The Great Deception

Era beginning/end

Humans were created as a rite of passage for the lesser gods, Pelor, Mellandra, Kord, and Vecna. They worked together to create humanity. Vecna corrupted the humans and taught them dark magic.

In times long forgotten...

The gods of Lyceia's pantheon were more involved in the lives of those who dwelt upon her. Humankind was created by the Lesser Gods. An accord was reached that each god would have stewardship over the tutelage of this new race, each teaching them how to prosper. To avoid strife and tyranny, it was agreed that humans on this world would not be taught the concepts of magic or the arcane. One god, however, taught dark magic and necromantic rituals to his followers in secret. Quickly, the peace that had been achieved amongst humans was perverted and twisted into an oppressive and cruel oligarchy headed by those who were inclined to use their newfound power for their gain. By this point, the god who had sewn this chaos had converted others to his cause. They derived pleasure and enjoyment at watching the cruelty of which humans were capable. These dark gods orchestrated and carried out the assassinations of the greater gods. Three of the lesser gods of the time, who would later be named Pelor, Mellandra, and Kord, rose up in opposition. One by one, the dark gods fell to the might of these new gods, fueled by their love of humanity and their disdain for the cruelty of these malevolent traitors. The final battle of this war was hard fought and left Pelor gravely wounded. The leader of the dark gods' army, known now as Vecna, was sealed away by the good natured gods who had liberated humankind from the clutches of the dark army. Pelor, Kord and Mellandra collectively agreed that the Lyceia was safest should they rule from afar. Their final act amongst humans was to bless them with the knowledge of healing and light magic. Stories of this time were lost to myth and legend, until very few remember the tales of the Great Deception and the fall of Vecna.