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A Footnote From Arandur Artano

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The following is published only after much deliberation with Lord Artano,
notable High Elven scholar and historian of Feanorion. Artano would not
allow the following footnote to be publish independently without at least
explaining “in no uncertain terms!” that the footnote is in no way
complete and is a gross generalization not suitable for publication in any
well standing historical journal. Never-the-less we assured Lord Artano
that our readers are well aware of the historical standards and will not
begrudge him his brevity.
An excerpt from a footnote in Lord Artandur Artano’s Handbook
of Notable Magical Objects
For those who are not familiar with the origin of Elder
Sorcery and the making of the world, the relative importance of
each of the above mentioned items may be lost. While our
specialty is, of course, in the history of the many magical works
that have been created through time and not in the philosophy of
geohistory we hope that the tolerant reader will allow us to say a
word or two on the subject.

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It is theorized by the great philosophers of prehistory that
Roekron and the worlds beyond (for one does not create merely one
continent in and of itself, but the creation of a world is a complete
and thorough process encompassing all lands, known and
unknown- even, as some of our esteemed colleagues have
theorized, perhaps involving the creation of the universe as well,
though this has not been confirmed as yet) was created by
Wurlangedemes, the Ur-Dragonon. There are some who postulate
that Wurlangedemes did not create the world so much as it
dreamed it, and that we are merely the dreams of the Ur-
Dragonon, but as this has no basis in philosophical fact, we will
not waste the readers precious time with debates about the nature
of reality and perception as some, so called scholars are like to do,
and though it is worth noting that Lord Neelue has clearly and
formidably disproved all but the most ludicrous of theorizing on
the subject, we will pass on, without mentioning it. With the

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creation of the world, or universe, as it will, Wurlangedemes, the
Ur-Dragonon spoke into the world, and that which it said was.
Do not mistake our representation of this occurrence as a religious
homage to the Ur-Dragonon, great and powerful as it may be,
such a devout remark holds no place in a historical footnote such
as this and will be avoided out of respect for our numerous readers,
but rather, is a statement of philosophical fact. As the words
came into the world, that which was named became.
It is said that the first word spoken was Dragon, and all
others followed and that this is naturally why Dragon’s speak
the language of the making. Other scholars such as Greives and
Wittle have asserted in their fifth volume on the first word of
creation, that the first word could not have been dragon for it
must have been world as the Dragon’s would have had no world to
be created in. We apologize to Greives and Wittle for such a
paltry explanation of their work, but as we do not wish to spend

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any more time on the subject then is absolutely necessary for a
footnote, the situation demands such brevity. Regardless of
Greives and Wittles theory’s, apt as they may be, one must
eventually turn to the Dragons themselves for the answer, as
they are the ones in question, and as was done in the first age by
Feanor, Astengred and Svod in the legendary Riddling on the
Mountain, or Wizaste’s Answering as it is sometimes referred to.
Onon, the Dragon Matriarch at the time, answered the three with
the affirmative that indeed Dragon was the first world and that
she personally viewed the making of the world. Now, one cannot
put too much faith in the word of a Dragon, even a matriarch
and while we in no way mean to imply any untruth in Onon’s
statement, as it is said she spoke in Elder Sorcery, a language
which, due to it’s nature cannot contain lies, it is still theorized
by some that she spoke what, in her arrogance, she believed to be
true, not what truly was. Such a discussion does not belong in a

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footnote of this nature and so we will simply take Onon at her
word and move on to the origin of species.
Onon spoke of the origin of species at the Riddling on the
Mountain and the results have since created a great controversy
in the schools of Nature Mages. Onon said that Wurlangedems
created The People and dispersed them across the lands. When
Svod pressed the question of who The People were, Onon said “The
first beings. The ones all life has come from.” This came as a shock
to the Feanor, Svod and Astengrad who until this time had
assumed that each species had been created separately. Contrary
to the reining theory of the day, Onon clarified that all life on
Roekron began with these first being, which looked nothing like
anything we know of now. These first beings changed and
mutated rapidly it is said, being fresh and full of Elder Sorcery,
and each generation created a new life form. Thus, Onon,
explained “all of you are related; bird, fish, elf and dwarf. All

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but the Dragons, who have no claim to this world.” There are still
those like the afore mentioned Grieves and Wittle who protest
Onon’s, so called perception of the creation of the world and still
hold that Wurlangedems created each species separately and that
Onon was wrong. I commend these notable scholars for their
courageous opposition to a Dragon Matriarch’s word spoken in
Elder Sorcery, though there assertion is made somewhat less
courageous when one considers that Grieves and Wittle only
published their works after the death of Onon, and the passing of
the one being who might contest them. Furhtermore, there are
those of the Storm Mage Guild in Temnor who believe that their
Drakes are in fact a recreation of these original first beings.
While Drakes certainly posses a certain propensity for spawning
many and varied life forms, one must assume that the Temnorian
Storm Mages are engaging in the most extravagant from of self
flattery to purport to have recreated the first beings; had the first

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being been such vulgar destroyers of life we should very likely
never have developed to our current state of varied life forms, but
I do not wish to waste any more of the reader precious time on
topics that are best reserved for the school or Nature Mages. We
invite the Storm Mages of Temnor to take up the issue with the
Dragons personally.
Returning to the spawning of life upon the world, during the
formation of life, these new creatures spread rapidly across the
world and after only a few thousand years lost their ability to
create and change; each species and life form settling on one form
to procreate. At this point, several of the more familiar species
had already settled in various lands, the Hobbits on a continent
to the south, the Dwarves to the north, the Centaurs to the east
in what is now Teriock, we elves on the continent to the west and
the Humans, contrary to many opinions, are those who have a
true claim to Roekron, having originally settled in these very

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lands. In this early time of prehistory, life for many was
primarily a nomadic and simplistic endeavor to outwit and out
live the various other creatures spawned by the first beings.
Thus it may have stayed if it were not for Wurlangedemes
choice to allow the passage of the gods. Onon explained at Mount
Wizaste that Wurlangedemes the Ur-Dragonon was not
interested in the world that had been created but that many
other forces in the universe were, forces known to Onon as
Celestials. These beings existed on many varying levels of
existence and all wanted control of Wurlangedemes new creation.
The Ur-Dragonon agreed to allow a “Passage” for these beings into
the world but required they leave the choice of which Celestial
the mortals would follow to remain in the hands of the mortals
themselves who, Onon said, Wurlangedemes found interesting.
Thus followed the “folding” as Onon said, of the Passage of the
Gods, or Celestials as Onon was like to call them, and the

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beginning of the creation of prehistory only five thousand years
after its initial creation. It is unfortunate for the historian that
the Passage of the Gods was permitted by Wurlangedemes, not to
imply that any religious or spiritual belief is, in and of itself an
unfortunate event; many great creations and improvements of
people would not have come to pass were it not for the convictions
of a particularly pious individual of one faith or another.
Rather, it is unfortunate in that with the presence of numerous
faiths or Pantheons, if one will allow such a word, that history
invariably gets misrepresented as it is interpreted by one faithful
scholar or another. Thus, the prehistory of the world is muddied
and smeared to such a horrendous degree that, as I have explained
in previous chapters, entire years of prehistory cannot be
accounted for. This has led to the creative, if not well informed
theorizing of certain philosopher of Temporal Placement and
Mapping that time did not exist for periods of time, a ludicrous

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and self depreciating argument that holds up to serious
investigation no more than a the Dark Guards held up against
Kajiro Minimoto at Nacrowaith. As any, good student of history
can surmise, the loss of entire years of prehistory, while
unthinkable now, is understandable under the circumstances. It
was a time of great upheaval and entire continents were
unknown at the time. One cannot fault our faithful pre-
scholars too much if in the midst of their painstaking work, whose
book we now stand upon, a year or two of the first thousand got
lost or was misplaced. It was a time of great romance and has
since become the stuff of legends and fables.
Most notable events of prehistory, here, merely as a reminder,
are, in chronological order, the Battle of the Four Powers, the Sun
Fever Epidemic, and the Age of Ice and Fire. Early in prehistory
Roekron was fraught with initial tribal battles across what was
then simply called, The Land. The battle of the Four Powers is of

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course the most notable event of prehistory one is likely to think
of, and while it has been discussed in detail in chapter five, we
hope the reader will allow us to make a brief statement about the
battle itself. The Land, as it was called, was ruled by barbarian
hordes, humans of course, who seemed set on conquering as much
land as possible in their constant quest for wealth and power, as
lesser beings are like to do. Beset by hordes of orks, ogres and
goblins, these human tribes had little use for civilization and
spent their time in a constant battle for food and shelter. The
battle of Four Powers was the first battle of prehistory in which
the humans began to think beyond simple survival and took an
interest in the creations of the Celestials. Three tribes the Gabrie,
the Cri, and the Willia, converged in what is now Andionion,
seeking to find what prehistory records as “a black sword, a
chalice, a shield and a scroll.” As I have covered each in great
detail in the afore mentioned chapter, I will spend no more time

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on them then to assure the uneasy reader that, as discussed, the
black sword was not the first Morganti weapon, as some
impetuous dabblers in historical literature have purported, but
rather a sword forged of darkness and shadow by several of the
Celestial’s of Death and nothing more, the latter honor of course
going to the famous Dwarven smith Hragnor who “discovered” the
art and passed it on to the infamous smith Merigrad, for whom our
dedicated reader has already read about in chapters eight, ten,
fifteen and eighteen.
The battle of the Four Powers is significant in that it marks
the beginning of the steady march out of prehistory and into the
first age but it alone was not enough to complete this shift. The
Sun Fever epidemic which no Elf can speak of without a shadow
crossing their continence was the second pivotal catalyst. In the
lands to the west of Roekron, the Elven homeland, we of eternal
life and grace were beset by the greatest threat to a species

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existence any have had to endure. At the time, King Leand had
created what can only be describe as a perfect and beautiful
society. While the rest of life had barely begun to think beyond
its next meal, we Elves had already created high society and
organization out of chaos. But, alas, perfection never seems to
last in an imperfect world. No sooner had Leand completed the
capital city when the first signs of the Sun Fever began to be seen
on the west shore. It spread rapidly, and while we do not wish to
insult our readers intelligence by deigning to so much as suggest
that they would not have studied the most destructive epidemic
this world has ever seen, we will include a brief description herein
for the sake of completeness. The Sun Fever was passed by
thought, burning the minds of those who became aware of it
within a few days. The Elves of old, as is well known, possessed
the skill of mind to mind communication or what is sometime
referred to as psionic ability. Thus, the Sun Fever was spread as

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each Elf reached out for help with their mind from one to the
next, destroying those most present in the infected persons mind
first and then spreading to whoever they happened to send
thought to. In the later stages of the disease the infected person
lost their ability to control where their thoughts were sent and
was reduced to sending out their thoughts to everyone within
range. For obvious reasons the sun Fever was of no threat to the
lesser species, but to we of greater development it was our doom.
Fortunately, there were those among us who, through the last
remaining mutations left from the first ones, had developed a
skill to block or keep out the thoughts of others. It was these few
immune Elves that held the chance, the survival of our species,
and Leand recognized this immediately. Having already learned
about the Sun Fever, he was of course infected. He quickly sent
for all those who could be seen to have this immunity and “sent
us to our destiny” as Feanor was like to say. The five ships that

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set sail for new lands contained all of our ancestors, those with
the ability to survive the Sun Fever through keeping out rather
than sending out thoughts. Leand could not risk that the Sun
Fever would change, that it had some of the Elder Sorcery left
within it, and that it might pass on to the rest of the species and
so he sent us forth from the lands of the west to settle far from the
afflicted lands. On the day of his death he named Feanor his
successor, though, as it is well recorded in history, Feanor was not
his son. Still, one cannot fault Leand his choice of leader, as
history undoubtedly attests to.
The final event that would trigger the shift into what is now
commonly know as the first age was the Age of Ice and Fire. It is
theorized by certain geohistorians that the world goes through
periods of massive changes to weather and climate. Whether these
changes are the result of some unseen force acting upon the world
or are a completely natural event is once again a question best

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left to the Nature Mages and cannot possibly be answer in a
footnote as brief as this one. However, one can speculate that
were these events the result of Elder Sorcery, or other such
artificial source, the skill to do so would have been used to destroy
life as we know it already. Whatever the cause of the Age of Ice
and Fire, the results had a critical influence on the development
of Roekron and its culture. Shortly after the Sun Fever
Epidemic, the climate began to shift. The lands in which, until
this time had been inhabited by the Dwarves to the north began
to freeze over completely, turning into an icy waste incapable of
supporting life. At the same time the lands to the south began to
heat up and the Hobbits who, up until this time had lived quite
contentedly, as Hobbits are like to do, began dieing of dehydration
and heat related illness. To the east, the great plains that had,
until this time supported the many Centaur tribes also began to
change with the climate, drying up and loosing most of their

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nutrients. The centaur that survived this sudden change in
climate migrated west into Roekron, remaining a nomadic people
to this day. Thus, a great migration was beginning. For some due
to intolerant living conditions and for others due to disease, and
all would eventually converge in what was, at the time, a land
still caught in it’s nomadic past.
After the battle of the Four Powers, as the barbarian tribes of
humans in Roekron began to organize and settle into their
newfound roles as makers of civilization rather than creators of
chaos and war, we mark as the dawn of the first age,
approximately twelve thousand, two hundred and seventy three
years, one hundred and twenty-three days from the creation of
the world, roughly. At this time the Gabrie tribe had settled in
Dsesnor and was rules by none other than King Dsesn himself who
still possessed the afore mentioned “Black Sword of Night and
Shadow of Divine Origin” as it came to be known and who,

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having won the quest for the Four Powers claimed dominion over
the rest of Roekron. The Willia tribe had settled beyond the Wet
Mountains in what is now Temnor and was under the rule of Lord
Temn, a puppet, it is well know, of the true ruler of the Willia
tribe at the dawn of the first age, Arch-Mage Stormwatcher. The
Cri tribe had moved north and populated the high plains of what
is now Illionass, and was ruled by Lord Criolle. It is because of
this that some historians will assert that the First Age does not
begin until some twenty five years later when Criolle dies,
depicted in the well known and often badly acted play by Pedion,
“House of Ghosts” which still sells out in theaters across Roekron, a
phenomenon that is lost on this historian, as any play in which a
lord dies of poison in his shoe and goes on to haunt his castle, no
matter how historically accurate, cannot be much more than
mere thaumaturgical philandering and fantastical glamour.
But as this is not the subject of this short footnote, we will not

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spend time critiquing such historical romances and pass on to the
dawn of the first age and the formation of the major nations.
It is certain that this would have been the end of any growth
towards civilization, as humans are incapable of any lasting
development beyond a mere two or so thousand years, had it not
been for our esteemed forbearer Feanor, and his Voyage Across the
Eastern Sea to Whence The Sun Does Rise Each Day. While some
historian feel the need to point out that this is also precisely the
time that the Mountain Dwarves appeared in what is now
Svodlun, being the first Dwarves to begin migrating due to the
Age of Ice and Fire, and that the presence of Dwarves might in
some way effect history, in the humble opinion of this historian,
beyond the occasional appearance in one or more battles or the
creation of one of more notable items of a magical nature, the
appearance of the Mountain Dwarves had no real decisive effect
on the birth of the First Age any more than the landing and

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populating of Hostor by some small number of Hobbits, also
displace due to the Age of Ice and Fire, would have some three
hundred years later. Thus, to return to the point at hand, Feanor
landed at the mouth of the Celeroth River a mere five hundred
and sixty four years after the battle of the Four Powers, a
testament to his auspicious and precise sense of timing. It was
there, in the unexplored depths of the Suthan Forest, that he
discovered the Sacred Grove of Peace and Love, the well know
magical ancient stand of tree’s said to be Celestials themselves.
Feanor took this to be a sign that his people were to settle in this
new land and he began exploring at a voracious pace, sending his
brothers people, the Wood Elves of Mienor south, his sisters people,
Wood Elves of Orinor east up the Dungarion and taking his own
people, the High Elves of Feanor all the way up the Celeroth and
into Cri territory in a matter of years. The Cri had been busy and
had pushed out first into the surrounding lands and cleared the

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way for real civilization. Feanor found them on the verge of
disaster, struggling to overcome the invasion of new dark force
from the north, a tribe called the Daged. The destroying of the
Dark Wizard Orgoth and his guard could not have been completed
without the aide of Feanor’s Wood Elf brethren and as such
clearly depicts how Feanor’s Voyage began civilization in
Roekron. The slaying of Orgoth and his Doom Guards by the Cri,
along with Feanor’s elven archers and the aide of Mira on the
Mountain, the well known oracle and arch-sage of the first age,
was a major step in the creation of an empire and fostered a
greater sense of security for the Cri. Unfortunately it also caused
the death of their Lord as one of Daged’s spies repaid Lord Criolle
and ushered in the true Golden Age of Roekron. With the death of
Criolle, his young son Illi was forced to take the thrown at the
age of twelve. Fortunately for the Cri, henceforth know as the
Illionass, Orgoth had few remaining minions and the battles that

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followed, (most notably, the Battle of the Two-Headed Giant and
the Amulets of Geomancy, the Siege at North Gate in which both
the Dragon Tongue Broadsword and Phoenix Dagger, forged by the
afore mentioned now present Mountain Dwarves- were used for
the first time) were relatively minor and Illi handled himself
masterfully, growing up into a handsome and dignified young
man, forging long-lasting allies among the Druid tribes of what is
now called Andionion.
This is then the beginning of the First Age, or First Golden Age
of Roekron. The growth that followed was truly prolific, a
testament to the advances that the elves brought to the barbaric
human tribes and the shaping of true empires became a reality.
For the first five hundred years of the Golden Age, Roekron saw
peace like it has not since. Trade and commerce were at a great
high and magic began to be developed as never before. The first
prefabricated spells and rituals were created, at first limit only to

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Fireball and then branching out into Iceball, Lightning Bolt and
others. It was Astengred, the young pupil of Storwatcher, who
formalized the five schools of magic and organized the guilds in
those middle years of the Golden Age. One may wonder how it is
that mere humans can have lived long enough to have had much
impact on an age at all. As is still the case, being Wizards of
high power, the ability to extend ones life, if not indefinitely, was
already quite a common use of elder sorcery at the time and thus
would allow human mages great breadth to carve out empires
they would never have lived to see completed otherwise. It is here,
in the first age, that our devoted reader will recognize many of
the aforementioned magical works begin to make their first
appearance and begin to influence the battles in a much more
profound way. The Mountain Dwarves, it is true, had mastered
the art of creating magic works at the time and taught the elven
smiths of the time much of their basic skills. While this seems

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hard to believe now, this was before the Infamous Elven/Dwarf
wars and such trading of skills and knowledge was commonplace.
This exchange of skills and magic made possible many of the great
early magical works, as discussed in length in previous chapters.
Soon, even the humans had mastered the rudimentary arts of
magic device making and items such as Dandwin, the Iron Clad
Armor and such, were staples of the Illionass armies. Temnor,
under the guidance of Arch-Mage Stormwatcher, began to create
new and unique magical works, most notably Stormwatches own
Rods of the Chamelion. Lord Dsesn’s line in Dsesnor was precived
as the legitimate heir to the throne of Roekron in what was then
the capital City of Estorock and so their was little in the way or
rebellion for a few hundred years, allowing for substantial gains,
both in exploration and infrastructure. Many of the smaller
tribes of humans began to build their own nations and expand.
Sorikonia, Geb, and The Grey Isles all came into their own during

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the Golden Age. Under the guidance of the Grisodemdal, Arch
Mage of Shimmermist, the Grey Isle would quickly experience a
renaissance, reaching its pinnacle with the embarking of its
leader on the creation of one of the most controversial creations of
magic ever. With what was now being called Dagdeoth being
held at bay by the descendants of Lord Illi, young explorers took to
the far reaches of Roekron producing some of the first reliable maps
(see chapter 15). Halem, as our astute reader no doubt remembers,
being by far the most prolific of these explorers, having
commissioned some of the best magical works of this time (see
Halems Torch and Halems Rope). It was during this brief period of
calm that the first of the Great Legendary Weapons were forged.
The small group of elves that had settled to the north under Lord
Lagmen worked hand in hand with Mountain Dwarves to create
Korikon, the Ninja-to Sword of White Fire, later featuring
prominently in many battles in the third age. Illi’s descendent

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Lord Illi Menon, having forged an alliance with the Human
tribe of Druids then living in Andionion alongside the elves, forged
Oakenthen, the Defender of Life, Shield of the Illionass Paladins.
A time of discovery, it is during this period that the afore
mentioned Riddling on the Mountain with the Dragon Matriarch
Onon takes place and a greater level of understanding for all is
reached. It was a time of great joy for the artisans of the world
and as history so often repeats itself, so each Golden Age
necessarily must have an end. Most will not dispute that the
Golden Age of the First age gave way to the late first age with the
invasion of the Polar Dwarves.
While the Mountain Dwarves had worked closely with we of
the Elven species, and great artisans such as Hragnor and Krodo
rediscovered arts thought only achievable by Celestials, the Polar
Dwarves had a very different disposition. To understand this
difference in temperament one must consider that the Polar

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Dwarves are those Dwarves who decided to remain in the north
lands when it froze over due to the age of Ice and Fire. While the
Mountain Dwarves moved to a warmer climate, the Polar
Dwarves roughed it out, digging in and holding fast for almost a
thousand years as the temperature continually dropped. Thus,
these Dwarves who finally invade at the end of the First Golden
Age were a cold and cruel people, hardened by generations of
frozen death and survival. The Mountain Dwarves welcomed
their long lost brethren but the feeling was not mutual. The
Polar Dwarves first learned what they could of the art of magic
crafting, a skill they excelled at, and then, having learned all
they could, turned on their teachers, almost completely
decimating an entire species in an incredibly horrid and
detestable act of genocide. The Polar Dwarves then turned their
newfound skills in the magic arts to making more weapons to
wage a war on their age old foes from the north, the giants. This

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set the stage for the Giant Wars of the late first age in which the
Polar Dwarves attempted to do the same to the Giants as they had
done to their Mountain Brothers.
If one is inclined to belittle the Dwarves for their cruel and
unfair ways, this historian would like to say a word, if we may
be permitted, on war within ones own species. Need we remind our
dedicated reader of the War of the Grove, which soon followed the
end of the First Golden Age and was, largely, a war completely
within the species of Elves alone. Should one like to think that
elves are above such acts of genocide, we would like to remind such
personages that the War of the Grove, set off by the Amulets of
Returning Life, gifted by the High Elves, was nearly a genocidal
event as well and were it not for the creative diplomacy of Feanor
and the designation of the southern and eastern land of Roekron
as sovereign to the Wood Elves, their would likely be no Wood
Elves left in Roekron. One need not be reminded that up until the

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fall of Celindil and the Rise of the Dark City, Feanorion has been
the site of ongoing battles between the High Elves and the Wood
Elves, and has caused the deaths of far more over time then all
the Mountain Dwarves that were slaughtered at the end of the
First Golden Age.
Thus, with the Dwarves obsessed with their own war on the
Giants, and we Elves occupied with our own internal feud for the
Sacred Grove of Love and Peace, Dagdeoth reawakened, as did
Blackspire and the great battles of the first age began. Those of
our readers who recall the chapter on “Transportable Weapons”
will know what is to come next. Dagdeoth invaded Illionass with
its Necromancers and Undead walked the lands of Roekron for the
first time. It is commonly held by most historians that it was at
this time that the Dark Council of Dagdeoth was officially
formed and succeeded in summoning the Essen-Rauko, Sorrowveil,
Dagdameon and Crucept. Whether this is just an exaggeration

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due to the legends of the time has not been confirmed though there
are many sources which would suggest that Astengrad was correct
in ascertaining what the gating had accomplished and exactly
what the beings poor Hragnon saw that drove him mad and later
tore his soul from his flesh. It was a time of fear, but also, of great
bravery. As the invasions grew more and more frequent and
strong and Blackspire began threatening to invade all it’s
surrounding territories, the ruling King at the time, Dsen Icash
realized that the human kingdoms could not survive for long
isolated as they were from each-other. He drafted the first
alliance of nations in defense of more than one nation. It became
known as the Andionion Alliance and was partially responsible
for quelling the unrest between Wood and High Elves for a time
as both moved to assist in the defense of their newfound homeland
against a common foe. The battles that followed have been
covered in numerous other works of history and no mere student of

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magical artifacts could accurately depict the grandeur of
actually seeing the March of the Masterblades, the Battle of
Thunderwall, or the Duel at Mithil Ulienen. Still, one can
imagine what it must have been like to have Samurai from as
far south as Sorikonia traveling by foot to the front lines of
Illionass to stand shoulder to shoulder with the Illionass Knights,
or to see the sea of Urukai Archers completely filling the Wet Pass
and being turned back by a single division of Tempest Veterans.
Of course, every child has been told the story of Kijoro Minimoto,
then only sixteen, defeating the entire Gor Clan of Urukai at
Mithil Uliene and then pinning them in their stronghold with his
Kumi Bow of Thunder in what is now commonly know as the
Siege of One.
The House of the Griffin, a group of High Elves committed to
the defense of Roekron beyond all else was instrumental in
keeping the Alliance alive and was an instrumental force in the

--- PAGE 32 ---
great battles of the last first age. Had the Dread Eye Warriors not
emerged within the ranks of the Dagdeoth Armies, things may
have been very different. For those unfamiliar with the Dread
Eye Weapons, please refer back to chapter 21 on “Transportable
Weapons” and the section on the use of transformable blades in
the ethereal world. The Dread Eye weapons and their ability to
be so easily concealed (a marble can fit almost anywhere)
together with their ability to be taken into the Ethereal world
made for a combination that cost the lives of almost all of the
House of the Griffin as well as Lord Illi Menon himself. We can
only be grateful to the Sorikonian Martial Masters for
discovering the secret of the creation of these weapons and turning
them against Dagdeoth. One wishes the battle of Kijiro in the
Ethereal world could have been visible for it is certainly described
as a battle that will stand the test of time. Such was the force of
Kijiro’s thunderous strikes and bowshots it is said that haunted

--- PAGE 33 ---
places for miles were suddenly vacated by the spirits of the
departed and their curses lifted.
It is important to note that though most of the mainland of
Roekron was involved in the battles to the north, many of the
island nations, most notable the Grey Isles were left to their own
developments. Grisodemdal, Arch Mage of the new Mage School at
Greymagus had discovered an intriguing new material for
working with Elder Sorcery. The details of his experiments are
lost to history due to the magnitude of the catastrophe that was
to follow. It is not clear how Grisodemdal managed to channel so
much power or direct it, though there are those who believe he was
involved in the creation of a great alter or “wheel” of power that
stored or generated an incredible amount of raw mana. This
humble historian will not postulate on the exact means of
Gristodemdals ability to create the catastrophe that followed, but
will suffice to state that the fact that he was known to have

--- PAGE 34 ---
traded his right hand in a bargain with a Dragon (for the
Dragon’s own right hand!), he was a mysterious and crafty mage
the likes of which Roekron had not seen since Stormwatcher
himself. It is not know exactly what went wrong with
Grisodemdals great experiment, but it is noted in this brief footnote
as it is commonly held as the marker for the event which signaled
the end of the first age and the quick decent into the Darkness of
the Second Age. Grisodemdal’s Accident completely wiped out all
of the Grey Isles in one instant, leaving nothing but rubble and
floating specters. The shockwave of the event is said to still cause
random problems in the magic fields. It is also widely held that
the event would have become a chain reaction, perhaps
destroying all life in the world had not certain mages countered it
from various locations. The amount of mana required to do this
cannot be speculated on by a mere historical scholar but it is
widely held that this draining of the magical resources turned the

--- PAGE 35 ---
tables of the battles in Illionass and across Roekron. Not more
than ten years after the event, Kijro Minimoto battled the first
of Dark Guards at Nacrowaith and though they were decimated
in short order, it was apparent that they were only the first of
their kind.
In the next hundred years most of what had been gained
would be lost. Kijiro died shortly after the battle at Necrowaith,
holding off the entire Dagdeoth army while Nacrowaith was
evacuated. Astengrad finally died of old age, though Feanor, our
first and greatest King, would see his end trying to intercede in
the Giant Wars of Svodlun and getting caught between the two
0pposing forces. This sparked the Elf/Dwarf War to come and thus
ends the first age and begins the Dark Wars of the Second.
Many religious wars erupted across Roekron in a very short
amount of time. Many of the churches, temples, and shrines in
Illionass began to vie for authority and fight amongst each other.

--- PAGE 36 ---
Similar political wars began in Temnor which would eventually
lead to the major battles of the Redwash and the attack on
Dsesnor. While the first hundred years of the Second Age still saw
some great works of the magic nature as I have mentioned in
previous chapters on the Magic Orbs and Swords, as well as the epic
creations of the Arch-Mage Merigrad, son of Astengrad, and the
stories of his dark forge under Mt. Wizaste. It is true that had
Merigrad taken more of a leadership role at this time, rather than
retreating into his dark labyrinth, the second age may have been
very different. Certainly he would not have discovered the art of
Morganti weapon crafting, passed on to him by Hragnor, and the
second age would have been far less lethal. Why Merigrad needed
to test out his creations so often and pass them on to various
warlords in search of some sort of perfect type of Morganti is a
mystery, though perhaps related to his creation of the famed five
legendary items later carried by the Waning Moon Warriors in

--- PAGE 37 ---
the late second age could have something to do with it. Whatever
his reason, Merigrad disappeared for most of the first half of the
second age, working on mysterious works at his forge.
Without the guidance of the Wizards School many of the
nations floundered. With Feanor dead many of the Elf’s sought
revenge and rallied to attack Svodlun, something the Dwarves
longed for, as most of the Giants were dead or driven out and the
sought new wars to wage. The new queen of Andionion (and most
of Roekron for the Second Age, as the House of Dsesn produced no
leader of worth during this time, though some would argue that
Dsen Serpente in the mid to late second age had the potential had
he not died to young in the battles in the Redwash, but that is not
the subject of this short footnote), was the beautiful and often
terrifying Lady Neanorn, Daughter of Feanor and Neana, Heir to
the Thrown of Celindil and the Sacred Grove. Neanorn, it is
rumored, had been studying to be a smith when her father died

--- PAGE 38 ---
and changed her plans, taking up the command of her people in
their time of crisis. She succeeded in quelling the rage of her
people for a century while she made, what is, in the humble
opinion of this historian one of the great works of the second age.
Neanorn’s Crowns of Justice were a spectacular work of artistry
and Elder Sorcery, and were designed to unify her people by
connecting the three major elven provinces, Eines Mien, Oriri and
Andionion into a focused group, which she succeeded in doing,
though perhaps not for her purposes. Neanorn was trying to focus
the nations into a force for good and organization and instead she
found she could not contain Lord Mien’s passion and Lady Orir’s
spirit. In the end, the war on Svodlun was agreed upon and
Neanorn went along, mostly, it is believed, because her people
would have been destroyed, either by themselves or by the
Dwarves had she not. What followed is an eight-hundred year
war that did not quell until the dawn of the third age, the loss of

--- PAGE 39 ---
many fine lines of both elves and dwarves and the formation of a
chasm that will never be filled between those of Feanor’s people
and those of Svod’s.
Preying on the internal weakness of the nations, Blackspire
began the first of its many attacks on Andionion, Amir, Temnor,
Dsesnor, Oriri and Odilathen. The hordes of Ogres during these
attacks is written about in Lord Amirit’s journals. “The
mountains appeared to be flowing like waves, thick with the
huge beasts pouring out!” Unlike the battles with Dagdeoth in
which the armies were organized and focused, the battles of
Blackspire were characteristically haphazard and random.
Often attacking and then suddenly shifting direction, Amerities
description was very apt as the Ogre, Ork and Goblin hordes
swarmed in all directions. Some attribute this to the powerful
influence of Icitic the Insane, Warlord of the Slatefalls, the
legendary Amazon Goblin who led his people in such odd fashion,

--- PAGE 40 ---
careening through the sky in loops and arches of the most comical
nature. Many who laughed died in those battles, as Icitic is well
know to have used the afore mentioned Mirathulous, a deadly
weapon for those with the sense of humor to use it. Thus, many of
the warriors of the second age were hardened out of necessity,
merely out of fear for their lives should they smile or laugh! One
can only image the effect this had on days of battle, truly a
horrible fate one would not wish even on their worst enemy. The
Battle of Watch Peak is the most famous of these battles, being
the first, and accounts for more than half the lives lost during the
Blackspire Raids. Amirit himself barely survived.
Shortly after Blackspire began its attacks Dagdeoth moved
into Illionass with new forces, the notorious Dark Guards who
brought with them the gruesome Lion Maw shields. These Undead
and Death Ogre warriors were a powerful new force that
decimated the few Illionass troops left to oppose them. With no

--- PAGE 41 ---
great heroes left, the Litches had no trouble building up new
armies and used the “Litch King” Swords (see chapter 19) to allow
for wider control of their armies. In a mere hundred years Illionass
was under the control of Dagdeoth but for Menonass which held
the line for a few hundred more years with the aide of Odilathen
and Amir.
While war raged in the north, Temnor’s new leader Rysic,
Arch-Mage of Dradui-Nuir, the Stormwatcher Tower made to
take the thrown of Dsesn. Dsesnor and Temnor were both involved
in wars at the time, Temor with the Ents, having slain
migrating ancients and triggering the Ent Wars, and Dsesnor
with it’s own political intrigues. While Dsesnor attempted to
focus its people on an attack against the invading Blackspire
armies, Rysic realized that the time was ripe for a move against
Temnor’s long hated neighbor. The war that follows has been very
accurately portrayed in the five volumes of the abbreviated

--- PAGE 42 ---
works of Lady Echoana “Redwash Wars” and so we see no need to
tire our reader with lengthy descriptions of the massive number of
Storm Mages and Samurai who battled across the plateau, or the
intriguing use of the Ring of Storms and the role of the legendary
weapon Li Tesashi, forged by the Sorikonian Martial Masters to
end the war, which, ironically only caused Temnor to attack
Sorikonia directly, and so we will omit any discussion of it
herein. However, it is worth noting that had Temnor not
attacked Sorikonia, and stolen the works of Ra Agen Mache, the
Revolution of the Guilds would not have happened and it is
likely the Waning Moon Warriors would never have met.
While the Waning Moon Warriors are not the subject of this
short footnote, we hope that the reader will allow us to point out
one small fact about their existence, without becoming over
burdensome. The Revolution of the Guilds brought about by the
theft and distribution and later copying of Ra Agen Mach’s

--- PAGE 43 ---
famous Book of Many Things, and Ring of Many Things caused
many notable personages from across the lands too seek out more of
these books, as the Guilds were almost torn apart by the self
direction the books allowed and undermined everything the
Guilds had taught. Thus it was that the famous Waning Moon
Warriors met in Amir in the late second age, each looking for the
Ring of Many Things, which became the subject of Lady Miri’s
famous poem “Seekers of Many Things” which plays upon the
later nature of the Waning Moon Warriors, the fact that they
were each of a different race, and their later disappearance. But
as this is not the focus of this short clarification, and we wish to be
absolutely focused in our explanations, we will not dwell on the
heroes of the second age and how they traveled to Menonas and
rescued Lady Illiona and her teenage son Illion from the Dark
Guards, but will suggest the reader pick up a copy of the complete
works of Lady Miri’s poems, or, if one is more inclined to prose,

--- PAGE 44 ---
“Waning Moon: A brief examination of Penelope, Tordil, Hefas,
Lorik, and Vojan.” By Lord Amirities.
Ironically, or some might say, appropriately, it is because of
the chaos of the second age that we now have the system of
governance that so facilitates our world today. With Merigrad
gone, the school of Astengrad sought new leaders and selected five
new Arch-Mages who formed what was then called the Order of
Wizards but would later become our Wizards Trade Order of 50th
level Arch-Mages, Hamil Lighthand, Celani Newform, Dvod
Firefist, Eleana Starlight, and Hox Neverdream, our esteemed
and most auspicious empire builders. While Hox, Celani and
Hamil were not members at the time of creation of the Order of
Wizards, Dvod and Eleana were two of the founders and
shouldered the responsibility of reuniting Roekron in its darkest
hour. The creation of the Order of Wizards is the event that most
historians hold as the end of the second age, as the influence the

--- PAGE 45 ---
Order would have over Roekron truly reshaped it and brought it
out of its Dark Age.
The Order began by crushing the Temnorian invasion of
Dsesnor, securing the use of numerous Sorikonian weapons to do so
and to use against Blackspire and Dagdeoth. The Order also put a
stop to the Dwarf/Elf War by offering Svodlun the opportunity
to make a great deal of profit in the production of weapons for
their war on Dagdeoth and Blackspire as well as a new market
for mithril plated boots, which would become quite popular all
throughout Roekron, worn by all the great gladiators. Illionass
did succeed in pushing out the Dagdeoth troops with the aide of
Svodlun in what is now commonly called the Battle of the
Sleeping Wastes. The following four hundred years saw a return
to a level of civilization not seen since the first age. By the end of
it the Wizards Trade Order was fully functional, sanctioning all
of Roekron and each nation represented by the Order.

--- PAGE 46 ---
The mid-thirds age brought peace to Roekron for a short time
and great developments in magic and skills, the formalization of
Guild Law and a plethora of cheap Dwarven weaponry. As the
war drew to a close the Order looked for ways to increase the
quality of life for the people of Roekron and turned its research
towards new Elder Sorcery and left the defense of Roekron in the
capable hands of Illionass. As there is a great deal of literature on
the subject of the reconstruction era, we will not belittle our
reader’s patience with this footnote by describing the
developments in geophilosophy and weapon craft any more than
is absolutely necessary. However, as no brief remark on the
reconstruction era would be complete without some reference to
the Wild Ents of Dungwaith, we find it necessary to at least
mention the writings of Master Allios Shepton in the mid third
age and while it is likely some will find his writings to been
inappropriate for a Sorikonian Master his observations were none

--- PAGE 47 ---
the less accurate for the time and accurately foresaw the build
up of the Dwarven Slave Trade and Goritock Itack’s Urukai
army.
As, Allios Shepton noticed, in order to meet the demand for so
many weapons Svodlun raided Hostor for Hobbit slaves and began
what some would call one of the most grievous violation of species
rights in the history of Roekron. Forced to work in the mithril
mines making mithril plated boots for sale abroad, the lifespan of
these slaves was sometime less than two years, forcing the
Dwarves to develop their slave trade even more. Hostor appealed
to the Order to stop the raids but as it produced such good results
and the items were needed for the Order to win their war with
Dsesnor and push the evil armies out of Illionass, the discussion
was tabled for a later date. Furthermore, as Hostor has never been
a member of the Wizards Trade Order they had no standing among
the Guilds of Roekron and thus no representation. To this date

--- PAGE 48 ---
(15,820 4A), Hobbits still work the mithril mines, now under the
control of Dagdeoth of course and one can only imagine how much
worse the conditions are. Had the attack on Svodlun at the
middle of the fourth age succeeded as Hostor had planned instead
of backfiring those poor souls may have finally felt sunlight
again. Alas, it was not to be, but we are once again, getting
ahead of ourselves.
The mid to late third age saw many controversies erupting
across Roekron. Dsesnor’s use of Urukhai mercenaries, the
development of Sorcery Modified Plants and the escalation of
feuds between the high elves and wood elves in Feanorion are but
a few of these events. We of the house of Feanor will not soon
forget the suicide attacks of the wood elves who destroyed
themselves with self-destructive infernos to protest the high elf
position of the Sacred Grove of Love and Peace, the irony of which
was not lost on the above mentioned Master Allios Shepton. If

--- PAGE 49 ---
there is anything good to have come out of the fall of Celindil at
the end of the third age is the unity and camaraderie to be found
amongst elves today.
For those unfamiliar with the fall of Celindil and the rise of
the Dark City, Celindil et Necrenef we will direct our patient
reader to the works of Lord Wakefield and his “Tale of the Dark
Morning and the Fall of the Third Elf King, Feandrin.” While a
notable and accurate text, it fails to point out the precursor to
the Dark Morning and the build up of Gorotock Itacks armies at
Mithil Ulienen in the years before. Most importantly it omits the
critical part played by the band of heroes who, in an effort to
attack Gorotock and take Li Tesashi managed to get themselves
killed and left him with not only Minimoto’s Naginata, but
Dagamedies, the Urukai dagger forged in the Blackspire
Mountains to lead Urukai armies, as well as the Flag of Victory,
an item that bestowed powerful armor defenses to all allied troops.

--- PAGE 50 ---
It can be said, without too much doubt that it was this small
band of well meaning but unsuccessful adventurers who set in
motion the eventual attack of Gorotock Itack and thus the
battle of the Dark Morning. When asked about the subject, the
hero Voltan, who led the mission was quoted to have said, “We
only needed a one-masted boat to cross the river. Who new there
would be a storm trying to cross, and a giant vessel while we were
adrift… everything sunk. We fought that battle practically
naked.” We do not wish to question the heroics of such notable
personages as the great paladin Voltan or the many other heroes
that took on such a dangerous mission but will leave such
judgments to those who have had to pull themselves from a river
with nothing but one enchanted arm greave and face a fortress of
Urukai led by a ronin wielding a Legendary Di Katana.
It can just as easily be argued that had the disappearances of
hobbits in western Celindil be investigated more thoroughly by

--- PAGE 51 ---
the Celindil officials that Broden may never have risen to power.
While it is true that in situation remarkably similar to the
battle at Mithil Ulinenen, several heroes are known to have
investigated the disappearances of hobbits in western Celindil and
did, it is rumored, meet up with Broden in a face to face
confrontation before he rose to the control of the Carakwaith and
the formation of the Shroud of the Dark City. It is rumored that
these heroes battled the now notorious vampire and made off with
his treasure without slaying him. While there are those aspiring
heroes who would gladly give there soul to have that opportunity
and have prevented the fall of Celindil, one cannot fault these
heroes, having been abandoned by over half the original force
that was to destroy the evil below Celindil and having no idea
what they had encountered it is no wonder that they would flee
from a vampire in full plate armor surrounded by apparitions,

--- PAGE 52 ---
and we challenge any hero of similar level as these three
individuals to do anything else in the same situation.
Lest we forget, there are those who believe that the Darkness
In The West (a spreading force of Undead that arose just before the
appearance of Broden in Celindil) was in fact Broden himself.
We must forgive such foolish assumptions and attempted
conjecture give the fact that the three notable figures to have
destroyed the Darkness in the West, the centaur veteran
Starwatcher, the mute hobbit thief, and the barbarian Xander,
now one of the Carakwaith himself, specifically described the
leader of the army as “A huge, dark skinned giant wielding a two
handed sword of Dagdeoth make.” It is therefore obvious to
anyone with any historical knowledge beyond the third age that
this was indeed a Death Giant wielding a “Litch King” one of the
weapons designed to control the great Dagdeoth Armies in the
second age. Thankfully, the weapon was reportedly destroyed at

--- PAGE 53 ---
the scene of the battle by a local Green Dragon, whom, it is
theorized features prominently in the Catastrophe of the Orb
somewhat later.
Of course many have theorized on the nature of the following
attacks on Hostor by Dagdeoth ships and the unusual timing of
such attacks coinciding with the rise of the Hobbits Abolitionist
Movement, or HAM. There are certain extremists who assert that
the attacks by Dagdeoth were an attempt to thwart attempts to
free the hobbit slaves in Svodlun. Such ludicrous deduction is
beyond the scope of this tiny article and while the Hostorian
government did seek a redress of grievances with the Wizards
Trade Order, believing them to be involved, as Hostor has no
standing in the Order they have no representation and their case
is still waiting to be heard, now at the beginning of the fifth age.
For those of you unfamiliar with the invasions of Hostor and the
destruction of Tradrador we recommend the collected works of

--- PAGE 54 ---
Belin Holiliocks and “The Story of Ent Island” as a good place to
start.
The fall of Celindil and the rise of the Dark City is held by
historians of late as the dawn of the fourth age. The is hotly
disputed by many contemporary scholars who believe that the
invasion of Svodlun was the dawn of the fourth age not the
dawn of the fifth and that we are just now beginning the fourth
age. Such ludicrous semantics has no place in a footnote of this
nature and thus we will simply state that the rise of Celindil
and most notably the appearance of the Carakwaith, or
Shadowfang as they are called in the human tongue marks the
beginning of the fourth age, the age of vampires.
Certainly the shortest of any age, the fourth age was marked
by the many battles with Celindil and meetings with the Dark
Heroes of Celindil which have been written about in at least
forty eight different poems and songs, not to mention the many

--- PAGE 55 ---
books that have been written on the subject. It is important to
note that Svodlun used the initial fall of Celindil as an
opportunity to invade Andionion and took possession of all the
lands north of the Celeroth River. This is significant in that it
features prominently in the later retaliation of Andionion
during the later invasion of Svodlun as we shall see. The Battle
for the Orb, in which the first Carakwaith was permanently
slain is viewed as a historic or infamous moment, depending on
whether one considers the events it set in motion and the careful
and devious planning the Dark City orchestrated to achieve such
a deadly plan. As we have already mentioned, the Orb would
later be used by Lord Nelorian to attack the Dark City thereby
revealing its curse, the destruction of all magical items used by
members of the wielders party. Having been put into Nelorian’s
hands, the champion of the elves, the wheels were set in motion for
a most destructive trap. However, as many of the heroes who

--- PAGE 56 ---
fought at the Catastrophe of the Orb still draw breath, we do not
wish to waste any more time with stories the reader could just as
easily hear at the local inn, as from our witty pen.
Thus we will return to the brief yet pivotal fourth age in
which the Dark City cast’s its shadow across the land and undead
creatures began to become more and more fearsome. Many theories
have been put forth concerning exactly how this took place. Most
theorize it to be an area effect brought about by some powerful
Elder Sorcery in the Dark City and then spreading across the
land. Why Astengrad School did not counter such a powerful
spell has been a burning question in the minds of many concerned
citizens and baffles many students of history. While none are
quite certain of the exact reason, it is most likely due to that fact
that countering such a spell would require all the guilds
approval, and likely the Necromancers Guild was apposed to
countering a spell that would add so much power to their spells.

--- PAGE 57 ---
While we would love to continue a discussion on the nature of the
ethics of mages and wizard policy, as it is not the subject of this
footnote we will pass on instead to the subject of the many events
that lead up to the invasion of Svodlun and the subsequent loss of
the northern territories to Dagdeoth.
Many small battles were fought throughout the Fourth age
and while they did not appear to have a significant effect on the
coming war, each was significant in some way. Dsesnor attacked
a group of Ogres in the Peaks of Odilathen, utilizing Dragon’s to
fly over and cast elder sorcery from above with devastating effects
for all. While this may not seem like a significant event, the
war cost Dsesnor a great deal of resources and its people, and all
the people of Roekron, were taxed heavily. Furthermore, this
attack caused a great deal of outrage in Dagdeoth and stirred up
the forces there who began to speak openly of war once again.
Dagdeoth troops began to appear across Reokron, sailing in and

--- PAGE 58 ---
building up strongholds in the swamps and scrublands or deep in
the forests. In Temnor and Illionass such strongholds became
instant targets for destruction as these nations viewed the
appearance of such troops as an unwarranted invasion whereas
the Dagdeoth viewed it as retaliation for the Dragon Raids. As
their new stronghold were felled and new ones erected, the hatred
intensified and the battles became more pronounced. This
eventually led to a level of discontent in Dagdeoth that promoted
a large scale attack on the rest of Reokron. All they needed was
an excuse, and one such retired warlord from the Stonehammer
Hills would give them just that, as we shall see.
A certain famous hero, now retired warlord know only as
Xander, masterminded an ingenious attack on Svodlun through
the use of unknown caverns under Mt. Hragnor. His plan was to
provide easy access into Svodlun territory for Dagdeoth and thus
destroy the monopoly on cheap weaponry the Dwarves had created

--- PAGE 59 ---
that had cost him so much loss of profit in reselling of goods from
slain enemies. In order to put this plan into action he needed to
clear out the caverns which had been sealed since before the third
age. To do this he hired a band of heroes, keeping his reasons for
wanting the tunnel cleared out a secret from them, and
rewarding them handsomely for the service, which they did,
though not without some trepidation. It is unclear if this
barbarian warlord Xander was always under the control of the
Dark City or if that happened later, yet it is certainly clear
now, for all know of him now as the Carakwaith he has become,
and a terrifying one at that. How this plan was orchestrated so
well and exactly what role he played in it is not common
knowledge to history but it is known that he called a meeting of
many nations, namely, Dagdeoth, Hostor, Temnor, Eines Mien
and even The Dark City and offered them the chance to attack
Svodlun, explaining the advantage Dagdeoth would have using

--- PAGE 60 ---
the tunnels he had cleared. It is unknown exactly what was
agreed upon at this secret meeting but what is clear is that an
agreement was reached for, as is well known, within the year the
attack on Svodlun had been launched by all the attending
parties, with devastating and tragic results.
In order to put the attack into perspective, we must briefly
visit the dungeons of Mithil Grisodedin and the Elder Sorcery labs
therein. It was here, in the depths of the Storm Mages Guild that
the now infamous Drakes of Temnor were created. These hideous
half-dragons are vicious and bloodthirsty animals, bread for
riding and violence. Retaining none of the majesty of true
Dragons, these beast bred at a furious pace and only live for a few
years. As such they are the perfect expendable weapon. It is not
know who precisely mastered the art of their creation but it is
theorized that the Storm and Nature mages would have had to
collaborate, something that was, until this time, unheard of in

--- PAGE 61 ---
Temnor. With their new steeds Temnor attacked Svodlun along
with Hostor who hoped to regain lost brethren who were being used
as slaves in the mithril mines. Eines Mien and Andionion also
attack, but only in order to reclaim the land Svodlun took from
Andionion at the dawn of the fourth age. While the attack was
successful in eventually overthrowing Svodlun, it was not, as we
are all aware, successful in the way it was intended. Rather
than being a liberation for the hobbits and a return to
individually crafted items, the attack backfired with Temnor
retreating to defend their homeland as Dsesnor invaded through
the Redwash. Dadgeoth turned against Andionion and Hostor
once the Dwarves were routed and claimed the mithril mines as
spoils freeing none of the slaves. The battles for Krodigros dragged
on into the fifth age but the territories of Svodlun had been won
by Dagdeoth and are now know as Western Dagdeoth, as much as
this historian detests the sound of such a thing.

--- PAGE 62 ---
Which brings us, of course, to the present day 15820, the
fourth or some say fifth age depending on which school of
philosophical record keeping one ascribes to. As we do not wish to
confuse are weary reader any more then we already have, as
much as we have attempted to be absolutely pure in our simple
and direct statements of the facts, carefully shying away from
frivolous ambiguities and careless expounding, we will stick with
our previous ascribe article and claim, as many established
scholars have, that this is indeed the fifth age (editor’s note- this
was not the fifth age, history now records the fall of Celendil et
Necrenef as the dawn of the fifth age, which happens some fifteen
years later). While we in no way wish to act as an Oracle, as we
have little experience with the workings of the Nature Mages
Guild and the workings of their spells, we will go so far as to say
that the this age is continually moving towards a Dark Age. One
need not mention the Catastrophe of the Orb which crippled much

--- PAGE 63 ---
of the forces that would have destroyed the Dark City. The
appearance of a new legendary weapon forged by the Sorikonian
Martial Masters seemed to points towards hope, as did the attack
on the Dark City by the mythic Elder Sorcerer Cronos who rode a
flying ship into the heart of the Dark City where it erupted in a
devastating blast that may have destroyed some of the
Carakwaith forever. However, both events seemed to be in vain
as an ancient evil was released in Eines Mien, completely
removing any thoughts of attack on the Dark City from that
quarter. While this evil was eventually put to rest on the day of
the second largest attack on the Dark City, or the Battle of the
Mirror Sky and we will not attempt to depict the events that
transpired therein for reasons already sited, there was still no
sizable loss to the Dark City other than the reclaiming of
Shadowguard, which, may have been something had not the last
twenty five years been so catastrophic for Andionion. As we are

--- PAGE 64 ---
all aware, the first ten years after the attack were very fruitful
for Amir who pressed its advantage with Shadowguard to keep
the Dark City on the defensive. This worked well for a time and
reached its pinnacle at the historic capture and slaying of the
Carakwaith Eclipse, in the ninth year of the attacks and Amir
celebrated heartily. Until the now infamous Werek Broden-ie
came into his own and devastated lord Redways best Rangers with
the Morganti blade Ebonafter in what is now being called the
Day of the Dark Lightning. Apparently having channeled some
deeper powers within the legendary blade, he is said to have strode
across the Shadowguard Bridge alone, an aura of fear causing all
to flee in his path. It is said that a “dark lightning” coursed
around him like a shield and none-could touch him. He however,
had no trouble touching others, as will be attested by the twenty-
eight families who lost children to the morganti blade he wielded
and the fifty-six more who were killed and simply unrevivable. I

--- PAGE 65 ---
need not mention the recent loss of all of Illionass to Dagdeoth, the
total destruction of the Dwarven Empire, the invasion of
Dagdeoth into Andionion and, most recently the securing of the
entire lands north of the Celeroth by Dagdeoth and the Dark City
who appear to be working together for the time being. Despite the
best efforts of such great heroes and heroines as the great paladin
Hiro and the benevolent life mage Talys to keep the forces from
taking over the Nerigoth groves and the putting down the rebel
forces that arose some twenty five years ago, the Nerigoth has been
lost, and with it some of the most well renowned warriors against
undead. But as that is not the subject of this brief look at
history, we will leave the speculation on the current political
trends to the Lords and Ladies of the land and return, dutifully
to our scholarly work and the subject at hand, history.

--- PAGE 66 ---
We hope that this footnote has helped to illuminate some of
the more subtle details of the previous chapter on the Damasked
Short Glaive of Sorikonia and trust that our patient reader will
forgive the lack of detail and frank manner used herein, with
the understanding that such techniques are sadly necessitated by
the need for extreme brevity and straightforward explanations in
a footnote such as this.
--Artano (15820 4A,
day 21, Secondmoon).
(a map of the
current condition of
Roekron at the time of
this writing- lines
indicate wars)