Age of the Warrior-Kings
With the end of the Age of the Dragons we are brought to a time In Istarian history known as the Age of the Warrior-Kings. This nomenclature is used to refer to a period in our history that dates back 600 years. This is the age in which the Humans are united under a single banner and their subservience to Dragons is outright ended. The man credited for this is Ashlander Vandus, also known as the forefather of modern Human civilization. He united the often warring factions of Humans together with the common goal of standing on their own to defeat the Dragons. Although no offical coronation took place, he did go on to rule the Humans as King after unification of the different tribes. Only after his death was the practice of coronation instituted for the "Kingdom of Vandus." Vandus was also very instrumental in the establishment of the city of Tazoon, or as he referred to it, "the capital of Istaria." During the time of Vandus's rule Tazoon was a place of immeasurable importance, not only due to its strategic position along the Barasavus Plain, but also due to its econimic power, which is greatly credited to the charismatic rule that Vandus had. Although Tazoon is no longer a part of the Vandus confederation, it is still a prospering city today.
Vandus's rule showed little strife during his lifetime. He was an extremely charismatic man who could easily make opposite sides seek a middle ground. When dealing with other races, most notable the Dragons, he would use his knowledge of their customs to weaver things to his advantage. His understanding for Dragon culture was uncanny, so much so, that he was able to keep open conflict between the two cultures to a miniume. He brilliantly played both sides of Dragon faction against each other until the Humans were strong enough to stand by themselves and fend off any Dragon aggression. Many radical changes resulted from the conflict of Humans and Dragons. The most notable change of this time was Vandus' sparing use of war to reslove conflict.
Although the use of war was scarce, it did exsist. There were a number of military engagements in Human society both internally and externally. On the whole, Humans ascension into one of Istaria's major races was largely peaceful. This was due to Vandus's stance on war and due to his desire for Human civilization to be based on self-determination but not at the expense of other races, and to be open to the presence and cooperation of those other races.
The Age of the Warrior-Kings could not be defined by just one man though. Although Vandus is often referred to as "The Good King", kings that preceded him were also very strong and idealistic, one of whom was his son. His son though must also fall into his father's shadow and be judged against his father's persona of a paragon of virtue.
Although the Humans had a moderately peaceful time during the Age of the Warrior-Kings, the life of a Sslik was a much harder one during this time. With their alien physiology in comparison with the other living races they were hunted down and murdered. Even to this day some consider them to be barbarians and savages. They fled their persecution and went deep into the jungle of Lesser Aradoth during this age. It was there, in this jungle, that they created their home seat of Sslanis. They created this city to be a fortress, a place to hold out against sieges by the other races. The city was an eminent fortress within the jungle, with high stone walls that emphasized the Sslik's preference for stone over other resources. Though the city was built to withstand emeance sieges, they never came. This was due in part to their idealistic Saris neighbors and the buffer the neutral humans created at the Aradoth entrace to the Sable Straits. Without war glooming overhead, Sslanis began to become a center of trade between the Saris, Humans and the Sslik.
Age of the Sorcerer
The Age of the Sorcerer is named after the dark sorcerer Torrin Macalir. Macalir, a patron of the dark arts was at one point the leader of the Human intelligentsia and the foremost magical practitioner in Istaria. Then through his experimentation with necromancy he became corrupted and twisted into the evil leader of the Withered Aegis. His ascension to power went greatly unnoticed for sometime due to the petty feuds between the living races of Istaria. During this time Istaria was a hotbed of tension.
The Elves and Dryads sought total communion with nature, and were on the verge of waging war of cleansing against their life-long rivals, the Orcs and Goblins. The Dragons of both factions began to ally themselves with opposite sides of this conflict, hoping to use other races to settle centuries old disputes amongst themselves.The odd Welger sought to expand their influence against the control of Dwarven and Gnomish held lands. The Satyr found themselves in the unique position to broker both diplomacy and warfare material between the Welger, the Dwarves, and the Gnomes in exchange for more influence in all courts.
Even the Humans were involved in a feud with a race that has become known as the Fiends. Many Istarians forget before the Age of the Sorcerer there was no such race as Fiends. In many accounts we can relate what happened to the Humans during this time period to the Great Schism of the Dragons. Human society emulated that which had been Dragon society at the height of the Age of the Dragon. Humans were at the forefront of almost every major endeavor in Istarian life, and had certainly made many advances in the realm of magical study and practice. With such a leadership position in Istarian life, it became very easy for the Humans to forget the lessons they learned in shaking off the reins of Dragon domination in their life. Some feel that the Humans during this time coveted too much magical power, while others feel that Human society simply became too lax. If we compare what happend during this time period with the Great Schism we can see that actually, the secession of the Fiends from the Human race was in fact, a much darker event.
The creation of the Fiends and their forced removal from Human society says as much about the Human psyche of this time as anything else. Humans sought to unlock some of the greatest secrets of the use of magic ever... powers and concepts that are lost to us even during this day and age. A significant and sizable cadre of mages decided to tap into the powers of Necromancy and Mental Domination in order to achieve the ends they sought. The powers that be during this time balked at the use of hitherto shunned magical practices in order to achieve those ends, though some think that fear, rather than a sense of honor, drove the leading mages to ostracize their less scrupulous brethren. Many in Human society became embroiled in the growing social unrest, choosing one side or the other.
As with all of the great social dilemmas in Istaria, war ensued. Those who favored the forbidden practices of magic were outnumbered from the start, but managed to flee Human lands when the war pressed on. In order to secure a future for themselves, they chose subservience to a new Istarian deity, earning her guidance and protection. Such fiendish actions certainly earned the name given to them by the Humans and adopted by themselves, but the new Fiend civilization vowed to never be restrained by the shackles of what they considered to be the weaknesses of morality. In turn, they swore to teach the descendants of those who had ostracized them a lesson on, as the Fiends call it, "the virtues of revenge."
The Fiends went on to create the city of Kirasanct to the frigid north. The city is a testament to the Fiendish desires of seclusion from outsiders, while displaying their ostentatious sensibilities. Kirasanct is a walled fortress of metal and stone, with a massive central tower in the heart of the city. Spindly frames circle the city wall, giving the city a fearsome silhouette at a distance. Kirasanct proper lies on a plateau in the center of a vast valley, allowing for a significant distance around the city to be surveyed from the central tower and the high, arching walls of the city. It is clear that the purpose behind the city is to keep unwelcome visitors out, and considering the Fiends for who they are, that means just about all the other Living Races. Even today, when cooperation amongst the Living Races is at a virtual pinnacle, Kirasanct remains an inhospitable place for those save the Fiends.
It is said that either under the icy bedrock of Kirasanct, or perhaps in a nearby cavern, lays a dormant portal to the Realm of Twilight. It is rumored that before the onset of the Lament, the Fiends were actively trying to re-engage the portal, creating a gateway between the Prime and the Realm of Twilight, where it is said that the Fiend's patron deity, Niatha Moraven, dwells. The Fiends have never made a secret of their desire to strengthen the connection they have with their chosen goddess; in fact, the Fiends chose to found Kirasanct over a source of potent magical essence in the hopes that it would fuel their rituals and sorceries to achieve said goals.
With all these events weighing heavily on the minds of Istrians the actions of Macalir were largely unnoticed. How much harm could a lunatic necromancer cause? Only when it was too late did the races of Istaria realize that it was not flesh and blood that would be their downfall, but the twisted forces of undeath itself. How foolish we were, but we only realize this in hindsight now.
It was at the end of the Age of the Sorcerer when Macalir united the different sects of undead in the common goal of destroying the Living. Macalir held a firm grasp on the Withered Aegis, and through his leadership they began their march over Istaria.
