1. Events

End of the Age of Elves

Calamity

What follows are the remaining notes of noted historian Hakur and his latest work, End of the Age of Elves. You may know of his previous publications, Pre-Imperial Agricultural Advances of the South and An Orcish Perspective on Traditional Elvish Tea Ceremonies. He is the only orcish member of the renown Imperial Historian's Society, and he was also the only member to be kicked out twice. He began research on what is commonly known as the "End of the Age of Elves," which occurred an estimated two thousand years ago.  Very little is known about this pre-Imperial time, and Hakur hoped to be the first to break new ground with his theories of a "large-scale arcane geophysical calamity" as his research assistant described it. Sadly, as his research assistant has decided not to pursue Hakur's field of research, all we have left is Hakur's notes and fragments, with some editing done.

Author's Forward

Elven armies heed your call
Union marches against us all
Swords are sharpened, spears are tall

First Men armies at the wall
Clashing soldiers meet to brawl
Aleorinia last to fall

— Imperial translation of elven poem
Original poem has been lost, or may have never existed1


The end of the Age of Elves is perhaps one of the least understood, and yet most noteworthy events in our history.  Even the name itself sounds important: it's the end of an age and an end to the ancient elven hegemony, a concept even the most distant villager could grasp if they heard it and knew what a hegemony was.

Historians know from fragmented texts and transcribed oral history that there were two forces at play during this tumultuous time: the elves, and a group known as the Union. The imperials claim that the Union was led by the First Men, a fabled early mankind with abilities not unlike the "demihumans" of today that the Empire claim to hate so much. But could an army, even one as supposedly gifted as the Sentrans claim, have wiped out entire cities so that no trace remains? What really happened to the fabled elven cities? Although Imperial histories focus mostly on the supposed success of the human-led armies, it is important not to discount the legends of arcane and geological calamities that struck at this time. Through studious research, and comparing fables and myths from multiple sources and people, I hope to present a new and comprehensive look at the fall of the elves, and the end of an age.

The Fall of Aleorinia

A reasonable person would assume that of all people in Aleona, elves would have the most knowledge about the time known as the Age of Elves, or at least the most questions about the period. And yet, it seems that elves barely give it any thought.  Many half-blood elves have become accustomed to imperial revisions to history, and the more traditional elves don't have written accounts.  Their emphasis on oral history, although rich, has transformed over the centuries from what may have once been historical fact to vague myths and legends.

What we do know is that there were some number of elven cities, and they were supposedly bigger than even Sentra. They were places of wonder where magic was stronger than it is now, and devices akin to those crafted by today's magewrights, but more complex.  The elves ruled these cities, and all other people lived under them.  The greatest of these cities, and perhaps center of the ancient elven government, was Aleorinia.2

There are many fantastical tales about the ancient elven cities.  Some stories mention that whole cities could fly amongst the clouds, and others talk about towers reaching beyond the sky. These truly dramatic scales lead me to believe one of two things. Since no sign of any ancient elven city has been found, then either the grandeur of the cities have been mightily exaggerated, or there was a cataclysm great enough to destroy the cities utterly. Although Imperial historians will disagree vehemently with my opinion, I believe in the latter.  The idea of these elven-built cities seems hard for my human counterparts to imagine, but I posit that not only is such a thing possible, but eminently likely.

Reader, the Imperial historians will have you believe that the cities of myth could never be real and only the humans' grand cities could even approach such magnificence. Yet we know that orcs built cities of their own, and we have heard from many dwarves that their cities, although underground, are equal in size to any human city. And although not nearly as large, the Caithan cities use their strange powers to help grow and support their population in ways that ancient elves might have done with their own arcane skills.

To this day, elves have not built any large communities. Although some have acclimated to life in the Empire and have settled down in human towns and cities, traditional elves are nomads and wanderers.  Typically roaming the Sabein Desert, they never stay long in one place. Other elves are known to travel from settlement to settlement in caravans. Why is there no elven-centered city? The elves remember "The Fall of Aleorinia" as a time when their former greatness led only to a bitter end. (One does not have to be an award-winning historian to see potential parallels to the rise and fall of the ancient elves and the hubris of today's humans.3)

The Innermost Sea

It's no secret that the orcish kingdoms may have had the largest repository of knowledge, including lore about the age of elves that has long been forgotten. But thanks to the armies and torches of the Sentran Empire, those books are long gone. There are small pieces laying in wait for someone to find them, and I have successfully uncovered a few such morsels.

One such work was a geological survey of the coast of the Innermost Sea. Reader, you may already be wondering why I'm mentioning this sea. If you are like me and a trained historian, the important facets of geology may initially escape your notice as they did mine. But from what I and those orcish geologists have learned, this sea is a relatively new phenomenon—no more than a few thousand years old. The Innermost Sea was formed by the very ground sinking and the ocean filling in the void with millions upon millions of barrels of water.  If the collapsing of the earth did not cause considerable damage to the towns, villages, and people that lived in the area in those times, then the giant oncoming waves of water most certainly did.

I want you to consider, reader, the following lines, which may be all that remains of a grand elven epic. Unlike the Imperial propaganda masquerading as ancient elven literature, this is an authentic piece of work. I have tried to maintain the original structure as best we understand, but translating from ancient elven to orcish to the common tongue is sadly unwieldy4 and I am a historian by trade, not a poet.

The first wave came and
        smashed
              against the city
And at our feet bodies
        collapsed
              and lay dying
—Author Unknown


It has long been assumed that this verse is referring to an army attacking an elven city. However, based on my recent findings about the Innermost Sea, it is within the realm of possibility that the piece is more literal, and instead about great ocean waves. My orcish predecessors believed that this to be so. Perhaps one day, as our knowledge improves, we may know for sure.

The Union and the First Men

Although the details differ, we do have a few certainties about the Union at the end of the Age of Elves. The Union consisted of humans, dwarves, caithan, and gnomes. There were possibly other peoples, and most cultures have inserted themselves into the Union even if there is no sound evidence to support their claims. And exactly what caused the schism between the elves and the Union is unknown. Certain imperial theories entertain the idea that elves had enslaved the other races (which is more than slightly ironic considering the propensity of the Empire to do the same). If this is the case, how could such a group of ragtag slaves become powerful enough to topple the might of the elven empire? We must consider that at the very least there were other outside sources at play.  Consider the dwarven incursion into the Sentran Empire in the 9th century. It was but one piece that led to significant loss of Sentran territory. There was also the barbarians to the north and the failure of the imperial Automaton army that contributed to the noticeable imperial decline.  Just one of these events by themselves would not be as devastating without the others occurring.

This is not to discount the effect of a large-scale military conflict against the elves. Assuming that the humans' historical works are not simple exaggerations, then the First Men would have created a formidable force. They were supposedly very much like today's humans, but with greater physical and mental features. They were taller, stronger, faster, smarter... well, reader, suffice it to say that there is a long list of adjectives used by imperial historians to describe them.

Despite this, like the raiding parties of the northern tribes against the whole of the Empire, the armies of the Union would not have a significant effect by itself. In addition to a military conflict and/or uprising of slaves, there was the flooding that led to the forming of the Innermost Sea.  These two combined could have knocked even a mighty, magical empire out of balance, as happened to Sentra almost 400 years ago.  But the elven cities were completely wiped out, with no sign of them remaining today.  Despite everything that happened to Sentra, they did not suffer nearly so disastrous a fate. And so, there was one more cataclysmic problem to strike the elves.


End of Magic

Here I will broach a new topic. All know of the great elven cities and the magical feats that the elves were able to perform. So I ask you, reader, where did all of this magic go?  Of the cities themselves, which were supposedly great and wondrous, there is no sign. Of their great accomplishments, nothing is left.  Historians before me have always assumed that this was a result of the fall of the elves. But what if it was instead the leading cause? If something happened to the vast arcane might of the elves, then it most certainly would have been a leading cause for their downfall.

My theory is that the elves may have had magical devices not dissimilar from an Arcstone. If there is acampaigns%2F52637%2F54824127-053c-478e-8ef8-dc6ac16cd75d.png?webpfallback

 

 

A Note From the Publisher

Hakur has not finished his latest work. His research assistant said that he was planning a trip to visit the Aldarites in Sentra. He had been hoping to gain access to "a piece of the puzzle," but according to city officials, he never reached Sentra. I have been informed that it was likely he was waylaid by bandits along the way.

The cover art (seen above) for the potential book is a painting by Lord Darin ir'Taran as part of his architectural study. He claimed it was a vision he had received about the city of Aleorinia. Not known for his art (mostly because he burned them all in a large bonfire before his death), Lord ir'Taran is perhaps better known for designing part of Sentra.  The neighborhood is colloquially known as "Darin's Folly" by the locals.

Endnotes

1.

Although Sentran scholars will argue that the work is from an original elven poetic epic, I remain skeptical. Of the known early elven poetry, it doesn't follow any the known patterns, and the rhyming scheme suspiciously matches the Sentran Common Tongue a little too well.

2.

The etymological similarities between Aleorinia and Aleona have been discussed many times before by many others, and I will not retread that quagmire. For reference, read Professor Candida's book Elven Language and Loanwords for the Common Tongue or the Aldarite scripture, "Wisdom, Words, and our History" (Codex Bk 3, Ch 4).

3.

My editor says I am not allowed to write that if I wish to be published within Imperial borders.

4.

I should note that the original work, as best as can be determined, may have been in the past perfect continuous tense. This only added to the grammatical confusion and has been simplified here.