In
Takish-Hiz, while
Erollisi Marr was hiding from
Innoruuk and
Cazic-Thule, she was found to be bearing child. She traveled far to the Northlands with the
Elves of
Tunaria to give birth to the
Goliath race among the snowy tundra and wastes of the
Giants' now fallen empires. This young, warlike race would usher in the Age of Blood.
Freedom for the Marr Twins
During these days, the
Frogloks of the swamps rose up in an effort to save
Mithaniel Marr from the clutches of
Cazic-Thule. Many fell and their efforts were futile, but they never gave up hope and kept continuously launching their attacks. Some years on from then the
Goliaths, driven by their love for the Marr twins, reinforced the
Frogloks and finally saved
Mithaniel Marr, vanquishing the Avatar of Fear from Norrath.
The Fall of Takish-Hiz
Throughout the tumultuous history of Norrath so far,
Solusek Ro, the Burning Prince and child of
Fennin Ro the elemental God of Fire, had watched over all that had transpired on Norrath. Known for his hot temper and chaotic tendencies, he looked down on
Tunaria, the land of the
Elves, and decided to make his mark on Norrath. Raising the land around the elven Elddar Forest, he arched the great spine of the Serpent Mountains bringing heat and sun to the ancient forest. This event would forever doom the
Elves of
Tunaria and the lands that surrounded it despite the efforts of the elven King and Queen Tak'Yaliz.
The rivers ran dry, and it rained less each year. During this time the prophetic Queen Elizerain came to power. However, despite the efforts of the elven druids, they could not combat the change and they were only delaying the inevitable. Slowly the forest gave way to desert and eventually even the fair elven city of
Takish-Hiz crumbled to the ground. The
Elves were forced to flee
Tunaria, leaving much of their greatness behind. They would later find a new home on the continent of
Faydwer.
As the
Elves were abandoning
Antonica, a young
Goliath named Bayle Shiverfist headed south from the northlands where the
Goliaths had been created by
Erollisi Marr nearly a century earlier. They traveled south, past the evacuated dwarven mines of Blackburrow and settled in the Plains of Karana, a place they named Oceangreen. During this great movement of people, the
Gnolls of the Jaggedpine forest, north of the what would become Qeynos Hill, would also find a new home in the remains of Blackburrow. The
Goliaths would expand and prosper, and newer and newer settlements would popup here and there. During this time, Bayle Shiverfist would stumble upon an ancient artifact deep underwater in the remains of a
Goblin city that became known as the
Staff of Theer. Upon returning it to the elders of his clan, it unleashed great chaos upon the
Goliaths, and mysterious void storms began to occur all over the Plains of Karana. For the trouble he had caused, he began a great quest with Twiddy Bobick on the legendary airship Cloudskipper. The
Trolls of Innothule Swamp would also find great pains from the void storms in this era. Far south of the now waning Elddar Forest, a legion of shadowed men struck their town of Grobb. One of it's residents, Kruzz Skullcleaver, would meet with Bayle and his adventuring party and eventually join them on a grand journey where they would meet with Queen Elizerain. She lead the last of the
Elves from
Tunaria across the waters their new home on the land of
Faydwer, where they settled a new city named
Felwithe.
On
Tunaria, the Marr twins inspired civility in the group of
Goliaths that ventured south, and their civilization advanced far more quickly than it had in the northlands. They became cultured and civilized, and their settlements became towns and cities. Legendary towns were formed such as Highpass Hold, Highbourne, and
Freeport, and trade would flourish among the tribes. These
Goliaths became known as
Humans, and they ventured all over
Tunaria and even across the sea creating places such as Tanaan, a legendary temple and home to those that had been forsaken from their gods. The use of magic increased and eventually Geomancy was studied by the
Humans for the first time. It was in this time that Zan Fi created the Whistling Fist clan and traveled the world teaching the ideals of it's order.
Chaos on Kunark
Once again, the broken
Iksar empire of the
Emerald Circle struggled to maintain order. As clans were fighting amongst each other the
Froglok and
Giant slaves of
Sebilis began to revolt. All over
Kunark,
Giants would attack forts and cities and
Trakanon used this moment to finally return to finish what he started when he attacked
Rile Sathir in ages past. To make matters worse,
Goblin lords fleeing the curse of the Gods from
Faydwer would land on
Kunark and begin their own attacks, taking
Karnor's Castle. It would seem that the great story of the freed slaves of the
Shissar would finally come to an end. Many years later, the Crusaders of Rok Nilok, a band of
Iksar, retake
Karnor's Castle from the
Goblins but become cursed.
The Combine Empire
As
Human towns and settlements grew, they began to join together and eventually the
Combine Empire was formed, led by Tsaph Katta. The Empire grew it came into contact with most races of the world, even the darker
Teir'Dal. Some
Teir'Dal came and studied with the
Humans, including a mage named
Valdoartus Varsoon, who became the first to solve the Ember Conundrums in the Archesian Order on his first attempt, including even displaying an eighth Conundrum. For his efforts, he was granted access to Planar Thaumaturgy, and he began to open a portal to the planes bringing back all manner of artifacts such as the ivory teacup and the whisper of marr, an egg that burns anything to a crisp.
The rise of the
Combine Empire led to a golden age for many of the races on Norrath; an enterprising group of
Humans led by captain Han Jensen discover
Faydwer and Zan Fi's order of peace and devotion to their control of the martial arts gained many followers on
Tunaria and
Kunark. New orders formed including the Ashen Order, Silent Fist Clan and Swifttail Caste on
Kunark. Eventually Zan Fi, perhaps a gift from the gods for his efforts, would be granted a vision of a serene island where he was to build a grand tower. He followed no map, but rather listened to a mysterious song that seemed to guide his journey. This would eventually lead him to the island where the city of forsaken souls, Tanaan, had been built. On his arrival he formed the Lost Circle and created the tower he had dreamed of. The
Gnomish people of
Ak'Anon also enjoyed a boom in their inventions during this period, creating a magical clockwork King to rule over their people – delivering them from an ancient conflict that had been occurring between their people for an age. It seemed that war was finally at an end for the whole world of Norrath
However, it would end as quickly as it began. Wishing to formalize the relationships of the
Combine Empire with other races, Tsaph Katta hosted a grand banquet to invite the darker races to join the
Combine Empire formerly. However, not all shared the inclusive and open stance Tsaph had towards other races – Seru, leader of the Combine Army, poisoned Tsaph during this banquet and blamed the
Dark Elves, beginning a great inquisition against the practices of dark magic and the evil races. It would be the darkest time for the
Combine Empire and also it's final destruction. The empire split in two, the loyalists of Tsaph fleeing all corners Norrath escaping Seru's wrath and attempting to distract him while Tsaph Katta's body was led away to a secret location by the
Elves.
Eventually, having no where else to run, the loyalists stumbled upon an ancient
Shissar city in the Dreadlands of
Kunark. After some study by their geomancers, made use of the ancient structure (that the
Shissar had escaped centuries ago) and fled to
Luclin. Seru, furious of their escape followed soon after leaving the
Combine Empire to finally fall without a leader and the
Humans to return to their separated states.
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