The Dark Elf Curse

Disaster / Destruction

The Dark Elves of the Charneault Kingdom conspired against the humans, wanting to destroy the Kingdom for elven supremacy. with their attempt to overthrow the Kingdom they cursed the spirits of nature and created a dark mist.

After centuries of peaceful existence between the Elves and Men of the Kingdom, relations took a grim turn as the elven population of Tol Leyemil became divided. As the rest of Etharis fell into darkness, more elves began to return to their homeland, preaching the heinous nature of humankind.   The situation worsened within the elven city when some elven leaders expressed greater ambitions over the land of the Kingdom. Claiming that Caer Neiada had been an elven territory for far longer than it had been inhabited by humans. They called for a retaking of their territory reserved for the elves beyond Tol Leyemil, to help spread the population which had come to the city. Factions developed for and against these claims.   One of the most vindictive of these factions was the Dark Elves, who counted many sorcerers among their number. Impatient with the slow shift of opinion in favour of expansion, the Dark Elves seized the initiative in an attempt to escalate the situation.   What followed became known as the Dark Elf Curse, and caused endless grief to the most sensitive hearts of the human and elven populations. Dark Elf thieves retrieved a book of forbidden spells from which Lord Sorcerer Diyanthar, the mightiest of the Dark Elf sorcerers, learned to take control of the Spirits of Nature, an act considered sacrilege by the elves. They enacted a ritual that would use the Mist to convey their enchantments across the Kingdom, defiling the very roots of the land and creating an opening for sorcerers to take control of spirits. The Dark Elves’ leaders intended to bind the Spirits of Nature against their will to fight in the war to retake all of Caer Neiada. However, to accomplish such a task, they needed to sacrifice a pure heart.   They seized the opportunity when the new king, Thibault de Sauveterre, came to Tol Leyemil to offer his daughter, Princess Tiphaine de Sauveterre, in keeping with the pact. A group of Dark Elves, disguised as the princess’ official escort from Tol Leyemil, kidnapped the princess. They did indeed bring her to the Temple of Mists, but once there, Dark Elf sorcerers began their ritual with the princess at its nexus. Soon a dark mist appeared above the temple and alarmed the city of Tol Leyemil. By then it was too late to stop the ritual. Everything would have worked according to Diyanthar’s plans, had not a valiant knight intervened. Ser Guilhem le Preux is one of the most renowned knights of the Charneault Kingdom. He is first known for having sworn two mystic oaths with powerful spirits. But what made him truly renowned was his honorable yet unsatisfied love for Princess Tiphaine. Despite the Pact of Sacred Land, he asked for her hand and begged her royal father not to send her to the Temple of Mist.   The princess was said to secretly return Guilhem’s love, but neither would dare to go against the word of King Thibault. The king was deeply saddened by the situation as he felt in his heart that their love was true. But as king, he could not abandon the ancient pact, for fear of the consequences. When Ser Guilhem heard the king’s decree, he swore an oath to never love another than Princess Tiphaine and to live a life of a knight errant. But a short time after he left, the spirits with whom he had taken an oath contacted him to warn him that the princess was in grave danger.   He made haste to Tol Leyemil and found the group of Dark Elves sailing towards the Temple of Mists with her. He followed them and, thanks to his renewed magical powers, managed to reach the temple shortly after the ritual started. Gathering all his courage, he fought his way through the Dark Elf escort and managed to strike a blow to Diyanthar. The ritual was interrupted, but both Guilhem and Diyanthar were caught, alongside Princess Tiphaine, in a magical explosion when the ritual collapsed. Of the ten elven shamans who were sent to the Temple of Mists to find out what happened, only the Grand Shaman Aethorion returned.   He did not bring good news. The ritual had indeed been interrupted, but its effects had not been completely prevented, and from that day forth the Mist was unstable. Sometimes grey as it had ever been, it can also take on a dark taint which proves extremely dangerous; wherever it appears, it throws the Spirits of Nature into turmoil, making their manifestations far more dangerous. Dark tales of villages slaughtered by monstrous creatures led by Dark Elf sorcerers and bewitched dark knights began to spread in the land.   The Dark Elves and their allies fled from Tol Leyemil and headed to the dead city of Tol Kerdywel, hiding their movements with the Dark Mist. It is said that by doing so, they were following Diyanthar’s last orders. No one apart from them knows what these orders were, but knowing their destination is enough to raise grave concerns—Tol Kerdywel is known to be the place where a lich princess lies, vanquished and banished ages ago by the elves of old.   There is no certainty about the fate of Princess Tiphaine and Ser Guilhem, but both have apparently been seen as apparitions in the Mists, calling for help to lift their curse. As for Diyanthar, he also seems to be trapped in the Mist, as no trace of him could be found anywhere in the Kingdom. But that does not mean he has become harmless, as each time he is seen in the mist, dark creatures appear shortly after...