6 Chapter 1: Campaigns in tal'Dorei
lived ancient beings who had already taken this world as
their home: the Primordials. These great Elemental Titans
that once dwelt deep within the land now rose from their
unseen domain to sunder the land once more. The gods
watched as their children—their joy—were largely dashed
against the broken rock or fed to formless terrors unleashed
in the wake of the destruction. Demonic entities spilled
from the umbra of the Abyss to feast on the carnage, called
forth by the violence and released to pick the carrion clean.
Some gods were so full of grief and anger they wished
to abandon this world for another, trying to convince
their divine kindred to join the Primordials in reclaiming
the realm for chaos so they could move on to start anew.
Others of the Creators wished to remain and subdue these
native Primordials, to tame the land for the sake of their
creation and joy. This caused a divide among the gods.
Some left the family of the Creators to give into madness,
joining their song and sword to that of chaos and destruc-
tion, taking and twisting their children in the image of
their intent. Celestial sentinels locked into war with the
chaotic forces of the Abyss fell to hate and tyranny, forg-
ing the Hells under a fallen angel now claiming lordship.
The remaining Creators, wishing to salvage their home,
their creations, and their realized selves, were forced to
take up arms and learn new methods of protection to
defend the faithful among their creations. These gods are
referred to as the Prime Deities. They organized their fol-
lowers and taught them how to draw from the very powers
of creation: to build, to change, and to destroy, all for
themselves and without the aid of divine power. Creation
learned to defend itself through practices such as alchemy
or by autonomously bending the very fabrics of existence,
though not on the scale of the gods’ works.
This gift was the knowledge of the first arcane magics.
With these newly granted capabilities, the good children
drove away their traitorous kin, banished the Betrayer
Gods to their own prison-like planes, and ultimately
destroyed the Primordials while scattering the chaotic ele-
ments to their own planes of existence just outside of this
one. Peace finally blanketed the world for the first time
since creation, and the first real civilization took root and
grew into a grand city called Vasselheim. The Cradle of
Creation. The Dawn City.
Culture developed anew, the races ventured beyond
to explore and discover their own lands, and great music
filled the air to give name to this world once and for
all: Exandria.the age of arCanum
Over time, some of the peoples grew arrogant. Seeing
their arcane gifts as proof the gods held no sway over
their fate, some began to believe that, with enough under-
standing, they could become as powerful as the gods
themselves. As such, many began to shun faith for their
own pursuits. Though this hurt and surprised the Prime
Deities, they understood the willfulness of their creation
and endured out of love and hope for redemption.
Great kingdoms sprang up. Castles were built in a
day, accelerated by the arcanists’ newfound power. Eventhough magic could be used to complete the most difficult
tasks with hitherto unknown speed, magic-users strove
always to innovate. As mages practiced and perfected
their powers of creation, they soon unlocked the secrets of
life itself, giving birth to wondrous, dangerous new forms
of life and power.
The advent of the arcane seemed to be the key to a
bountiful age of plenty, but also proved to threaten it,
as prosperity soon gave way to greed. Petty squabbles
erupted over resources and wealth among the elite, while
the rumor of immortality through perfected arcanum
began to drive the greatest mages wild with a lust for
power unending. One mortal mage, her name either
lost or struck from history, crafted now-forbidden rites
to challenge the God of Death, felling him and taking
his place among the pantheon, making her the first and
only mortal to ascend. One powerful archmage, Vespin
Chloras, was inspired by this display. Driven by his
hunger, he sought the guidance and power of the banished
gods, rending open the gates of their prisons and releasing
the betrayers into the mortal world.
In their imprisonment, the gods of Hatred and Despair
twisted their prison into their own image, spawning
unthinkable horrors that lived only to transform peace
into suffering, and righteousness into arrogance and greed.
The Hells and the Abyss began to push their way into
Creation. The Betrayer Gods and their hateful children,
unbanished and allowed re-entry into the Creation that
had exiled them, discovered the world unspoiled, save for
the avarice of mortals. The urge to ruin was now replaced
with the desire to dominate, and the Betrayer Gods turned
their sights first to the Archmage Vespin who freed them,
making him their first thrall. The Betrayer Gods sought out
the remnants of their offspring, scattered across the world,
and created with them a mighty and terrible new kingdom
on the far end of the world—Ghor Dranas.
In this land of evil, where the twisted power of the
lower planes seeped into this world, the lords of darkness
tainted the minds of mortals, hungrily welcoming those
who had forgotten their way home, and offering great
promises and boons to hearts easily swayed. These poi-
sonous seeds found fertile ground in the hearts of mortals
obsessed with the unlimited power of the arcane. With
a legion of the damned behind them, the Betrayer Gods
soon made their presence known to the world with an
assault on Vasselheim itself.
Though much of the city was reduced to rubble, Vassel-
heim weathered the initial assault, saved by the intervention
of the gods. The Prime Deities descended to trade blows
with their former brethren. The battle between divinity and
mortalkind, heroes and demons raged ceaselessly for twenty
days and nights until the dark forces, their surprise attack
thwarted, were forced to retreat.
Evil was repulsed momentarily, but with the reve-
lation of such a terrible foe, a dangerous arcane arms
race began. Trust was shattered indefinitely: If mortals
could fall under the sway of the Betrayer Gods, who
was an ally? If ruin like this could be unleashed under
the watchful eyes of divinity, how were they relevant?