The Lost Times

When the Lich King, Lachendon was finally defeated at the end of the War of Undying, the world was nearly devoid of sapient life, and even plants and animals were wiped from almost half the land surface. The Lost Times began with the final retreat of the Elves to their last hidden citadel, and the departure of nearly all the remaining Druids to their lost refuge Drakhul'Knaar. The few survivors on the continent of L'Ahr'Thresi were lost and scattered, the fragile remnants of civilization on the continent of Linibi turned inward and began a long battle for survival against the hordes of the Korth. Xia'lin'mei and Agrathet lost all contact, even during the far distant Lachendon Empire these lands were almost without contact. On Giza Ardhi almost nothing remained, and sapient life completely died out, replaced by monstrosities, horrors, and all manner of twisted life; a situation that remained until well after the Restoration. On Kzatrineczt, a few remaining kingdoms fell to new threats from the wilds, while the one nation that made a deal with the Undying to be spared, for a time, turned completely inward, becoming isolationist and violently xenophobic, even at the time of the Restoration this nation remained closed off and all non-citizens found within the nation or approaching the borders were subject to summary execution without trial.

In a world nearly completely destroyed, mere survival became the only goal, and the keeping of histories, or any other generally cerebral pursuit, became a mere afterthought. For nearly 16,000 years the living sought to recover their world. The undying hordes, so inimical to all life that even the land died in their presence, had left almost half the land worldwide dead and lifeless. It took a thousand years for the remnant of the forces of The Dying to even regroup, and many died of starvation, disease, or other dangers during this time. These were the last survivors of a hopeless war, however, and they were strong indeed. They fought back from the brink, found the few remaining living lands, created settlements, farmed, raised livestock, recovered. It took thousands of years to recover just to the point that they could consider moving back into the wastelands, and during this time wind, rain, and all the forces of nature had begun the long healing process. Over thousands more years these people brought plants, animals, and the mystical blessings of The Source into the wastelands, and life returned to the land wherever they went. Eventually, they had recovered most lands, and their numbers grew until they could begin the process of rebuilding not just the land, but their civilizations as well.