The Reaping is an event that occurred over six hundred years ago and has had long-reaching effects on the world. During the Reaping, a great fiendish incursion caused a vast rift to the east of the Grey Mountains, forming a portal to the abyssal planes. The arrival of the fiends destroyed the Elven Kingdoms, their great cities lying in ruins and their people being decimated, becoming refugees in the human lands of Alonia. The once fair elven nation became a harsh land known today as the Shattered Wastes. As a response to the Reaping, the Gods battled each other and the usurpers in an attempt to consolidate power for themselves. An alliance of five gods eventually ended the Reaping, they destroyed or cast down all others, forbidding the worship of anyone but them, eventually became known as the Populous Pantheon, the main Pantheon of world. Other far-reaching effects of the Reaping include the decline of the Elven nations; with only a few isolated sovereign state remaining, the intermingling of bloodlines which has increased the population of Aasimar, Tieflings and Half-Elves.
he Confederation of Alonia was a kingdom, ruled by King Theandollis. King Theandollis ruled over five dukes. It was one of these dukes, Duke Xethos of Gredas, who hatched a plot against King Theandollis which killed Theandollis and his family. Xethos had hoped to overthrow the king and assume his mantle; however, a civil war erupted, resulting in the Duke and his lineage dying, and his lands becoming a part of the Duchies of Belar and Vichi. The whisperings of a forbidden god had emboldened Duke Xethos and encouraged him to act. Over a century, the Dukes of Gredas had worshipped, in secret, the sinister deity. Hidden shrines were built, and a temple consecrated in the castle. Upon the defeat of the Duke, all the followers of the diety were killed or driven underground. Xethos never stood trial for his treason- he was killed in battle. His family and close aids were all executed. Even with the King and Xethos dead, the civil war lasted for 30 years. It ended in an uneasy truce, which ended the question of succession. No Duke would assume the mantle of King. Instead, they would rule with absolute authority in their Dukedom. The Duchy of Gredas was dismantled, with its lands going to the Duke of Belar and the Duke of Vichi. In addition to this, the Duchy of Allonia was established, incorporating the old royal capital and the surrounding lands.
The Order of the Venators was an order founded to combat heretics in the five Duchies. The order was created as a direct response to the Civil War and the heretical actions of Duke Xenthros. There order still exists today, although several Duchies no longer recognise their legitimacy.