The Crimson Decade

Three centuries of growing religious strife within the Empire Of Great Mountains would come to a head in the year 672. Cynan, a predominantly Gnomic region of the Empire, was long a thorn in the side of the Dwarven administration. Even before the Schism, the Gnomes would frequently rebel against their Dwarven masters, but it was nothing major. However, the Gnomes (as well as the Centaurs, a similarly rebellious people) took to Commonalism quickly, sympathizing with its naturalistic and individualistic tenets.   While the Empire would be forced to tolerate the Common Faith, it did all it could to discourage it. Soldiers and Holy Orders would often harass Commonalists, but many laymen would do the same. Due to their small stature and friendly disposition, Gnomes would often become the target of such bullying, and in time, it did not become safe for Gnomes to journey into the other Imperial Provinces. While most Gnomes took this with a traditional Gnomic smile, making the best of what they had, others became jaded. Those along the Nevern River often bore the brunt of this discrimination, as sailors bringing their ships in and out of the Sickle Sea would often take the time to pick on the little folk.   By the 600s E.D., a charismatic Gnome by the name of Eifion Gower o Bivens would pick up a large following in his home region of Nevern, preaching a very unique form of Commonalism, with its denomination being the "Temple of Nevernia". Gower o Bivens believed that the only way to protect his race was for them to isolate themselves and devote their lives to the worship of the Gods. Sin, liberal ideas, heresy, and music were not to be allowed in Conclavite shires, but their most shocking tenet of faith is this: that the Trinitists are secret pagans who do not even worship the Divine Trinity.   Obviously, this is ludicrous and has no basis in historical fact, but the downtrodden Gnomes of the Nevern region ate it up. This blatant lie would enrage the Trinitists, as well as most Commonalists, as this outlandish theology made all of the denominations look bad by association. After decades of pleading with the Mountain Emperor, the Order of the Acolytes of the Holy Martyr was finally given the go-ahead to lead a raid on a Conclavite temple on (admittedly trumped up) charges of treason.   The raid would be conducted on a large temple outside the large Conclavite village of Pwll. Mounted upon llamas, the Acolytes would ride into the temple, but by the time they arrived, all they saw was the dog-carts of the Monks riding off into the valley. The Acolytes, with lanterns held high, would give pursuit, but they would lose the Monks in the darkness and hard terrain. For days, the Acolytes would scour the countryside in search of the Monks, but they would gain a lead before long. Apparently, the monks had found refuge in the home of a local Ealdorman (the ruler of a shire). The issue was, however, the shire this Ealdorman ruled over was not a Conclavite one, most of its citizens belonged to the Temples of the Valleys and Steppes. This worried the Acolytes not, as they were all Commonalists to them, and they pounded on the door of the Ealdorman, demanding he give up the Monks.   Rhobert Ellis had been the Ealdorman of the shire for a long time, and he had never turned away those in need before. He opened the door and told the Dwarven soldiers straight to their faces that he was not harboring any fugitives. For this, one of the Acolytes unsheathed his war hammer and crushed the Gnome's skull. The monks would be found soon after and would be tied up in the house, dying when the Acolytes would make it collapse with magic.   News of this horrible crime would spread throughout Cynan, and it would prove to be the spark the powderkeg Province needed. Conclavites and Valleyites would stand side-by-side to run Dwarven officials out of town. Confident that the time had finally come for a Gnomic flag to shine above Cynan once more, many Reeves (town leaders) would assembly militias to fight off the inevitable Dwarven advance, with many of their Ealdorman superiors coming to their aide. As predicted, a small Dwarven force did descend down the mountains to crush this little rebellion, but the Gnomes were ready for them. It is common knowledge that, in proper warfare, Gnomes are easily crushed. However, they are great at fighting dirty.   As the Dwarven soldiers marched into Cynan (and Dinorwig, another Gnomic region) they were assailed by Gnomic militias. Arrows appeared out of what seemed to be thin air, roads were torn up and rendered unpassable by wheel, and supplies would burst into flame in the middle of the night. While these were known problems in previous rebellions, the Imperial Army had not yet devised any strategies to deal with them, and this was not like previous rebellions. This was a mass movement devoted to destroying Dwarven dominion over the Gnomes, and getting vengeance for every slight the Dwarves inflicted upon the Gnomes. Notably, the Conclavites went to great lengths to avenge the fallen Monks. To this end, they implemented a "no prisoners" policy, and all who were taken captive by the Nevernites were executed for their heresy.   For three years, the Gnomic militias would fight tooth and nail against their oppressors. It was a bloody, messy conflict, but the Dwarves were careful. Massacring the Gnomes would do nothing but embolden the rebels, and the goal was to keep the Empire together, not to divide it even more. Dwarves did their best to ingratiate themselves with the Gnomes, but it was far too late for such things. Indeed, in that third year of conflict, things would only escalate. The Centaurs of the Great Steppe could no longer just stand by while their Commonalist brethren fought the good fight alone, and rouge members of the Tusuy Host would launch an invasion of the Hayas Mountains. Across the Steppe, the Centaurs rose up, even as their Atamans refused to for fear of Dwarven retribution.   To squash this new rebellion, the Kingdom of Telluchis would be allowed to raise an Army, making the men of the Steppe fight a war on two fronts. However, it had been a while since the Imperial troops had ever fought a real enemy, and the Centaur rebels would secure many early victories with their mobile tactics. The Centaurs had not forgotten the Steppe Crusade, and with the battle cry of "Remember Olurdi!" on their lips, they would cut down thousands of Men and Dwarves alike. The beats of hooves on the fertile ground made a sound like rolling thunder as warbands scoured the Steppe for invading parties, and for many years, the Centaurs ruled the heartland. However, they would begin to falter when faced with rapidly advancing firearms, as their traditional sabers and bows could not do much against a well-aimed arquebus shot. This would prove to be detrimental to the Centaur cause, as their lands were only above Vayrmastan in technological advancement, or rather, lack thereof.   For 13 long years, the Gnomes and Centaurs engaged in brutal guerilla warfare with the Imperial government. There were no major battles, just hard days blending into one another as the organized ranks of Dwarves and Men were harassed by disorderly bands of desperate Gnomes and Centaurs. Many good men on both sides would die, but slowly, the rebels would lose ground. Over the decade, they inflicted massive casualties on their oppressors, yes, but supplies began to run thin and Dwarven pressure only increased. Likewise, the Dwarves were beginning to realize that they could not keep their Empire together if they took too much of a hardline on Dwarven domination, and they knew that if they kept going as is, the rebels would only become more desperate. With no other choice, the Mountain Emperor would call a ceasefire and invite Gnomic and Centaur leaders to Chambadzor, with the hopes that his Empire could possibly be saved.