History of Corea

The first Elves arrive in the Satrini Islands,--   --a great number remain there, beginning the process of settling in their new home and creating the first and greatest Homeland of the Elves outside of Faerie itself. Satrini. Others, however, waste very little time in leaving their newfound home and exploring the breadth of this strange new land that they've found themselves in.

The newly formed Skellasti Empire starts off strong, the aftermath of the Dawn War leaving the Gith in an unrivaled position and with a territory that stretches between two continents. Dependent on and vastly benefiting from the Dwarven Delves that have just recently been completed, the Gith waste no time in further exploring (and settling; and fortifying) the Underdark.   This brings their Empire into an almost unrivaled position, only surpassed by the Dwarves of the Mohr and the Jeweled City of Iprum. Wealth and power and magic flow through the lands of Skelles, both above and below the surface, creating a cultural center of singular significance where multiple peoples are gathered together under a singular banner.

The Skellasti Empire, having enjoyed over a thousand years of glory, begins to take a swift downward trajectory with the corruption of their Underdark holdings. With large parts of their civilization still kept away from the sun's kiss,-- if not particularly deep,- Skelles slow atrophy is only exacerbated by the growing madness of their elite.
  Many of the outlying holdings become more distant, almost to the point of independence, and the Gith themselves find their focus overall shifting from statesmanship to more arcane pursuits. The society remains more or less functional, and indeed in some ways this shift plants seeds that will grow into something decidedly different as the next age dawns, but the Empire itself suffers in the meantime.

The Skellasti finally begin to pull themselves out of the long malaise that had struck them after the Miasma's rise, refocusing themselves on the world that had once been theres and would be there's again. This begins with a series of wars, reinforced with legions of Devils and inventive use of Battle Magic, aimed at regaining lost territory and bringing errant lands back under their control.   As the various distant provinces fall back under the control of Madoril, the Empire only tightens their grip on them, mercilessly breaking any appearance of dissent and abandoning all pretense of unity or brotherhood. Anything of worth,-- or, especially, of power, is sent back to the capital at Madoril where it is to be put to it's most efficient use by the Heirs of Skelles. All power is centralized, inefficiencies in the government are smoothed away and summoned entities do more and more work for an increasingly indolent upper caste.   Even as the empire expands it's reach to heights that it has not enjoyed since their victory over Orlay, the Gith themselves continue to delve deeper and deeper into magics that they had long overlooked, even drawing the legacies of other lands into their libraries and enriching themselves with lore and knowledge unheard of in all the world.

After his Coronation, Erevan begins to gather supplies for a massive expedition, as well as first invocation of the aged tradition of the "Imperial Company" as a way of calling mighty warriors to his side. The young Emperor finally sets out from Arn early in the Spring, moving West, into the ancient lands of Budan-Mar with a modest-sized host of Mages, Holy Men, and no fewer than 11 different Imperial Companies (one of which he had been a member of prior to his Imperial ascension).    As the expedition heads into the lands of Budan-Mar, they find themselves moving right into the middle of one of the many wars being fought between the two ancient rivals. Through a mixture of skullduggery, intrigue, and raw Charisma, Erevan manages to not just end the war but actually bring the two ancient warring city-states into the fold of the Empire before moving on and making contact with the Dwarves of Ornat where he wintered. The next spring, the Expedition then continues on into the wild lands of Davomar (which will one day be called the Free Cities), where the Emperor slays a rampaging Dragon with his companions, rescues an Elf Maiden from an ancient curse (and marries her), and founds no fewer than three cities before eventually pushing on into the lands of Idonia to meet with his Fathers' oldest allies.   Even as the Emperor stays there, "coincidentally" seeming to found the city that would one day be known as Ravenna, his Company continues on,--   --pressing into the battle scarred lands of Dalmatia, and onward to the Straights of Aetheril, before heading into the lands of Skellast to ascertain the state of affairs on the other continent. Madoril is explored for the first time since the War, and contact is made with some of the surviving Niocene settlements (not.. always.. hostile), before the Company eventually engages with a terrible Fiend by the name of Mephistopheles and eventually withdraws back into safe territory.

Docyen and his personal guard journey to Faer itself, the ancestral capital of Faerlund and the only true city worthy of the name actually founded by the Steppe Elves themselves.   Once he arrives, the Kha-Khan ventures into the heart of the city to confer with his ancestors, eager to ascertain that the changing wind he scents is truly there and that his wishes are also the wishes of the divine lords of the steppe,-- that he will be the one to topple the Empire,-   He is not seen for three months.   When he emerges again, he speaks energetically of the coming time and how the Faer will finally teach their cousins the mistake that they made when they weakened their blood with that of humanity. How they will free Asha from her mortal prison and return her to the Heavens! How they will make the cities of the their ancient enemies bleed into the seas until even the oceans themselves turn red!   Only a week after his emergence, Docyen marries 13 elven maidens in a grand ceremony and shares his new wives with his khans--for they are blood of his blood-along with many other lavish gifts and offerings to further secure their loyalty. He holds mighty feasts for the entire city, hosts elaborate sacrifices for the priests, and rallies his people to such hearts of bloodlust that many believe that as soon as they celebrations end they will ride out to burn down the Empire.   Then, at the end of the year, he leaves as quietly as he came.   Only his wives remain behind, whispering to any that will listen that the time their Kha-Khan spoke of will be upon them at any moment and that they must make themselves ready. That they must prove themselves worthy of the honor that their King has put before them.

A rough coalition of Hill Tribes, Orcs, Goblins, Centaur, and even some Dwarves combines to turn the Tombrian Expanse into the Sovereign Nation of Tombria.   They elect a Half-Orc as their War Chief and set out to wage war against Faerlund to drive the Steppe Elves out of the lands that they hold as rightfully theirs. The fighting is brutal, and harsh, but in the end the Faer abandon the territory and begrudgingly accept their new neighbor.

A hasty coalition of forces gather under the banner of Emperor Aenestorian and march on Middiyan, where the forces of the last of the Usurper's are fortified.   The battle initially goes poorly, and Aenestorian quits the field in seeming defeat.   While in his tent, rumor says that he was visited by a trio of Angels...   The next day, the power of his bloodline manifesting for the first time in his life, the Emperor inflicts a total rout in his enemies and oversees as his general, Aetius, beheads the last of the Usurpers on a charge of treason before roaring out a challenge to the remaining Generals that had followed him.   Aenestorian pardons those who are willing to kneel and pledge loyalty to the line of Celestian.   Those who refuse must face the Emperor's Champion in combat, and of the three generals who choose this option, none of them survive against the bloodlust of the enraged Half-Orc.