History of Mahdran

Historical Background of Mahdran, mostly known.

Era of the Alfar – At the beginning of recorded history, all beings were under the rule of the Alfar. Their empire spread to almost every mass of land on Mahdran. They set up the first magic colleges and formed the first elemental affinities. As far as Mankind is concerned, it is the beginning of history. No one can be certain if Mankind was a enslaved by the Alfar or if Man was just a servant. However, it is mostly assured that the Wolfen had become and enslaved race at that point in time, since Man has nothing recorded to do with that. The ending of the Alfar is fairly well known throughout Mankind and is a story commonly told to prevent future generations from repeating any sorts of errors. The story is as follows:

Fall of the Alfar: The Alfar, in the eons of rulling Mahdran, had become spoiled with their existence. They began taken their long life spans and their relationships with the Skylords for granted and demanded access to the Tower of All. The knowledge that was passed down from the Skylords was no longer enough to appears the Alfar nobles, so the Alfar declared war on the Skylords and the Realm of Heaven. The Skylords, in their wisdom, blessed Man with the ability to use magic and the enlightenment to rise up against the Alfar. The Skylords also began the first tradition of bonding with Man. A century long war ensued which resulted in the Alfar being driven to the Island of All. There, the Alfar were able to create enough magical wars and the Great Wall and the bloody war came to a standstill. In order to appease the Skylords, the Alfar surrendered and agreed to exist only on the Island of All. After the war, the four newly appointed leaders of the elemental colleges created the Treaties of Man with the Skylords. Thus were the founders:

Fire College: Archmage Xin Lu Shou
Earth College: Archmage Aluran Stone
Water College: Archmage Samantha Levine
Air College: Archmage Tanus Windrider

Skylord: Oben Tahn Vallus Moor

The Treaties of Man, now stored in the Tower of All, are as follows (According to Man):

Man agrees from now until eternity to respect the will of the elements and never harness the power of magic or the gifts of the Skylords to claim any authority over the Realm of Heaven or the Tower of All. The Tower of All is to be used by all Man freely. All Man will respect the Skylords and not use their gifts for wanton violence, profit, or any unworthy endeavor

Skylords agree to remain out of any rule of Man on Mahdran. The Skylords will gift unto man, five children a cycle. Those children will be gifted to one man per college and one man of the Tower of All. Oh Mahdran, those children are to learn to respect humanity and serve mankind for good. Skylords may withdraw their gifts if the actions of Man violate their agreement.

With the Alfar driven back and forsaken by the Skylords, the era of Man could begin. Unfortunately, little history was left behind, even as far as the Colleges are concerned

Era of Man – The Era of Man began with the Treaties of Man. The Wall the Alfar erected around the Island of All kept the two races separate. Around the four elemental colleges, nations began. Those with the affinity for the elements and those with the gifts of the Skylords began to take rule of their surrounding area. Throughout centuries nations continued to expand as Man began to adjust to His new found freedom. Once borders became too close together, wars began.

Oceancrest, Nation of Water – The Family Oceancrest was one of the most powerful families established after the fall of the Alfar. Their Kin showed exceptional affinity towards Water Magic along with receiving the first gifts of the Skylords allowed them to secure a fairly large Merchant presence. Over the course of time, common folk began to flock to Oceancrest establishments. Typhoon Oceancrest, the founder of the nation, was an ambitious man and rallied his family to begin absorbing land and island. With some well placed settlements, they were able to amass a very large fleet. Surrounding smaller settlements began to join the Oceancrest banner. The nation itself was ruled by a leading member of the Oceancrest Family. The Capital itself is called Oceancrest and consumes the entire island of Oceancrest. The college of Water exists on that site and has prevented the nation from falling during the Great Wars.

Mordenkran, Nation of Earth – High Counselor Morden, Archmage of the Earth College founded Mordenkran by accepting the Highland folk surrounding the remains of the Alfar’s great city. Together, those Lowlanders left behind and the existing Highlanders were able to build resemblance of a nation. The College of Earth taught the Highlanders the ability to shape and form metal and with that grew a large industry. What first started out as a small nation began to grow rapidly as more people began to flock towards the large mountain of Mordenkran. Iron was forged into swords at an alarming pace and the nation quickly gained the reputation of having the best craftsmen in the land. Along with that came untold wealth. The government had become a free elected counsel by the time the Great Wars hit, Mordenkran having a good deal to do with the sparking of that war, but declaring an embargo of weapons to other nations.

Ember, Nation of Fire – The college of Fire, seated along the base of a volcano in the field of glass began to use their magic for destructive purposes. At first, the managed to conquer scattered civilizations around them, but then the draw of power began to attract other power seeking individuals to the cause. Dace Yule, an Arch Mage, started a new school which combined the learning of the College of Fire but was strictly combat-based. With the forming of the Yule College, membership began to grow and graduates became members of the Army of Ember, one of the strongest fighting forces the land has ever seen. Ember at the time was a nation ruled by a strong military class.

High Tower, Nation of Air – High Tower was formed around the mountain baring the College of air and quickly became a fortress. Due to the terrain surrounding the school, several of the civilizations flocked to the area simply to feel safe. The tower itself was formed with a combination of Air and Earth magic, an endeavor that brought the College of Earth and the College of Air somewhat close together. High Tower is generally regarded as unremarkable as far as history is concerned. When the Great War began, they fought with Mordenkran.

Great War – It is unsure, exactly, how the Great War started. Some like to assume that it’s the opposite affinities at work, guiding the elemental schools towards their opposite (Fire v Air, Water v Earth) or it was simply the greed of Man. The war was much shorter than the Alfar Wars. However, it was just as important. After a decade of fighting and hundreds of thousands of deaths, the Skylords suddenly deemed the war as a violation of the Treaties of Man, since the desired outcome of the war was control of the land. Thus, the Skylords gifted unto man sacrificed themselves and ended their gifts, leaving each nation significantly weaker. The Skylords then vowed not to return for two hundred years. The Alfar, well aware of what was happening with the Skylords, decided at that point to violate their agreement with the Skylords and attack Mankind. This resulted in the four nations teaming together for their very survival. Was resulted was the final definition between the Alfar and Mankind. Mankind had learned much in the centuries and was able to fight off the Alfar, but at a great cost. Hundreds of Thousands died and nations crumbled. What resulted was a truce between Mankind and the Alfar, simply reinforcing the separation of the two. The truce was uneasy at best and drove the Alfar back to the Island of All. However, a few Alfar colonies managed to maintain their independent outside of the Island of All.

Era of Sorrow- The Era of Sorrow began when the Worshippers of Heaven demanded that the Colleges and Nations no longer had anything to do with each other. Thus, All of the elemental nations became no more. Although the nations still exist to an extent, they are no longer affiliated with the College. This is agreement is called ‘The Elemental Treaty’. It was created to prevent another war. At the beginning of the Era of Sorrow and believed to be the result of the war and the disappearance of the Skylords, Untamed Nature began appearing throughout Mahdran. The Untamed, as it is called, began producing creatures and powers out of the norm. The Druids, which started as a cult and has grown into a respected magic affiliation, started at the beginning of the Era of Sorrow. Many smaller nations began to crop up after the Great War.