The Great War
While the sudden deadly fury of the Great Cataclysm caught most of the world completely off guard, it did not happen by random chance but rather came as the cumulative result of large numbers of dangerous actions. Most scholars agree that everything initiated with the onset of the Great War. Started by the Movorian Empire's surprise attack on the Kishari Empire, a chain of events began that spiraled out of control and ultimately lead to the vast devastation of large parts of Raios.
The events that led to this disaster have their roots almost 5 years prior to the Great War when the Movorian emperor Senurek II met an untimely end. Deadly assassins crept into the emperor’s palace during the dead of night, murdering him and his whole family. Escaping undetected, no one ever determined who was behind this tragic event, though many blamed the powerful Order of Ushtun’myal who had been actively engaged in power struggles within the empire. Months of upheaval ensued as a series of contenders attempted to take Senerek’s place. As claimants to the throne began to die mysterious deaths, Senerek’s nephew Menkareb, having secured the Order of Ushtun’myal’s backing, finally took the throne and managed to hold onto it.
Immediately after assuming power, Menkareb began to blame the assassination on agents from the Kishari Empire, increasing enmity between these two great powers. While the hostility simmered, Menkareb quietly build up his military forces in preparation for war. Creating large numbers of new infantry units in remote areas, the secret buildup went unnoticed. Menkareb also spent lavishly on large numbers of war chariots, giving his army the capability to swiftly strike the enemy with shocking force. He also integrated significant numbers of war mages into the army.
The speedy Movorian onslaught continued northward, meeting little meaningful resistance. Panic set in as poorly defended cities fell one after the other. With their southern lands lost, the Kishari Empire attempted to rally by hastily assembling armies in Mas and Aklon. However, poorly trained and led, these troops proved no match for the highly disciplined Movori army who used aggressive tactics and devastating magic to decimate their enemies. Frontline Kishari defenses collapsed, and a poorly organized retreat turned into an absolute route. Things went so badly that the Kishari Empire found themselves unable to make another defensive stand until the Movorian army had reached all the way into northern Aklon.
These horrible actions prevented Chuulonian troops from redeploying and resulted in little aid making its way toward the endangered Chuulonian capital. With only a single garrison to defend the city and the emperor, the situation looked bleak.
Feeling relatively insulated from human affairs in their island empire and protected by a large and powerful navy, the Valmyrri maintained a policy of neutrality. While they strongly disliked the Movorian Empire, they managed to stay neutral for the first part of the war. However, the arrival of news that Movorian mages had gated a Terrasque into the Chuulonian countryside brought this policy of refrainment to an end. The releasing of a creature of such terrifying evil and unstoppable might finally provoked the Valmyrrian Empire to action.
An order went out to assemble the war fleet, the most powerful in all of Raios. Several weeks later, by order of the Emporer, the full might of the Valmyrrian navy sailed westward. The fleet include 8 dragonships, the largest and most powerful battleships in all of Raios, known for their ability to do long ranged attacks on enemy ships. Also joining in were 12 griffonships which each carried a complement of griffon riding war mages used for scouting and for attacking enemy ships.
The ships of the Valmyrrian navy proved far too powerful for the Movorians to handle and within weeks their once proud navy found themselves decimated. Next the Valmyrri set out to blockade all Movorian ports. This prevented any supplies or reinforcements from reaching the war zones from sea. This proved disastrous for the large Movorian army approaching the capital. Dependent on resupply from the sea, their troops began to run out of food just as they reached the land outside the capital.
Meanwhile, back in the west, Movoria seemed poised on the brink of victory. The Kishari Empire’s last remaining troops capable of defending the capital consisted of only two units of elite imperial guard infantry, along with several units of infantry that had been hastily assembled from the remnants of decimated infantry units. Against the large Movorian army with its war mages, the Kishari stood little chance of prevailing. With the capital surrounded, the capture of the Kishari emperor and the surrender of the Kishari Empire seemed imminent.
Disaster struck. No one knows what final action tipped the scales to begin a runaway nightmare. Somewhere, perhaps one spell too many brought the end. Whatever it was a large temporal rift ripped open and blasted forth such powerful energies that it forever transformed Raios.
The events that led to this disaster have their roots almost 5 years prior to the Great War when the Movorian emperor Senurek II met an untimely end. Deadly assassins crept into the emperor’s palace during the dead of night, murdering him and his whole family. Escaping undetected, no one ever determined who was behind this tragic event, though many blamed the powerful Order of Ushtun’myal who had been actively engaged in power struggles within the empire. Months of upheaval ensued as a series of contenders attempted to take Senerek’s place. As claimants to the throne began to die mysterious deaths, Senerek’s nephew Menkareb, having secured the Order of Ushtun’myal’s backing, finally took the throne and managed to hold onto it.
Immediately after assuming power, Menkareb began to blame the assassination on agents from the Kishari Empire, increasing enmity between these two great powers. While the hostility simmered, Menkareb quietly build up his military forces in preparation for war. Creating large numbers of new infantry units in remote areas, the secret buildup went unnoticed. Menkareb also spent lavishly on large numbers of war chariots, giving his army the capability to swiftly strike the enemy with shocking force. He also integrated significant numbers of war mages into the army.
The War Begins
Four years and seven months after assuming the throne, Menkareb decided that the time was right to begin his secret plan of conquest. Over a period of several months, he ordered large numbers of his highly trained infantry and chariot units to Movoria’s vassal state of Khem which sat next to the Kishari Empire’s southeastern most province of Nebaru. Failing to detect this buildup, the Kishari Empire found themselves completely unprepared for the Movorian army’s swift assault. Employing highly trained infantry units that contained large numbers of chariots and war mages, the Movorian Empire’s surprise assault overwhelmed the poorly trained and unprepared Kishari defenders. Within days, the Kishari army stationed in Nebaru found themselves hopelessly routed before they could mount any kind of unified defense. This shocking turn of events left the entire southern frontier of the Kishari Empire open and defenseless.The speedy Movorian onslaught continued northward, meeting little meaningful resistance. Panic set in as poorly defended cities fell one after the other. With their southern lands lost, the Kishari Empire attempted to rally by hastily assembling armies in Mas and Aklon. However, poorly trained and led, these troops proved no match for the highly disciplined Movori army who used aggressive tactics and devastating magic to decimate their enemies. Frontline Kishari defenses collapsed, and a poorly organized retreat turned into an absolute route. Things went so badly that the Kishari Empire found themselves unable to make another defensive stand until the Movorian army had reached all the way into northern Aklon.
The War Widens
In the east, trouble stirred as the Chuulonian Empire, fearing the strong might of Movoria’s military, planned a preemptive attack on Movorian shipping. Worried about reports of Movorian troops massing near seaports along the northeastern coast of Centakus, Chuulonia hoped that a surprise naval attack would prevent the landing of an invasion force. Several large naval engagements took place, but none proved decisive as the much larger Chuulonian navy fought the smaller Movorian fleet to a draw. Sensing a chance to gain the upper hand, Movoria successfully landed a large army south of the Chuulonian capital. With their navy tied up in a battle, the landing succeeded and Movoria’s army marched relatively unimpeded through the countryside towards the unprepared capital. In addition to the invasion, Movoria also landed specialized teams of saboteurs along the western Chuulonian coastline who began to induce panic and chaos by summoning evil outsiders. Long outlawed, these banned tactics of war went horribly askew when the large number of gateways to other planes began to weaken the planar fabric, resulting in out-of-control temporal rifts randomly opening up in the countryside. Creatures of unimaginable evil found themselves suddenly able to enter this realm, causing widespread fear.These horrible actions prevented Chuulonian troops from redeploying and resulted in little aid making its way toward the endangered Chuulonian capital. With only a single garrison to defend the city and the emperor, the situation looked bleak.
The Changing Tide of War
For thousands of years, the Valmyrrian Empire, ever distrustful of humans, steadfastly maintained a policy of non-involvement in human affairs. Though willing to engage in trade with the human nations that have sprung up all over Raios, the Valmyrri rarely chose to involve themselves in the human’s constant political machinations and military squabbles.Feeling relatively insulated from human affairs in their island empire and protected by a large and powerful navy, the Valmyrri maintained a policy of neutrality. While they strongly disliked the Movorian Empire, they managed to stay neutral for the first part of the war. However, the arrival of news that Movorian mages had gated a Terrasque into the Chuulonian countryside brought this policy of refrainment to an end. The releasing of a creature of such terrifying evil and unstoppable might finally provoked the Valmyrrian Empire to action.
An order went out to assemble the war fleet, the most powerful in all of Raios. Several weeks later, by order of the Emporer, the full might of the Valmyrrian navy sailed westward. The fleet include 8 dragonships, the largest and most powerful battleships in all of Raios, known for their ability to do long ranged attacks on enemy ships. Also joining in were 12 griffonships which each carried a complement of griffon riding war mages used for scouting and for attacking enemy ships.
The ships of the Valmyrrian navy proved far too powerful for the Movorians to handle and within weeks their once proud navy found themselves decimated. Next the Valmyrri set out to blockade all Movorian ports. This prevented any supplies or reinforcements from reaching the war zones from sea. This proved disastrous for the large Movorian army approaching the capital. Dependent on resupply from the sea, their troops began to run out of food just as they reached the land outside the capital.
Impending Disaster
Fearing that their invasion of Chuulonia could soon fail, powerful Movori wizards, resorted to a desperate action by performing dark ritual magics that caused a tearing of the planar fabric of Raios. Large temporal rifts began randomly opening throughout western Chuulonia. This caused widespread destruction and the fall of all governmental control on close to half of the country as vast numbers of outsiders poured through these open portals and began slaughtering all that they encountered.Meanwhile, back in the west, Movoria seemed poised on the brink of victory. The Kishari Empire’s last remaining troops capable of defending the capital consisted of only two units of elite imperial guard infantry, along with several units of infantry that had been hastily assembled from the remnants of decimated infantry units. Against the large Movorian army with its war mages, the Kishari stood little chance of prevailing. With the capital surrounded, the capture of the Kishari emperor and the surrender of the Kishari Empire seemed imminent.
Disaster struck. No one knows what final action tipped the scales to begin a runaway nightmare. Somewhere, perhaps one spell too many brought the end. Whatever it was a large temporal rift ripped open and blasted forth such powerful energies that it forever transformed Raios.