The Years of Darkness

The Years of Darkness began as a subtle shadow at the edges of Lumispire’s borders, a distant and faint disruption that, at first, seemed no more threatening than an unusual shift in the wind. But the High Elves of Lumispire, ever attuned to the delicate threads of magic woven through the land, could sense something unnatural stirring beyond the veil of their understanding.

It started with a faint dimming of the ley lines. The vast reservoirs of arcane power that had long flowed like rivers beneath the surface of The Ancient Reach grew erratic, as if strained by an unseen force. In the early years, these fluctuations were minor—a failed ward here, a flickering spell there. Yet the elves could not ignore the growing weight pressing down upon their city.

At the heart of this creeping darkness lay the Crown of Dominion , forged by Vareil Dusktide in 3187 BGW. Though the Crown had not yet reached its full potential, the dark god Vyrakath’s influence whispered through its spires, drawing power from the ley lines to fuel its corruptionn lay hidden beneath the mountains of Draidiff, deep within the sanctuaries of the Duskborn, but even concealed, its presence gnawed at the arcane threads holding the land together.

The Failing Leylines

By 1440 BGW, the first ley line fractures were recorded near the Hollowwood, where the Drith, monstrous beings born from shadow magic and corrupted leystone energy, began to stir once more . Initiald as remnants of the First Elven Schism, these disturbances were localized and fleeting. The Starwardens of Lumispire reinforced the leylines through ancient rituals, and for a time, the city remained protected.

But the fractures continued to spread. Each year, the ley lines dimmed a little more, and the magical brilliance that once illuminated Lumispire’s spires began to wane. Spells that had long been second nature to elven arcanists faltered without warning. Druids reported strange silences in the groves where once the hum of magic had been a constant companion. The flow of arcane energy felt thin, forcing even the most adept practitioners to weave their spells with greater effort.

Encounters with the Drith

By 1410 BGW, the Drith grew bolder. They were no longer confined to the deep outskirts of the Hollowwood. Hunting parties sent to patrol the borders of Lumispire returned with grim accounts—blackened shadows moving through the trees, beasts whose faces twisted with arcane scars, and creeping masses of dark tendrils that seemed to drain the very life from the ground they crossed.

Though the High Elves mobilized to drive the Drith back, it became clear that their victories were fleeting. Each year, the Drith advanced further, reaching closer to the outskirts of the capital.

Efforts to destroy them only delayed the inevitable. By 1400 BGW, Drith incursions had become frequent near the southern edges of Lumispire. Farmers abandoned their land as strange mists swallowed the fields, and towns once teeming with elven life were left to decay, reclaimed by shadow.

The Waning of Lumispire

In the final years of this long descent, the darkness no longer lingered at the fringes—it pressed directly against Lumispire’s outermost districts.

Attempts to push back the encroachment still held for a time, but even the brightest of the Leystones that once stabilized the land began to fail. High Arcanists held long vigils at the base of Starheart, the First Leystone, hoping to stave off its collapse, but they warned that the city’s defenses would not hold forever.

Despite the growing dread, the elves refused to abandon Lumispire. Their confidence in their mastery of magic blinded them to the slow truth that the Crown’s influence was spreading, and that this darkness was not merely a natural force—it was a harbinger.

By 1395 BGW, the ley lines beneath Lumispire shattered. The Drith surged through the cracks, and the city’s defenses buckled under the weight of a force the elves could no longer contain. The Fall of Lumispire marked the end of the Years of Darkness, but in truth, the fall had begun centuries earlier, with the forging of the Crown of Dominion.

Legacy

The Years of Darkness stand as a grim testament to the perils of unchecked ambition and the slow unraveling of even the most powerful civilizations. Lumispire’s fate was not sealed in a single night but stretched over centuries, a creeping decay that could not be reversed. The surviving elves fled to Mountainrun, carrying with them the weight of their failure, forever haunted by the shadow that had consumed their home.