The Great War
The Great War was an extended conflict at the end of the Third Age between the forces of Esturk, The World's End, and the peoples of Azimuth. The war lasted for a century, from Esturk's emergence in the lands beneath Tarteria to his defeat at the Battle of the Demons' Blood Marshes.
The Great War is considered the single most destructive series of events in the history of Azimuth. Esturk and his forces nearly destroyed the world. The war resulted in widespread destruction and uncountable deaths. Great geological changes happened across the world during the course of the war, which shifted country borders, sundered continents, and created areas of dangerous magical effects that persist to the modern day.
Due to the nature and volume of the destruction leveraged against the nations of the time, many historical records from the Great War, and from the times before the war, were lost or destroyed. Because of this, there are precious few detailed accounts of the events of the war. As such, the precise timeline of the Great War is unclear. Most of what is known of the Great War is compiled from scraps of information, adjacent surviving records, and oral histories.
Background
Power of Evolution
The last battle in the cycle of battle between Esturk, The World's End, and Zenthai, The Dragon King, was Esturk’s attack on the World Tree. After Esturk was repelled once more, the nations of the world rejoiced in the faith that the forces of dark could never overpower the light. Esturk, unable to defeat Zenthai and take the world for his own with direct action, sought another way to gain the victory he lusted after. Through the discovery of a truly old form of divine magic, older even than himself, Esturk learned the secrets of creation with the force known as the Power of Evolution. It is not known by what means Esturk came to this knowledge, but this ability gave him dominion over those outside of his claimed domains. He forced his nature to change and grow, and mutated his evolution into a force that rivaled the Dragon King. With this new power, once again Esturk brought war to Azimuth.Known Events
Opening Destruction
From beneath the lands of Tarteria, Esturk emerged into Azimuth once more. The lands to the west of the Rexun River were rocked with a great subterranean explosion and dropped greatly as a result of the emergence. With a great shift, entire swathes of land fell and submerged into the sea, forming the Green Metal Bay and the Western Valley, and rerouting the final lengths of Rexun River further westwards. Once more, Zenthai returned to defend the world from his longtime rival, but he alone was not enough. Such was the power Esturk had taken into himself, Zenthai could not contain his full fury as Esturk set his goal as the destruction of the holy places of Azimuth. Esturk’s armies of demons and beasts came forth and attacked the world in numbers never before seen, and the light of Azimuth shuddered.Century of War
Gimora
The Great War brought devastation to the human lands. The Kingdom of Gimora was sundered and swathes of the lands were ripped apart. The torn land made way for the new Gimora Sea, and the Ruined Coast was formed from the grave damage. The force sent great chunks of the continent adrift into the sea. The unstable lands of Parthenia and Cascada were created, and the Kingdom of Gimora and its grand cities surrounding Lake Gimor crumbled and burned.Endor
The land of the dwarves was ripped in twain, creating a sprawling chasm of ocean, known ever after as the Dragon's Maw. Many dwarves were drowned in their holds, and one of the grandest, Karak Thrund, was destroyed. Though much was lost and the Kingdom of Endor suffered greatly, the dwarven forces led by High King Faldrick Oathenhammer did not surrender the First Mountain through the end of the war.Haradren
The elves expended much to protect their World Tree. The great druids and mages of the elves raised a ring of mountains around it: the Padequia Mountains. But the elves’ singular focus to save their holy tree took much sacrifice. The Ashen Hills were rendered barren and would forever suffer under a constant shroud of grey, ashen mist. Many elves were slain, and their population was greatly reduced.Tarteria
Much of Tarteria saw destruction from the armies of demons and beastfolk that raged across it. Many cities of the Kingdom of Keeleon were embattled, though some of the larger fortified settlements, like Keeleon Castle, held out to some degree against the enemy forces. However, many small settlements and tribes were attacked and destroyed without mercy, such as the Bloodfist Tribe of goliaths.The Champions
As the war raged on and the light of the world threatened to extinguish at the brink, Zenthai realized he was unable to meet this challenge alone. From the races of Azimuth, the Dragon King chose six Zenethian Champions: Sanazi, Angioletta, Rita, Porgorag, Ruin, and Morazar. These six received the direct blessing of the Dragon King, and from his own divine heart he forged six crystalline weapons of holy power: The Zenethian Items. With their strength and will to aid his own, Zenthai and his Champions brought the fight to Esturk’s forces. Slowly, they began driving the demons and beasts back. For a century they pushed back against the encroachment of demons and beasts and won back their territories with blade and spell and blood.Battle of the Demon's Blood Marshes
The Gathered Armies of Azimuth
At last, after conflict brought death to many and shook the world to the edge of the precipice, an opportunity arose. A titanic battle force unseen of in any previous age sailed out towards the last bastion of Esturk’s influence, the continent of Tarteria, bringing every warrior each race had to bear.The Radags
As this grand allied army sailed across the Leviathan Sea, dark sorcerers aligned with Esturk’s evil called forth great gouts of the earth. These burst forth from the sea in attempt to destroy the combined fleet before they made landfall. These rock formations would become known as the Radags. Though many ships were sunk, so grand was the fleet that many made landfall, and so began the greatest battle of the age: the Battle of the Demons' Blood Marshes.The Greatest Battle of the Age
Demons in their thousands met them on the beaches of the wildlands and from their ships the dwarves, elves, humans, and orcs fought for the life of the world for days at the Battle of the Demons' Blood Marshes. The Zenethian Dragon ripped apart the sky and joined the battle himself, spewing gouts of holy fire and crystalline death upon the enemy. Many heroes, known warriors, and unnamed defenders gave their lives in this battle as sacrifices so that the Zenethian Champions could have the chance to push through.The Zenethian Champions
Far to the west, through the battalions of the enemy, the Zenethian Dragon carried his chosen to bring battle to Esturk himself, even as the fighting continued on behind them. Little is known of this battle between Zenthai and Esturk, for only the Zenethian Champions were there to witness it. But when the final blow was struck, all those who remained across the world knew in an instant what had transpired. The demons were banished and the skies cleared. Esturk was set to slumber beneath Tarteria, and the Great War was won.Aftermath
A Wounded God
Esturk had wounded Zenthai greatly in their final clash. So terrible was this wound that it would persist far into the next age. At this cost, Esturk was again defeated, buried beneath the ground of the wildlands, and Zenthai, too, retreated to the divine realm. Many great churches of Zenethia would fall into disrepair and ruin in this time, even as the Zenethian Champions set to the task of repairing the world. During this time though, the other Dragon deities of the Azimuth Pantheon would move to share a new place of prominence in the worship of the recovering world. Nerull and Gaia saw many devotees in the wake of the worst conflict of the age. Avianor and Sehakora sects sought to aid the growth and recovery of those displaced and the devastated lands. And Morounin and Barduumus saw worship from those seeking the means to drive out Esturk’s beasts and prevent such devastation in the future.The Land Reshaped
Gimora
Gimora was the hardest hit and could no longer function in the same manner it had prior. In the place of the Kingdom of Gimora, several new human kingdoms were formed. However, the new Gardenbur would not survive and would fully fall to the beasts, and Cascada fell to the continued earthquakes and tremors that would plague their nation. Due to the shift in location and climate, the lands of what became Konenbur were less fertile than before, causing these people to rely heavily on the sea to survive. Additionally, the world outside Tarteria was introduced orichalcum. Konenbur imported much of this and put it to great use in the armor of their elite warriors, the Greenscales, so named for the glean of the armor and blades.Endor
After the war, the dwarves of Endor who had suffered much and lost many holds turned towards trade in their recovery. With the shifting of the map a new trade route was formed from the Iron Range through the new human kingdoms of Branca, Burland, and Konenbur. The Iron Highway would prove instrumental in the growth of all of Gimora.Haradren
Though the World Tree had been protected, the Ashen Hills were rendered barren, forcing the surviving elves and gnomes that lived there to relocate. In the war, many elves were slain, resulting in the elven population being greatly reduced. The Leader-Elect system was created to facilitate more rapid response to calamity, and Angioletta, Wielder of the Zenethian Cloak, was chosen as the first Leader-Elect of the Undying Aristocracy. As a result of the war, the elves became almost fully isolationist, new colonies were refused, and they also began pushing out other races entirely from their kingdom.Tarteria
The Demons' Blood Marshes became soaked with the blood of uncountable warriors and demons, and it would be forever changed into a ruddy and oily marshland, sodden with demon blood. An encampment was founded to begin the long process of recovery and accounting for all those lost in the battle, which would become the settlement of Gimoruk. As they fought side by side, orc warriors and those of the other races shed blood together and fought and died for the fate of the world. The races of humans, elves, and dwarves were introduced to the valor of these warriors and the strength of their weapons, forged from orichalcum. The orichalcum trade was core to the recovery and growth of this land, and sea trade flourished. As a result, orcish influence grew greatly in the north and the orcs expanded southwards to the Orog Range. While the kingdom of Keel was unified, the clans of the hobgoblins were not, and they could not stand against Keel’s orichalcum so ununified, leading to the Baloratak War.Purging of Beasts
During the ending events of the Great War in the Third Age, many kingdoms were forced to flush out the bestial races from their lands as a result of Esturk’s invasions. It would take many years of battles and raids after the end of the war to drive the bestial races from the lands. While some could seclude themselves in the corners of the world, many tribes had no place else to go, so many sought refuge in the far-flung land of Parthenia as they were driven away. Gardenbur was a land of humans, halflings, and gnomes, and though the Kingdom of Gardenbur was founded here after the Great War, it was not long before this kingdom fell after the death of Ruin, Wielder of the Zenethian Axe, and the bestial races took over this land.Legacy
- The History of the Third Age tells the story of the Zenethian Champions and the aftereffects of the Great War.
- The holiday Champion's Conquest celebrates the victory of the Battle of the Demons' Blood Marshes.
- The Gate of the Maw in Endor, the First Mountain, includes an honorarium to the lost hold of Karak Thrund, which was lost in the Great War.
- The Prophets of Regression led a cult reaction to the Great War in Endor. As a result of the destruction caused to Azimuth by the Dragon pantheon, there was a push by this cult to reject the Dragons and worship the Primordial Elementals.
Conflict Type
War
Start Date
Around 3A 1992
Ending Date
- The war ended with the deafeat of Esturk, The World's End, causing the dissolution of the demon armies present in Azimuth.
- Esturk, The World's End, gravely wounded Zenthai, The Dragon King.
- The Zenethian Champions and Zenethian Items were formed. Their power set Esturk, The World's End, to slumber once more.
Known Battles
Major Combatants
Azimuth Forces
Zenthai, The Dragon King
Zenethian Champions
High King Faldrick Oathenhammer
Azimuth armies
Zenthai, The Dragon King
Zenethian Champions
High King Faldrick Oathenhammer
Azimuth armies