was in Najena, the hidden research facility of a powerful dark elf summoner. There, Lanys defeated the shadow knight in charge of keeping the boots. As Lanys returned to the Plane of Hate after each victory to honor her father, Laarthik patrolled Neriak's commons recruiting new volunteers for their expeditions. The third and final venture took them to Solusek's Eye, a labyrinth of caves within the Lavastorm Mountains. On the way, a high elf leapt from a mountain cliff in an attempt to assassinate the daughter of Innoruuk. His attempt proved foolish, and he was killed with a quickness. Through the maze of Solusek's Eye, Lanys finally found her foe, surrounded by gnomish clockworks. Though most of the dark elves perished in the battle, Lanys obtained the final pieces of the Armor of Darkness. As she strapped on the chestplate, a looming darkness emanated from her body that infused all around her with intense hate, envy, and rage. The dark elves were prepared for war once again.

The Goblin's Stone

The mines beneath High Pass had always been important to the humans who lived there. For one, the pass was the halfway point on the primary trade route between Qeynos and Freeport, which made for excellent business and trade. The rich mines beneath the keep were essentially a bonus, but they were often a burden for the guards that protected the important stronghold. The Pickclaw goblins had burrowed their way into the mines from the nearby mountains, which kept the guards busy almost indefinitely. One such goblin, by the name of Nurgal, found a strange, illustrious stone, which he brought to a dark elf ambassador in High Pass. She quickly paid the goblin, realizing the potential of the stone. Her initial testing of the stone as a reagent for spell casting nearly demolished her entire home. She soon left for Neriak along with Nurgal, and upon their arrival, she immediately sought out Laarthik K'Shin. The ambassador had hope to earn favor for her find, but Laarthik immediately sent and Nurgal back to High Pass under the orders to find more of these stones. As she and Nurgal entered Kithicor Woods on their way back, they were attacked by a high elf assassin and both were slain. The elf found a letter on the ambassador and brought it to Lord Tethys, the high elf ambassador in High Keep. Upon reading the letter, Tethys was highly distraught at the potential of the magical stone that was now in the hands of the Tier'Dal.

Tunare's Champion

On one chilly evening in the Greater Faydark, an unknown high elf maiden arrived in Kelethin. The wood elves roaming the bridges and platforms of the treetop city that night assumed she was visiting from nearby Felwithe, but the beautiful, blonde woman seemed lost, as though she had never seen the wondrous city of Kelethin before. Making her appearance even stranger, she was followed by several faeries, who usually kept their distance from the city. The first establishment she entered was one of the many taverns of Kelethin, where she was drawn to a drunken elf who was humming a song about a silver, untamed beast of the forest. The high elf felt compelled by the song to find the fabled creature, which turned out to be a unicorn in the nearby Lesser Faydark. A group of adventurers showed her the way to the forest, where, after much searching, they found the unicorn. The creature allowed none to approach it until the mysterious high elf stepped forward. A flash of light temporarily blinded her party members as she first touched the unicorn's nose, a whisper of the word "yes" echoed throughout the forest, and it suddenly began to rain. The high elf maiden's name was Firiona Vie, Tunare's chosen one.

Firiona Meets the King

Word traveled fast to Felwithe about the divine abilities of Firiona Vie. Soon, one of Felwithe's best paladins, Galeth Verdeth, tasked himself with being Firiona's mentor. After many months, when Galeth first brought her to Castle Felwithe, Firiona's unicorn, named Equestrielle, refused to enter the city. In its stead appeared a wolf and several faeries that accompanied the mysterious high elf maiden through the streets, which startled many of the shopkeepers and citizens. Galeth was quick to quell the people's concerns and invited them all to follow him to the king's court, for a celebration was at hand. A bard hired for the occasion chose to sing a song of an old prophecy of child raised by Tunare. The king became irritated, for he had lost all faith in the potential of this prophecy, and ordered the bard to be silent. At that instant, a ghost appeared in the room whom Galeth immediately recognized as the king's wife who had died due to complications of birth. She spoke quietly to the king of their daughter whom the king had left for others to raise in his grief. Galeth suddenly realized that the prophecy that the bard sang about had come true. Firiona Vie was the king's daughter, raised by the Mother of All herself. The king called for her to approach the throne and embraced her after a moment of stunned amazement. At that moment, a soft yet powerful voice filled the city and said "Know that Firiona Vie is the chosen one of Tunare."

The Council of High Pass

Lord Tethys, the high elf ambassador in High Keep, met with the man in charge of the keep, Carson McCabe, about the letter that was brought to him. Within the letter were mentions of plans for an attack on the keep by the Tier'Dal army. Allowing the dark elves to control the trade route between Qeynos and Freeport would be disastrous not just for the humans, but for all the good races of Antonica. Carson and Tethys realized that once the dark elves controlled High Pass, the nearby halfling city of Rivervale and eventually Freeport itself would fall. Despite the dire situation, garnering support from the other ambassadors was difficult. Then, word came to the council of ambassadors that Galeth Verdeth, a noble knight of Feltwithe, had arrived in the keep. He was accompanied by his pupil, Firiona Vie, and had been authorized by the elven king to assist in defending the pass, but the rest of the knights were indisposable due to the threat of the Crushbone orcs in the Greater Faydark.

The Cursing of Kithicor

Knowing of the impending invasion by the forces of evil, Carson McCabe called in favors from anyone he could. At the same time, the dark elves requested assistance from the trolls of Innothule and from the orcs of Crushbone in Faydwer. Many adventurers from far and wide chose sides and prepared for war. In the darkness of night, the forces of evil marched out from Nektulos Forest led by Lanys T'Vyl and Laarthik K'Shin. Halfling rogues quickly sent word back to High Keep to notify McCabe of the advancement. McCabe stayed within the keep commanding a small troop as a last line of defense, while Firiona Vie, Galeth Verdeth, and Lord Tethys led a coalition of those willing to defend the pass. The first line of defense was led by a noble and brave dwarf by the name of Tubr Broadaxe.

Tubr was not willing to wait for war to come to him, so he led his troops out into Kithicor Woods to meet the advancing dark elf army. The ensuing war was devastating for both sides, and fairly even. Sensing that their defense would not hold on much longer, Lord Tethys sought Lanys T'Vyl on the field of battle. The goddess of envy bested the high elf ambassador, which incited those fighting on the side of good. Galeth and Firiona immediately charged into the fray, the child of Tunare matching swords with the child of Innoruuk. Lanys was weakened though from her battle with Tethys, and Firiona wounded her deeply. Seeing this enraged Laarthik, who unleashed a flurry of attacks on Galeth, forcing the paladin of Felwithe to retreat. He knew with the loss of Lanys, the dark elves were on the losing side of this war, so Laarthik made use of the the magical stone found in the mines of the keep.

Laarthik held the stone high above his hed and summoned the Prince of Hate himself, Innoruuk. The power of the stone engulfed the mighty shadow knight in flames, and his agonizing screams in fact drew the attention of Innoruuk from within the Plane of Hate. The already dimly lit forest became even darker, the earth began to shake bringing a halt to the battle, and a great rift opened in the sky above them all. Innoruuk stepped through the swirling portal, and seeing his daughter lying wounded on the ground, he began to tremble with a seething hatred. The Prince of Hate laid a curse upon the forest that left those who had died in the war with the misfortune of wandering aimlessly through the woods each night for eternity. Innoruuk then scooped up his daughter and whisked her away to the Plane of Hate, saving her from certain death. The forces of good had prevailed in this war, but not entirely. The once peaceful Kithicor Woods was then far too dangerous for fledgling halflings from nearby Rivervale or for traveling rangers seeking training. The dark elves had failed to gain control of the trade route, but their father had the route exponentially more dangerous forever. Even some of the most experienced adventurers of the Age of Turmoil refused to pass through these woods at night.

One other result of the war was one that none could have forseen, perhaps even Innoruuk himself. By entering the mortal realm and intervening in the war, Innoruuk had opened an unsealable means of travelling to and from the Plane of Hate. It was not long before the wizards of Norrath, presumably with the assistance of Al'Kabor, discovered a means for transporting groups of adventurers directly into Innoruuk's realm. In order to perform this teleportation, the wizard required a shard of one of the same types of stones originally found by the goblin, Nurgal. These stones became known as Soulstones of Innoruuk, and were horded by the dark elves who kept them safely in the Spires of Innoruuk, the cleric guild of Neriak.

• The Ruins of Kunark
• The Scars of Velious
• The Shadows of Luclin
• The Planes of Power
• The Legacy of Ykesha
• The Lost Dungeons of Norrath
• The Gates of Discord
• The Omens of War
• The Dragons of Norrath
• The Depths of Darkhollow
• The Prophecy of Ro
• The Serpent's Spine
• The Buried Sea
• The Secrets of Faydwer
• The Seeds of Destruction
• The Underfoot
• The House of Thule
• The Veil of Alaris
• The Rain of Fear
• The Call of the Forsaken
• The Darkened Sea
• The Broken Mirror
• The Empires of Kunark
• The Ring of Scale
• The Burning Lands
• The Torment of Velious
• The Claws of Veeshan
• The Terror of Luclin
• The Night of Shadows
• Laurion's Song

The Age of Defiance

After centuries of limited intelligence due to the curse laid upon Zek's children after the first invasion of the Planes of Power, an ogre was born had seemingly broken the curse. Urduuk was his name, a natural leader of his people. Learning of the legendary history of the ogres, Urduuk tasked himself with conquering the world in the name of Rallos Zek just as his ancestor Murdunk had done. The new Rallosian Army marched out from Oggok on a mission to reclaim their heritage. Their first target was the nearby city of the honorable frogloks, Gukta. The Siege of Gukta was a massacre that left the froglok population on the verge of extinction. Urduuk and his minions soon spread throughout Antonica slaughtering anyone and everyone in their path.

Much like their ancestors though, they were too greedy. When most of Antonica had been conquered, Urduuk led his army back home to the jungles of The Feerrott and eyed the nearby Temple of Cazic-Thule. The Rallosian Army assaulted the ancient halls, which drew the attention of The Faceless himself. Since the beginning of time, Cazic-Thule and Rallos Zek had held a loose alliance in the balance of good and evil. So, when Urduuk began slaughtering the denizens of fear, Cazic-Thule saw this as a betrayal by The Warlord. Cazic, angered like never before, released the Greenmist for the second time in history. The biological weapon had once nearly erased the shissar from existence, and as the mist spread through southern Antonica, nearly every ogre collapsed. A handful of ogres evaded the genocide by hiding in the deepest depths of Guk.

The Age of Cataclysms

Documentation of the events known as The Rending and The Shattering are rare and precious, for, during this period, countless lives were lost along with many cities. The Rending was a period of about ninety years during the 36th and 37th centuries where Norrath saw an exponential increase in seismic activity. Most tales of The Rending were carried on by word of mouth. At the beginning, everything fell silent. Then, just as the ground began to tremor, all of Tunare's creatures began to go berserk. The birds were deafening. Even the tamest horses stampeded wildly in all directions. Buildings began to crumble, and great rifts ripped the ground apart swallowing innocent people, creatures, and famous landmarks. For the decades that followed the initial quakes, the destruction continued, but the worst was yet to come. The Rending did not only affect Norrath.

The Shattering occurred somewhere around the year 3711. One of Norrath's two moons, Luclin, broke apart into large pieces after a horrifying explosion that blinded thousands of onlookers. Clearly everyone living on or visiting the moon perished, but some of the chunks of the moon that were launched out of the moon's typical orbit began to rain down on the already broken world of Norrath. Catastrophic earthquakes and devastating tsunamis rocked the planet to its core. The tectonic plates beneath the surface of the planet were shattered to the extent that whole continents were either swallowed by the sea or set adrift and lost forever. Those lucky, or unlucky, enough to have survived both The Rending and The Shattering were left in a post-apocalyptic world. Many refugees were rescued from tiny islands scattered throughout the world and brought to one of the two remaining cities in the world, Qeynos or Freeport.

The Age of Destiny

The events of this age take place within the game EverQuest II and its nineteen expansions.

• The Desert of Flame
• The Kingdom of Sky
• The Echoes of Faydwer
• The Rise of Kunark
• The Shadow Odyssey
• The Sentinel's Fate
• The Destiny of Velious
• The Age of Discovery
• The Chains of Eternity
• The Tears of Veeshan
• The Altar of Malice
• The Terrors of Thalumbra
• Kunark Ascending
• The Planes of Prophecy
• Chaos Descending
• The Blood of Luclin
• The Reign of Shadows
• The Visions of Vetrovia
• The Renewal of Ro
• The Ballads of Zimara