The Shadowfront Incursion Begins

In the year 4300 BGW, the veil between light and shadow frayed at the edges of Lumispire. The Duskborn—exiled during The First Elven Schism—had not simply withdrawn into the depths of Draidiff. Hidden beneath the roots of the world, they bent shadow and stone to their will, crafting magic that diverged far from the traditions of the High Elves.

The culmination of this dark artistry was the birth of the Naerdrith—“Cursed Walkers”—twisted beings forged from shadow magic and siphoned leystone energy.

The First Corruptions

The Naerdrith were not summoned in a grand ritual, nor did they rise from ancient pits. Their creation began subtly, as Duskborn arcanists drew upon the leylines surrounding Lumispire, warping the natural flow of magic to feed their growing power. Over time, fractures formed along the surface, bleeding corrupted energy into the land.

Shadows along the outer woods of Lumispire grew longer, and silver-barked groves withered under the weight of unseen forces. The first sightings of the Naerdrith came not from soldiers, but from wanderers and farmers who vanished along the borders—returning days later, changed beyond recognition.

These early victims, now hollowed and bound by dark magic, became the first of the Drith—mindless extensions of the Duskborn’s will.

"They returned with no words on their lips, only silence, and shadows at their backs." – Aelion Starflare, Mooncrisp Grove

The Shadowfront is Born

As the Naerdrith multiplied, the land itself shifted. The forests south of Lumispire blackened, their roots curling as if recoiling from the corruption. This stretch of twisted land became known as the Naerfront—the Cursed Border, though in time, the High Elves would call it simply the Shadowfront.

The Drith prowled the Shadowfront, drawn to ley line fractures like moths to flame. They siphoned magic from the land, draining life from forests, rivers, and even the stars reflected in the pools of Lumispire’s outer glades.

At first, the High Council of Lumispire dismissed the threat. The Duskborn, bound by exile, would not dare to challenge the peace of their banishment—or so they believed.

The Fall of Elen’drithil

In 4298 BGW, a Moonwarden patrol discovered the truth.

The village of Elen’drithil—nestled along Lumispire’s southern border—fell silent beneath the rising moon. When the Moonwardens arrived, they found the villagers standing motionless beneath the trees—their eyes sealed by veins of black thorns, their spirits hollowed and consumed by the Naerdrith.

It was the first open sign that the Duskborn had extended their hand too far.

The High Elves, recognizing the danger, mobilized their forces. The Shadowfront was declared a boundary, and the Moonwardens stationed along its edges were ordered to contain the Drith at all costs.

War Beneath the Surface

Though the conflict never erupted into full-scale war, the High Elves and the Duskborn engaged in a bitter struggle beneath the boughs of Lumispire’s outer lands. This clandestine conflict became known as the Shadow War, a silent battle fought in the spaces between light and dark.

For the Duskborn, the Naerdrith were not merely weapons, but a manifestation of their defiance—a living reminder to the High Elves that exile had not broken them. For the High Elves, the Naerdrith were a threat to the Weave itself, a corruption that could not be allowed to spread.

"The Drith do not march like armies of men—they spread like roots beneath the world, and by the time we see them bloom, the forest has already died." – Elenion Starleaf

The Unending Vigil

By 4280 BGW, the Shadowfront had grown into a permanent scar along the border of Lumispire, a place where the light of the sun flickered but never fully reclaimed the land. Though the High Elves reinforced the front, the Drith remained, lurking in the edges of the Weave.

Even now, the Naerdrith prowl beneath the surface, and the Shadowfront stands as a silent reminder that the Duskborn's reach extends far beyond the shadows of Draidiff.