The Dark Age of Man is a historiographical term which is loosely applied to describe the first millennium of the Fourth Age. In this period, Beldkind had largely (with some exceptions, most notably the Three Great Elvish Realms and Kardunashi Kingdom) been reduced to hunter-gatherers following the Sundering of the World. Stranded and left unguided following the chaos of the tumultuous end of the Third Age, they reverted to a life of small-scale agriculture and hunting, often living nomadic lifestyles following grazing herds. These descendants of the great Octarchy wandered the old ruins of the past ages like ghosts, passing down bastardized legends sourced from old stories. Many of the old arts: writing, architecture, science, metalworking, glass-working, and other sophisticated forms of craftsmanship were lost for a time. As Mankind regained its footing, they relearned these ancient skills. Gradually, due to migratory patterns, settlements began to form near fertile river basins and coastlines. This change occurred gradually and happened at different times in different places, prompting historians to settle on IV 1000 as the year the "Dark Age" ended or simply prompting them to abandon the term altogether.
Oftentimes, even in the more "civilized" towns and cities which existed, the people suffered under the rule of totalitarian priest-kings and tyrants.
The lack of writing from this period makes it difficult to determine the courses of events, and most sources on this period come from the few civilizations which either formed during it or had survived the Sundering of the World and written about the "primitive men" of the world (such as Kardunash).
During this period, Kardunash entered the period of the Kardunashi Sea Empire and Di Shi founded the city of Wu Shu.