[MY] The Blackmoor Epic of Mystaros

[Havard]

Years ago, James Mishler wrote this fantastic Epic history of Mystara which focused to a great deal on Blackmoor. Here is a (rather long) except:

10,000 through 8000 BC

By 10,000 BC the Wurm Glacial Period had come to an end. The Northern Continent, the Cradle of Human Civilisation, was slowly emerging from the long period of barbarism. The Brute-Men, a race of Humans adapted to the frigid conditions of the glacial period, were slowly being supplanted by the more prolific and technologically successful Modern Human races, the Oltec, Neathar and Tangor peoples. The Oltecs were native to the continent of Brun, the Tangor to the continent of Skothar. The Neathar peoples originated in the harsh arctic region that connected the two continents, the "Frosthaven Land Bridge". The Dwarves, an offshoot of the Brute-Men race, lived in the hills and mountains of the continent of Brun; they were not, at this time, a subterranean race. By this time they had already domesticated the goat and the dog. Giants were still active in Brun in that day, though their Golden Age was long passed; except for the Kingdom of Gandhar in the northern "Dawn Territories", there were no organised Giantish realms that had survived the glaciers. (Humans were in the Palaeolithic stage; Dwarves and Giants were in the Mesolithic stage, having long-forgotten their great glories of the past; some groups of Giants had maintained a Bronze Age level of technology, but they were for the most part xenophobic and isolated).

The Southern Continent was even more active in the renewal following the glaciation. Ordana, an Immortal of the Sphere of Time, purged several clans of Yuan-Ti of their Serpentine nature, and from this core of beings formed the Elven race. The Elves inhabited the forests in the southwestern section of Davania, along with numerous groups of Faeries (Sidhe, Sprites, Pixies, etc). The Enduks inhabited the north-western section of Davania, where they were slowly building a civilisation under the patronage of the Immortal Ixion. Their land was also home to many of the other creations of the Serpentines, such as Shedu, Lammassu and Sphinxes. The Lizard Men, Nagas and Yuan-Ti inhabited the north-eastern section of Davania, where they were dominated by the remnants of the Serpentine Empire. The Halflings (Hin) were also native to the Southern Continent, in the central regions; they had evolved from escaped proto-human slaves of the ancient Serpentine Empire (successor to the Carnifex Tyranny). (Elves were in the Chalcolithic stage (Copper and Stone), as were the Enduks; the Lizard Men and Serpentines were in the Iron Age, but were quite sedentary; the Hin were in the Mesolithic).

8000 through 6000 BC

By 8000 BC the population of the Neathar clans began to outstrip the ability of their technology to subsist in their lands, and whole clans and tribes began drifting into the southern lands of Brun and Skothar. Neathar clans and tribes began moving into lands already inhabited by the Tangor and Oltec peoples; war was the result as often as not, with the conquered tribes often being absorbed into the conquering tribe. Differentiation and assimilation began, and new tribes evolved over time, with technology developing further, especially war technology. Also at this time the Oltecs learned how to domesticate the dog and the goat, a trick they learned from the Dwarves; this technology quickly spread to the Neathar and thence to the Tangor. The Dwarves had by this time domesticated numerous plants, most importantly Barley, which became the staple of their diet (as bread and beer). Giants began domesticating various creatures, from Polar Bears to Dire Wolves; some of the isolated Giantish groups had contacted their kin by this time, bringing many groups out of the Stone Age into the Bronze Age, including the Kingdom of Gandhar. (Humans were in the Mesolithic stage; Dwarves were in the Chalcolithic stage; Giant groups varied from Mesolithic to Bronze Age).

The Elves in the far south had not changed overly much over the last 2000 years; they lived in a state of harmony with their Faerie brethren, their homeland a veritable paradise. In the west the Enduks continued their stately climb to civilisation, having domesticated various plants and animals (notably potatoes and the Llama); they had also built great stone towers from which they were better able to view the sun and the stars, as astrology had become a major part of their faith by this time. Around this time the Lizard Men rebelled against their Serpentine masters, and the Serpentine Empire fell into anarchy. Groups of renegade Lizard Men formed their own kingdoms throughout northeastern Davania, notably in the "Aryptian Basin", centred around a slowly drying lake. The Nagas had also set up their own kingdom in the far-eastern section of Davania (from "Yasuko Tribal Lands" to the south and east); the Yuan-Ti remained loyal to their Serpentine masters. The Hin, isolated from the rest of the continent by expanding deserts and massive mountains, developed slowly, enjoying a peaceful, near idyllic state. (Elves remained in the Chalcolithic; Enduks were in the Early Bronze Age; the Serpentines remained in the Iron Age, and their rebel Lizard Men servants had fallen mostly into the Stone Age, while the Lizard Men civilisations around Lake Arypt had maintained a Bronze Age technology; the Hin had entered the Chalcolithic).

6000 through 5500 BC

By 6000 BC the Oltecs had begun to use beaten copper and gold, and had domesticated several plants, notably Maize (they learned this process from trade with the Dwarves). The Neathar and Tangor peoples were still hunters and gatherers, living in light plains and forests. Their technology continued to develop apace, however, as the need for more land became even more important as their populations grew. The Tangor had begun to domesticate the Aurochs, and both cultures had domesticated the dog. The Dwarves had discovered bronze (either independently or from the Giants), and with a burgeoning population, many Dwarven clans began migrating out from their ancient homeland. A fair number of Dwarven clans reached Skothar, where they settled in and around the mountains in the north, where the only major tin deposits on the continent were found. The Giants continued their simple existence, now and again warring with the Dwarves who would try to steal their tin, bronze and gold. (The Oltecs had leapt into the Chalcolithic, while the Neathar and Tangor entered the Neolithic; the Dwarves were in the Bronze Age; the Giants continued to remain fairly steady, technology wise, and several groups remained in the Stone Age out of sheer stubbornness).

The Elves continued to be sheltered, protected and nurtured by the Faeries and by the will of Ordana; they did not need to work or suffer. The Enduk civilisation was in full flower; they had begun to build an Empire. By this time the Enduks had spread from the "Adakkian Sound" in the east to the "Far-End Ocean" in the west, and from the "Izondian Deep" in the north to the "Jungles of Pelatan" in the south. They had some contact with the Hin, who by this time had spread from their valleys and hills north of the "Ice Peaks" to the shores of the "Adakkian Sound". The Hin, whose population had become too large for their territory, benefited from the lessons in agriculture and technology that the Enduks taught them. They adopted these techniques just in time to adapt them to defence, for large groups of Lizard Men began drifting in from the east. The Lizard Men civilisation in the "Aryptian Basin" had fallen, as "Lake Arypt" dried up completely in the mid 62nd century BC. The Lizard Men of that region, more advanced than their cousins surrounding them, spread out across the eastern portion of the continent, conquering all the local Lizard Men kingdoms, spreading Bronze Age technology throughout the region. Invading Lizard Men shattered the Kingdom of the Nagas; numerous Naga clans retreated across the "Cestian Land Bridge" to that peninsula, while the remaining Nagas continued to resist the Lizard Men barbarians in their successor kingdoms. A number of the Bronze Age Lizard Men barbarians rejoined the Serpentine Empire, breathing new life into that tottering regime. (The Elves, again, remained in the Chalcolithic; the Enduks and the Hin had entered the Bronze Age; and the Serpentines continued to exist in the Iron Age, while the surrounding Lizard Men and Naga Kingdoms were in the Bronze Age).

5500 through 5000 BC

In 5500 BC Chromatic Dragons, huge powerful beings from another galaxy, arrived on Brun in the lands inhabited by the Dwarves and decimated the Dwarven civilisation (which lay in and around the "Wyrmsteeth Range"). The Chromatic Dragons formed their own Draconian Empire, and began enslaving numerous Neathar clans in the region. The Oltecs, now in the Bronze Age, were continually harassed by the Draconian Empire to the northeast, and their development in the more esoteric elements of culture were subsequently stunted while defence became the most important issue. On Skothar the Dwarven migration had combined with the continuous Neathar drift to cause intense cultural revolution among the Human cultures. The Neathar of Skothar and the Tangor had quickly assimilated the metallurgical and agricultural skills brought to the region by the Dwarves, and as a result whole new societies developed nearly overnight. The Human population of the middle lands of Skothar jumped from the Neolithic straight into the Bronze Age. Several kingdoms sprung up overnight, mostly to the south of the Dwarven lands, where the land was easier to farm and there weren't as many monsters inimical to Humankind. Among the new kingdoms was a small realm known as Thonia. The Thonians were the first Human culture on Skothar to domesticate plants, notably Wheat (like Dwarven Bronze, Barley spread to the Human population, but the Humans also domesticated other plant species). The Dwarves of Brun had been decimated and enslaved by the Chromatic Dragons; the only remaining free Dwarven lands were found on Skothar, to which a very few Dwarves from Brun were able to flee with their tale. The Dwarves of Skothar, hoping to assist their brethren on Brun, began developing new weapon technologies with which to combat the Draconian menace, as the scales of the Dragons were more than a match for the Bronze weaponry of the Dwarves. The Dwarves developed Iron, which was rather more capable than Bronze of dealing with the tough armour of the Dragons. The Giants of Brun, though caught off guard by the Draconian invasion, were more than able to hold their own against the Dragons. Some groups of Giants joined the Draconian Empire, while a larger number left their ancient homelands and immigrated to the Kingdom of Gandhar, which successfully resisted all Draconian attempts at invasion. (The Chromatic Dragons didn't have any technology, as they relied on brute strength and innate magic to get what they wanted; the Dwarves of Brun and the Oltecs were in the Bronze Age, while the Neathar of Brun were in the Neolithic; the northern Neathar of Skothar remained in the Neolithic, as did the southern groups of Tangor, but the Human tribes and kingdoms of the central regions were Bronze Age; the Giants, again, varied from Stone Age to Bronze Age).

The Metallic Dragons, ancient enemies of the Chromatic Dragons, arrived on Davania in the area inhabited by the Enduks. The arrival of the Metallic Dragons, unlike the arrival of the Chromatic Dragons, was not an invasion. Ixion, the Patron Immortal of the Enduks, had been contacted by Odin, the Patron Immortal of the Metallic Dragons, regarding the coming invasion by the Chromatic Dragons. The two Immortals had decided that a union between their peoples would be the best way to keep the Chromatic Dragons from taking over all of Mystara, and thus the Enduks were given Prophesies of the coming of the Metallic Dragons that were to be their allies. The new empire founded by the Metallic Dragons and the Enduks was known as the Golden Empire, for the leadership among the Metallic Dragons, and thus the Empire, was generally in the hands of the Golden Dragons. The Metallic Dragons, unlike their Chromatic enemies, had knowledge of many forms of technologies, and quickly brought the Enduks into the Iron Age, that they might better combat the Chromatic Dragons. The Elves of the south continued to live in their paradise, though the new developments in the world around the Elves had started to make Ordana reconsider the nature of her protection of the Elves. To the east, the Serpentine Empire was on the move again after long millennia of quiet existence. The Lizard Men Legions of the Empire quickly conquered the majority of the independent Lizard Men kingdoms and barbarian tribes, and then went on to gobble up the Naga Kingdoms of the east (though the barbaric Naga clans of the "Cestian Peninsula" were left alone). Thousands of refugee Lizard Men made the difficult trek across the still growing "Meghales Amosses Desert" to the lands of the Hin, where they were initially unwelcome. However, the Enduk allies of the Hin let them know that the Lizard Men would be made welcome in their empire, as servants. Most of the Lizard Men gladly joined the Golden Empire, where though they were second class citizens (slaves, actually), they enjoyed an infinitely better existence than they would have had they remained in the Serpentine Empire. The advance of the Serpentine Empire was halted at the northern edge of the "Meghales Amosses Desert" by an army of Metallic Dragons, Enduks, Lizard Men and Hin. Though the Serpentine Empire had a number of Elder Dragons at its disposal, the costs of battling such an alliance would have been too costly, so the expansion of the Serpentines was halted then and there. (The Elves, again, remained in the Chalcolithic; the Enduks were Iron Age, as were the Hin; the Serpentine Empire was still Iron Age, though many of the conquered Lizard Men remained in the Bronze Age).

5000 through 4500 BC

On Brun, the Draconian Empire continued to grow, pushing the Oltecs deeper and deeper into the forests, hills and mountains. The continuous advance of the Chromatic Dragons kept the Oltecs from developing their civilisation any further, save the addition of Iron Age technology, which they learned from bands of vengeful Dwarves that arrived from Skothar. Assistance came from far to the south: the Golden Empire provided military and magical aid to the Oltecs in order that they could resist the attacks of the Chromatic Dragons. A fair number of Oltec clans fled to Davania with the assistance of the Metallic Dragons and the Enduks. The Neathar slaves of the Chromatic Dragons were not easily broken, and the Chromatic Dragons often had to put down slave uprisings. Many Neathar escaped to the west, where they hid in the deep forests of the northern wilderness of Brun, living a Stone Age existence. The Dwarves of the Draconian Empire were as wilful as the Neathar, though a number of clans became the willing servants of the Chromatic Dragons. Many Dwarven clans escaped underground, where they adapted to a subterranean lifestyle.

On Skothar, the Kingdom of Thonia, which had been the first kingdom to adopt Dwarven iron and learn its secrets, had conquered most of its civilised and barbarian neighbours to become the predominant nation on the continent. In 5000 BC a revolution on the part of the nobility against the Royal Family engendered the creation of the Republic of Thonia, and the first Imperial, or ruling council was elected. The majority of the Thonian population was of a combined Neathar/Tangor extraction; tall, lean build, olive or dusky skin with long, flowing black or brown hair and black or brown eyes. The northern principalities were populated by Neathar folk, while the southern principalities were Tangor in origin. The tribes outside the Empire evolved rapidly through contact with the Empire, either by trade or war.

The Neathar clans of the far north of Skothar had adopted Odin as their Patron Immortal, as he was the enemy of Hel, the Patron Immortal of the Draconian Empire to the west. These clans became known as the Skandaharians, and they became well known for their seamanship, for they controlled the Skandaharian Sea and raided the southlands via the North Sea, the Black Sea and the Western Sea (Skandaharian Sea = uppermost landlocked sea on Skothar, North Sea = "Sea of Brun", Black Sea = southernmost landlocked sea on Skothar, Western Sea = "Alphatian Sea"). Though they were mighty on the sea the power of the Skandaharians was much reduced on land, as they continued to live their clannish existence, and their military tactics remained barbaric. Thus, they never conquered any lands, merely raided.

The lands between the Skandaharians and the Thonian Empire remained a region of unwholesome swamps, forests, plains and wastes, home to dozens of primitive, nomadic and barbarian Neathar tribes. These included the barbaric Afridhi and the nomadic Peshwah, as well as the ancient Dwarven realm of the Regent of the Mines. The Northern Marches, as it was known by the Thonians, was never well mapped or settled during this period, as the riches of the south had beckoned to the Thonian masters. The border between the Empire and the Northlands was set at the Taff River, and there it stood throughout the period of the First and Second Republics.

The Tangor of the far south, from the "Bellissarian Peninsula" in the west to the great mountains east of "Tangor Bay" had adopted no overall identity, and were quite diverse. Each clan, tribe or kingdom was separate and distinct, and the variety of cultures throughout the Tangor region was astonishing (this included the original Karimari Peoples, now found in the Ulimwengu Reserve on the Serpent Peninsula). From the beginnings of their empire, the Thonians coveted the rich spices, mines and pastures of the Tangor, and continually invaded their territories. While the Thonians initially had easy victories against the disunited tribes of the Tangor, they were eventually beaten back by alliances of the various tribes, who came together in the face of a common enemy. No great empires ever formed amongst the Tangor, however, and much like the Skandaharians they remained disunited.

Far to the south Ordana had decided that the childhood of the Elves was over. As the world around them had advanced, and the Elves had not, it was decided that the Elves would be free to live and survive on their own. They were brought into the Iron Age literally overnight, through the magic of the Faeries and the Immortal Ordana. Allied with the Golden Empire to the north, the various Elven kingdoms began a meteoric rise rivalled only by that of the Thonians of Skothar. The Elves spread out from their forested lands in the south to the "Jungles of Pelatan" in the north. Many clans migrated far and wide; several clans even settled far to the north, on Skothar, in the forests of the Northern Marches. They brought with them several clans of Halflings, who settled in the meadows and fields. Both groups travelled to the lands near to Thonia that they might keep tabs on the developments in the Human kingdoms of that region, and report back to the Golden Empire and the Elven Realms.

The Golden Empire grew in might and power. It assisted the Oltecs of Brun in whatever manner possible, as they were bearing the brunt of the aggression of the Draconian Empire. Numerous Oltec immigrants swelled the ranks of the population of the Empire; these peoples quickly adopted the language and trappings of Enduk civilisation. Many of these people settled among the Hin to the west, where they assisted them in their battles against the incursions of the Lizard Men of the Serpentine Empire. The Serpentine Empire continued to send war parties into the lands of the Hin, mostly for the amusement of the Serpentine Masters. Once again, hemmed in by the Golden Empire and the seas, the Serpentine Empire began rotting, and fell into decadence. Late in this period the Empire fell into a minor civil war; the losing side gathered together as much wealth and magic as possible and fled in one of the ancient Flying Vessels.

(By this point, pretty much everyone, save a few fringe groups like the Neathar of Brun and several Tangor tribes of Skothar, was in the Iron Age. Those who weren't were usually quickly conquered by other kingdoms).

4500 through 4000 BC

By this time the advances of the Draconian Empire had been halted by the combined efforts of the Golden Empire and the Oltec tribesmen. At this point Hel decided that the Chromatic Dragons needed a servitor race that was more tractable, or at least more capable of being intimidated than the Human Neathar, and that were definitely more prolific than the Dwarves. Thus, she created the Beastmen, a wild, chaotic race which did not breed true. The Beastmen were a thoroughly vile race, created from the reincarnated souls of evil beings. They readily cooperated with their masters, the Chromatic Dragons, and the remaining Neathar and Dwarven slaves of the Draconian Empire were either slain or escaped to join their brethren elsewhere.

Three great hordes of Beastmen were immediately sent out against the enemies of the Draconian Empire. The largest was sent to the south against the Oltecs; the second largest, against the Neathar; and the smallest was sent across the "Frosthaven Land Bridge", straight into the lands of the Skandaharians, the followers of Odin. Whole clans were sent into the tunnels of the Dwarves, to root them out and destroy them. Great slaughter occurred across the Northern Continent. The Oltecs were again pushed back by the Beastmen invasion; their very existence at stake, the Golden Empire sent massive reinforcements, and the Beastmen invasion was halted, though the Oltecs had lost a lot of territory. The horde sent against the Neathar was chewed up in the deep forests, as the Neathar had adopted guerrilla tactics; already semi-nomadic, it was easy for the Neathar to use their knowledge of the land to their advantage. The survivors of that Beastmen horde decided not to return to the Draconian Empire, and instead they retreated to the north and west, to settle in the "Borean Valley". The last horde was continually harried by the Skandaharians, who viewed the Beastmen as worthy opponents, and would not leave the Beastmen alone even when they tried to escape. Eventually, a major force of the Beastmen fled into the Northlands, where they settled far away from any of the human lands. Another force fled into the lands of the Afridhi, where they were utterly extirpated, and thus the mountains of the Afridhi earned the name "Goblin Kush", or "Goblin Killer" (the Beastmen were known to the Thonians as Goblins, or sometimes as Orcs). The Beastmen that had been send into the Dwarven delvings had no more success than their brethren; few returned to the surface.

The Thonian Empire was also invaded by several Beastmen hordes, which caused the collapse of the Second Republic. When order was finally restored to the Empire, and the Third Republic firmly in place, it was decided that the Taff was not a suitable border, and that more manpower was needed to keep the barbarians and monsters from howling out of the north. The new borders were to be the Misagua River in the west and the Black Sea to the north; a wall, known as Joloxon's Wall after the Emperor who had it built, was built across the narrowest point of land between the North Sea and the Black Sea (the "Hadrian's Wall" of the Thonians, it came to be known as "Joloxon's Folly" after that region sank and turned into the Shallows in 4040 BC). The opportunities in the North were many, and though colonists migrated in moderate numbers, the Thonian lords still didn't feel that the North was being populated quickly enough. Thus, many subjects became the unwilling colonists of the Northlands, sent there upon being convicted of any minor crime, or even on trumped up charges. Slowly the north became peopled with Thonians, who came into conflict with the native Neathar, Dwarf, Elf, Halfling and Beastmen populations.

Early in this period a strange Wizard built a city high in the Superstition Mountains; he named this city Starport, and the realm he built around it the Duchy of the Peaks. All manner of vile men and women were attracted to the wealth he offered for their services. Strange magics and decadent entertainments were the rule in Starport, such that even the Skandaharians chose to avoid the realm more often than they chose to raid it. Wealth continued to pour out of the city, seemingly in unlimited amounts. Many Wizards were trained in the city, and they spread across the wilds of the Northlands, where they settled in their towers and conducted vile experiments.

Time passed in the Northlands, and more land came under cultivation by the Thonians. The city of Maus was built, as was Blackmoor and Vestfold, and eventually even the lands across the Misagua River were settled by outcast Thonians. While the Northlands were still hardly more than borderlands, the lords of the Thonian Empire felt that they were once again safe from the threats of barbarians and monsters, and again the Thonians turned inward, and their empire began to crumble from within. Peace reigned for several hundred years as the empire festered in its own quietude. Then, near the end of that period, the Northlands began to experience unusual events, strange occurrences and violent migrations with increasing regularity.

First came a coup in the Duchy of the Peaks in 4050 BC; the old Duke was overthrown and fled to parts unknown. A steady stream of claimants to his throne disappeared in coup after coup, until one held onto the throne, and peace again settled on the realm. The wealth of the Duchy had apparently disappeared with the old Duke, as the new Duke resorted to renting out his armies as mercenaries in order to generate the funds needed to maintain the extravagant lifestyle of the city of Starport. Then, in 4040 BC, the lands north of the city of Maus began sinking into the seas, while at the same time a spur of land began rising from the western bay of the Black Sea. Shortly thereafter the master of that noxious land, the Egg of Coot, announced that he intended to bring the entirety of the Northlands under his dominion; his claim was backed up the incredible power of his magics and his strange technologies. During this period the Duchy of Ten successfully defended itself from the advances of the Empire, setting the stage for further rebellion in the north. Shortly thereafter the Skandaharian raids increased several fold, as their chances at raiding Maus, Blackmoor and Vestfold doubled with the sinking of the Shallows. And then, to top everything off, the Afridhi began their vicious journey to the Empire, conquering land after land, with no assistance from the Empire forthcoming. The entire North exploded into rebellion.

Nothing changed drastically on the Southern Continent during this period. The Golden Empire continued its support of the Oltecs on Brun. The Elves of the Kingdom of Evergrun rose to rule the entire southern lands of the Elves, and declared themselves an Empire (which they had been from the beginning save in name). The Elves of the "Jungles of Pelatan" joined the empire as the colony of Grunland. The Hin, allies of the Golden Empire and the Empire of Evergrun, formed a confederation between their various kingdoms, baronies, shires and republics, called the United Hin Dominions. The Serpentine Empire took little note, as it had fallen even deeper into self-absorbed debauchery and xenophobia.

This was rather long yeah, but I recommend reading the whole thing at:
http://www.pandius.com/ageblack.html

Havard

[Yaztromo]

It is a really epic story, encompassing many other stories... thanks for flagging it!