The War of Crimson Mountain

Military: War

Perhaps the longest lasting war between mortals, the War of Crimson Mountain was an all-out war between the races of Dwarves and Elves.   The war started as a simple land dispute between the races. Dwarves, who usually occupy mountain ranges, and Elves, who enjoy settling in forests and plains, had seemingly natural borders until The Great Saveri Forest bloomed.   The Dwarves claim they had always lived in the mountain and the Elves founding of southern territories after the forest's creation means nothing. The Elves argue that it is their right to own the mountain due to it being within the area of the Saveri Forest, and thus it is their duty to protect it.   The war raged until a cease fire was enacted by the united Elvish nations and the united Dwarvish strongholds. The reason for the cease fire was not out of an understanding, but because both sides of the conflict nearly ran out of able-bodied fighters. To this day, the war has not officially ended and is still only considered a cease-fire.

Depending on who you ask you will get two accounts on how the War of Crimson Mountain started. Asking the Elves, they were sneak attacked by a battalion of Dwarvish Anvil Guards  when they approached Crimson Mountain  with a legion of Battlemages  in order to make demands after a series of failed negotiations. Asking the Dwarves, they will tell you that the Elves volleyed the mountain with arrows and magic and were only saved when a patrol of Anvil Guards happened to return from a mission. It is unclear which side made the first attack.   What is clear is the devastation of the war that followed. The brutality of the War of Crimson Mountain cannot be understated. Both Elf and Dwarf alike committed heinous acts against one another. The Elves flooded Dwarf Strongholds and drowned their populations, The Dwarves setting The Great Saveri Forest  ablaze in locations, destroying their sacred forest. It was thought that the atrocities during the Invasion of Heaven and Hell were behind the world, but clearly that was just a dream.   The war also brought on the attention of outside invaders. Many times over the course of the conflict, Elf nations would be invaded by Orcish Warbands from the south, and Dwarf Strongholds would be assaulted by Hobgoblin Legions to the north. Due to the raising intensity of the conflict, both Dwarves and Elves would reach out to their races as a whole to call into conflict. This was the first time in known Dwarvish history that all of Dwarfkind was united under a common banner, which still lasts to this day. The Elves, on the other hand, would reach out to both all of the southern Elf kingdoms and to their distant cousins, the humans. The southern kingdoms would join the war, but the Humans would not.   The War of Crimson Mountain unofficially ended on Wyvern 10th, 10980 when (Elvish Leader with last name of leader of modern elf nation, ancestor of Riley?) approached The Crimson Mountain Stronghold alone, holding a Branch of Saveri. The Dwarves held their fire and let the lone king inside the keep. Outside, meanwhile, the last of the Elvish and Dwarvish militaries gathered and faced each other down, separated by mere feet, as (king) was inside. After many hours, the king returned from the keep, and declared that a cease fire had been negotiated.    The war lasted for over 646 years. For context, that is roughly 2 Elvish generations and 4-5 Dwarvish ones. This due to the long timespan, prejudices and hatred sewed their way into the mindset of both races and lasts to this day. Technically, the war still lasts, however, as an official peace treated was never written, and the fate of Crimson Mountain never decided.