Age of Blood Lore from Lords of EverQuest [Archive]

Obzidian

07-21-2009, 06:40 PM

So, I figured I'd play the devil's advocate and post some lore that I recently found in my computer archives that is from Lords of EverQuest. I was a geek enough to buy the game, and I apparently typed up all the lore and saved it in a word document so here it is. I haven't seen it anywhere else so far.Feel free to argue its canonocity and all that jazz. I think its interesting, especially on the dawn of a new Halas and with Odus about to open up. This takes place at the end of the Age of Blood, and the start of the Lost Age. Any typos are mine and such. (If this is already somewhere on the forums, I apologize for the double posting)Have fun! (Don't worry! I expect lots of Cusa scorn! I'm prepared!)Edit: to fix crazy code wierdness from copying and pasting from word<h1>Shadowrealm</h1> Deep Back History We have for a long time known the Ogres have not always been as they are. It is common knowledge that in the twilight years of the Elder Age they commanded tremendous sorcerous powers and held sway over much of the continent once called Tunaria. So great in power did the Ogres grow that eventually they were capable of invading even the Plane of Earth where they battled the elemental gods who therein dwelled. But great as their powers were, they were unequal to the task of slaying the Council of Rathe. Angered at the failures of his Ogre creations, the warlord god Rallos Zek led his own invasion of the Plane of Earth seeking to finish what his minions could not. Rallos too was turned aside by the greater gods and was banished back to the plane over which he ruled, barred forever from physical interaction with the other planes or the world of Norrath. To punish Rallos for his presumption and his children for their excesses, the Council of Rathe thus cursed the Ogres, Orcs and Giants, taking from them their exceptional gifts of intelligence and scattering them across all the world. Here is where the orthodox history ends. For long and long, we have held these facts as the whole truth regarding the fall of the Ogres and the exile of Rallos Zek. But what has not been passed down to future generations and what has been expunged from the memories of all those who lived in the infamous Lost Age is that before fleeing the Plane of Earth the Ogres stole great secrets of power and brought them back to Norrath. Though the Council of Rathe pursued the Ogres' lost prizes and sought to erase the forbidden knowledge the Ogres had obtained, much still evaded the Council's grasp. Artifacts, scrolls, and many other great treasures went down into the dark places of the earth, becoming old wives' tales, legends...myths. While the intellect of his children grew ever dimmer with each passing year, Rallos Zek extended his influence to see that their stolen secrets would be preserved. Someday an army worthy of his patronage would rediscover them. Someday he would have his revenge . . . <h2>The Immediate Past</h2> <h3>Rise of the Three Great Consortiums</h3> As the Age of Blood draws to a close, it is a time of great upheaval. In Neriak, the Teir'Dal plot to seize the glory that once belonged to Takish'Hiz. Forming a blood pact with a band of shipwrecked Iksar fleeing their Shissar slavers, the Dark Elves set out to find other disaffected warriors. Pooling the resources of a half-dozen monstrous nations, the Teir'Dal found a dark alliance--the Shadowrealm.... The Story of the Shadowrealm The Shadowrealm is a tempestuous association of all the evilly aligned nations of Norrath. Although they are easily the most dangerous of the three great alliances, they are severely hindered by internal discord. Advancement comes not through merit, but murder. Leadership is a measure of how feared a leader is rather than how well he leads. Rebellions, betrayals and factional infighting are daily threats, and in any given battle, Shadowrealm forces have as much to fear from renegade Shadowrealm warlords as they do from the opposing alliances. If they ever learned to unite fully against their enemies, they might one day rule all of Norrath unchallenged. Commanded by the Overlord of Neriak, the Shadowrealm is comprised of a patchwork of different race-nations. Most predominant are the Teir'Dal, a race of Dark Elves created by the God of Hate who believe themselves the rightful masters of Norrath. Uneasily sharing power with the Teir'Dal are the Iksar, a shipwrecked race of former slaves now fighting for a new life on the strange continent of Tunare. Together these two races have guided the destiny of the Shadowrealm, and have reaped the lion's share of its rewards. Subordinate to them are dozens of semi-independent nations of Ogres, Gnomes, Trolls, Goblins and Mogri (a foul race of bestial warriors said to have been summoned from the very core of Norrath.) Formed initially by the Teir'Dal and the Ogres, the Shadowrealm's early purpose was to sack Takish'Hiz, the capitol of the rapidly crumbling Elddar empire. Finding their forces unequal to the task, the Teir'Dal made a quick series of critical blood pacts. Pulling the resources of a half-dozen monstrous nations into one entity, the Teir'al cobbled together the Shadowrealm with only one genocidal goal: Exterminate all opposition and rule the lands of Tunaria. Heroes of the Shadowrealm Lady Kreya -- Kreya’s Lordship is a testament to both her sharp strategic intellect and her skillful application of magical power. A plain-spoken pragmatist, Kreya’s troops often affectionately call her Grandmother Kreya, but her enemies know her only as the Mother of Blood. Kreya is a female gnome wizard. Lady T`Lak -- Having grown up a thief in the tunnels of Neriak, T’lak rose to power through a potent combination of treachery, guile and darkly beautiful looks. Considered the most dangerous trickster ever to have wielded a blade, few are fool enough to challenge her status as Lord. T`Lak is a female dark elf rogue. Lord Skass -- Until a shipwreck marooned him in the Gulf of Gunthak, Skass lived the brutal life of a Shissar slave. Escaping into the protection of the Shadowrealm, Skass quickly rose to power as a grand master of necromancy, a Shissar art previously unknown on Tunaria. Skass is a male iksar necromancer. Lord Urtt -- Known for his murderously effective use of swords, and his maniacal laughter on the battlefield, Urtt is greatly feared by his enemies. Greatly admired by those under his command, he ferociously defends his allies and punishes those who dare cross the Shadowrealm. Urtt is a male ogre warrior. Lord Vekk -- While still a whelp, Vekk slew his own father to seize the title of Lord of Broken Skull Rock. Not long after, he quickly proved his worth to recruiters from the Shadowrealm. Without question, he is the coldest, cruelest and most relentless Troll ever to have walked the face of Norrath. Vekk is a male troll shadow knight. The Story of the Elddar Alliance Though without question the Elddar Alliance is now one of the most powerful consortiums on Tunaria, born of plague, famine and hardship. First came the curse of Solusek Ro, a withering blast of fire that decimated the unrivaled majesty of the Elddar Forest and stripped the Elves of their native defenses. Next came Teir'Dal and Ogre warriors pouring out of the west and north, clawing for the riches of the debilitated Koada'Dal and Froglok empires. But while many kingdoms would have folded in the face of lesser challenges, one brilliant Elf transmuted the pain of his allies into an unshakable union that would change the face of Norrath. Prince Baleion refused to yield. Even as many of his people fled across the Ocean of Tears for the newly discovered lands of Faydwer, Baleion worked feverishly with the Koada'Dal who shared his dream of preserving, even reviving, the Elddar Forest. He called on the Lord of Guk, leader of the Frogloks, who was exiled from Innothule Swamp. Like the Koada'Dal, the Frogloks were ardent to save the woodlands of the east and were tireless defenders upon the battlefield. Treants flocked to Baleion's banner as well, knowing their fates were tied to the future of the Elddar Forest. Using the withering firepower of their Tunarian longbows, the Elddar Alliance slowly drove their enemies out of the lands that were their birthright. They pushed the Teir'Dal north, forcing them back across the arch of the Serpent's Spine Mountains, not to return until they later formed a nefarious alliance of their own. In the west, the Frogloks beat the Ogres to the banks of the Lifire River, slaughtering them with the help of the Alliance's newfound allies, the Halflings of Rivervale. Building upon that site, they erected Rivergate, a fortress that for many years would hold three alliances in check, and buy the Elddar Alliance a brief reprieve from war. Heroes of the Elddar Alliance Lady Aeindu -- Once, when Prince Baleion was attacked by a flame goblin, A'endu froze the goblin in place with a stare. At the time she was only five. Hailed at the time as the greatest enchanter prodigy ever discovered in the Alliance, she has grown into one of it's greatest Lords. Aeindu is a female high elf enchanter. Lady Briana -- Gifted with the most melodious voice ever heard in the halls of Takish'Hiz, Briana's skills at leadership emerged almost as early as her musical talents. Well loved by the troops who serve alongside her, she is fiercely protective of all whom she considers her allies. Briana is a female half elf bard. Lord Dulyan -- Though initially distrusted by the court at Takish'Hiz, Dulyan has won the grudging respect of the Koada'Dal for his numerous rescues of high ranking Alliance ambassadors and endangered elven treasures. Despite his enemy's many attempts to assassinate him, he has proven skilled at evading harm. Dulyan is a male halfling druid. Lord Gult -- Lord of the frogloks exiled from Guk by Shadowrealm aggression, Gult has carried with him a heavy burden. Faithful ever to his god, Mithaniel Marr, he struggles to heal both the mental and physical wounds of his people, while also planning the reclamation of his ancient homeland. Lord Gult is a male froglok cleric. Lord Kadian -- For ten generations Kadian's family have protected the sacred Elddar Forest. Now that it withers beneath the curse of Solusek Ro, however, Kadian has sworn to find a new path both for the Rangers he serves, and the Koada'Dal who are being driven from their ancestral homes. Kadian is a male wood elf ranger. The Story of The Dawn Brotherhood As the largest consortium on Norrath, the Dawn Brotherhood holds sway over everything from the glittering shores of Erud's Crossing to the barren wastes of The Frigid Plain. Given the Brotherhood's humble origins, few could have guessed how powerful their union would one day become. In the days before the pact of Halas Humans, Barbarians, and Dwarves lived primarily in small, scattered communities and bowed to three different kings. Though forced by a scarcity of natural resource to be neighbors upon the northern tundra, they were neither allies nor enemies, preferring to keep company with their own kind. But news from the outside world was becoming increasingly dire. To the east, the Tier'Dal warred upon the crumbling remnants of the Elddar Empire, an act unthinkable in centuries past. Word also rushed from village to village that dark armies had been seen on the march, possibly angling for an attack on the newly constructed barbarian city on the shores of Loch Lir. As the evidence began to mount that the isolation of the northland people might well spell their doom, the three kings agreed to discuss an alliance of their peoples. It was a meeting that almost happened too late. On the eve of the great conference as representatives from all the northland bands gathered in Halas, an Iksar army invaded the city. Under the cover of night, Barbarians, Humans, and Dwarves fought side-by-side in a desperate, pitched battle against an enemy they frequently could not see and definitely had never encountered. Realizing only at the break of dawn that they had repelled the enemy attack the three kings vowed that their people must always stand at each other's sides. And thus was the Dawn Brotherhood born. Determined to secure the liberty of all their kind, the Brotherhood blazed south on a mission of liberation. In the northern plains of Karana they freed the Erudites, a magical offshoot of humanity who had been plagued for decades by savage Blackpaw Gnolls. Upon the Plains they also encountered the swift, mounted warriors known as the Kerrans, and quickly won the cat-like people over to their cause. In only a matter of months, they claimed all the western lands north of the Plainscutter River, a feat unrivalled even by the former Elven empire to the east. The second great consortium had staked its claim upon the lands of Tunaria. Heroes of the Dawn Brotherhood Lord Dungannon -- Called a half-mad lunatic by his enemies and an unconventional genius by the Brotherhood, Dunganon is a force to be reckoned with. Believing that he’s been possessed by a great white wolf, he is a powerful inspiration to his troops, and fights with an unmatched, gleeful ferocity. He is a male barbarian shaman. Lady Leisen -- It is said that Leisen was born with a wand in her hand and an amulet about her neck. One of the dozens of grandaughters of Erud, she has lived always under the rule of magic and is one of the greatest magician practitioners ever to have mastered her grandfather’s arts. Leisen is a female erudite magician. Lady Sakti -- As a girl of barely fourteen summers, Sakti applied to the Brothers of Light in Qeynos, but was first turned away. When later she challenged the order's master to a street duel, she publicly established herself as the fastest, most deadly monk in the Dawn Brotherhood's service. Sakti is a human female monk. <h4>Monsters of The Land</h4> Bazrahknaten -- Amidst the lonely, wind-swept crags of the Mountains of Rathe, the great dragon Bazrahknaten is an uncontested power. Old beyond knowing, and feared by all in southern Tunaria, she lusts after all magical knowledge wherever it may be found. On those rare occasions when she has ventured out from her mountains, she rarely returns without a dozen new scrolls to litter her ancient lair. Carathien -- Good natured by the standards of dragons, Carathien travels widely over the continent of Tunaria, and has even been known to occassionally come to the aide of endangered travelers. Those who would seek her out however would be wise to take caution…while she can sometimes be benevolent, she just as frequently has slain those who annoyed her. Bloodvine -- The Bloodvine is said to have been created by the gods Cazic-Thule and Innoruuk to symbolize the malevolent spirit of the Innothule Swamp. Hungering always after the blood of the unsuspecting, these carnivorous plants subdue their prey with a hail of dangerous thorns, then drink their writhing victims dry.

Cusashorn

07-21-2009, 08:32 PM

Lords of Everquest is pretty much a stand alone game. Everything I just read there was created for the game. They don't fall into place in Everquest or Everquest 2's timeline.Heck, if I remember correctly, the game has Erudites in it, and takes place about 10,000 years before they were suppose to exist.

Mary the Prophetess

07-21-2009, 09:19 PM

Lords of EverQuest is set 10,000 years before EQ Live at the beginning of the Lost Age. It was developed by Rapid Eye Entertainment ( a short-lived division of Sony), as a real time console game to try to compete with Warcraft. (this is Warcraft pre-WoW I'm talking about), and released in December 2003.According to Bill Trost's resume, ( <a href="http://btrost.googlepages.com/trost_bill_resume_web.html">http://btrost.googlepages.com/trost...resume_web.html</a> ), He left EQ2 at that time to become the Lead Developer for Rapid Eye.That's a pretty impressive pedigre. So if the lore is inconsistent, (not really sure if they had Erudites or not, as I never played the game--I DO know they called the continent Antonica (and shouldn't have) LOOOONG before Balye Shiverfist was even a gleam in the eye), perhaps there is still *something* of value to be learned there never-the-less.

PsiaMeese

07-22-2009, 08:21 PM

Cue quote from Battlestar Galactica, "All of this has happened before and it is all going to happen again."Not so unusual that a gaming company develops parallel products that borrow from each other from time to time?For fun and giggles, I scoped this game out on ye ole web. Yep, I found screenshots and a cut scene of a "human" called an Erudite Magician. The few sentences spared for backstory do confirm the setting to be 10,000 years prior to events as told in the original Everquest MMO.For the heck of it, one could speculate that the Erudite were a cult of magic wielders who grew and shrank in number over the many ages? Perhaps after 10,000 years, a man who was coincidentally given the name Erud was groomed and rose to prominence? Leading his followers to Odus as the lore already tells us?

Obzidian

07-23-2009, 12:17 AM

I thought Erud was born and arose during the Lost Age? In which case, there wouldn't be a real time conflict. It could just be using the name Erudites as the humans who followed Erud, who would eventually become what we know as the Erudites? Alternatively, they could have just used Erudites to refer to the people who would become Erudites in order to keep the game familiar to players, without introducing something people would percieve as a new race or a special faction that mystically poofs.

Cusashorn

07-23-2009, 01:40 AM

Well, the Erudites as a race are among the youngest on Norrath. Before the Frogloks came about, they WERE the youngest race on Norrath. I find it hard to believe that the "Youngest" race on Norrath have existed for 10,000 years.

Mythanote

07-23-2009, 02:08 AM

<cite>Obzidian wrote:</cite><blockquote>Have fun! (Don't worry! I expect lots of Cusa scorn! I'm prepared!)</blockquote>Called that one right off the bat !

Cusashorn

07-23-2009, 02:56 AM

Cusa scorn?Oh goodness, I hope that doesn't catch on as a nickname for me :/

PsiaMeese

07-23-2009, 04:48 PM

Perhaps I misunderstood the original erudite community from EQ1? I always assumed Erud was a highly intellectual human? With highly intellectual human followers? The society was Erudite because that is what the followers of Erud called themselves? I never understood them as a seperate race until they transformed themselves.

Barx

07-23-2009, 04:57 PM

<cite>Cusashorn wrote:</cite><blockquote>Cusa scorn?Oh goodness, I hope that doesn't catch on as a nickname for me :/</blockquote>Hmm... it's kinda catchy <img src="/smilies/8a80c6485cd926be453217d59a84a888.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />

Obzidian

07-23-2009, 04:59 PM

Ok, well, from the original History of Norrath (Source: EQLive website, back in 2000, so its "canon" link: <a href="http://web.archive.org/web/20000815064007/www.station.sony.com/everquest/ " target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://web.archive.org/web/20000815...st/ </a> -- Same material can be found various places on the interwebz)"Thus began the Lost Age. This next period of Norrathean history as it relates to many of the races is the least known. It is surmised by the more knowledgeable historians that while the elder races regrouped and reestablished themselves, a small group of Barbarians were suddenly transformed both physically and intellectually. Most believe this to be the last major and direct act of divine intervention, and perhaps the reason so little is known about this period is that the gods wish it to be so, deciding afterwards that they would have less to do with their creations. In any case, this small and enlightened group were the fathers of the Human race, and they rapidly gained a foothold throughout the lands, studying the lost art of geomancy. The Combine Empire, as this lost race of Humans is called, spread throughout the known world, but then died even more quickly than it grew, and for reasons still unknown. And while they are the ancestors of every Human on Norrath and their relics and ruins still litter the lands from Odus to Faydwer, little history of this period remains. After the fall of the Combine Empire, the remnants of mankind dwelled mostly in the center of Tunaria, inhabiting primarily the vast and fertile plains of Karana. Villages appeared and prospered, several reaching the size of towns, and two even became cities. To the west a strong and noble band of Humans, lead by Antonius Bayle the First, founded Qeynos under the lofty principles of law. Freeport, to the east, became an active and dangerous port of call for all who dared to venture into the Ocean of Tears. Humanity, much to the disdain of the elder races who watched from afar, remained strong, even daring to rename their home after one of their own instead of one of the gods. The great continent of Tunaria would forever more be known as Antonica. This is not to imply, however, that humanity was at peace. Competition was fierce, and when resources grew scarce for one reason or another many groups abandoned the promises and alliances of their past and fought. A few leaders spoke out against the violence, urging the masses to remember why they had fled the cold north. Others reminded them of their former glory and the might of the Combine Empire. These leaders insisted that humanity adhere once again to those principals to which all had agreed. Explorers and adventurers returned from afar with tales of elves, dwarves, and other strange creatures, as well as descriptions of ancient abandoned cities. A few even came back with limited knowledge of sorcery and the mystic arts. And when that discontent minority of leaders heard all of this, they became both jealous and determined. A small, frail man of great intellect called Erud led this group, and he formed them into a council. They quickly became irritated, even disgusted, by their fellow man. Leaving a small network of spies behind, the remainder of Erud's followers fled the city of Qeynos and boarded a small fleet of ships. They sailed to the west and landed upon the barren coast of the island of Odus. The land was sparse and uninhabited and quite appealing to the council and their people. They quickly built a city of their own, dissimilar in almost every way to both Qeynos and Freeport, for it was almost entirely a towering castle. Erudin it was called, and within it the scribes and scholars, who called themselves High Men, gathered and analyzed reports, captured books and scrolls, and other artifacts brought to them by their spies. The first human mages since the Combine Empire were born – wizards, sorcerers, and enchanters occupied the great halls of Erudin and grew immensely in both power and knowledge. Thus began the Age of Enlightenment."Emphasis mine. Given this, Erud and his disciples (the Erudites) existed in the Lost Age. They were a faction in the human cities prior to forming Erudin itself.Lords of EverQuest starts its lore at the end of the Age of Blood and the game itself takes place during the Lost Age, when Erudites existed according to "canon" lore. Therefore, the existence of Erudites in the game does nothing to invalidate its application to Norrathian history. I don't recall the reference to Antonica, but I haven't played the game in ages. Still, Tunaria did become known as Antonica during the Lost Age. Basically, you can reject the LoE lore because of the idea that anything that doesn't come from EverQuest or EverQuest 2 isn't canon or you can accept it as a tidbit that fills in the blanks of Norrath's vast history. But it still fits within the timeline just fine. (p.s. If you've done any reading on History and Lore before you post at all, then you have to expect Cusa scorn. Its like, an inagural gift. Welcome to the lore forum, here's your free Cusa scorn! )

Barx

07-23-2009, 05:08 PM

<cite>Obzidian wrote:</cite><blockquote>{stuff}</blockquote>True. I think the lore from Lords of Everquest can be considered as quasi-canon where it does not conflict with canon lore. IE it can be used as sort of background info or flavor, but if it contradicts something else in even a small way then it's not to be considered part of the EQ/EQ2 timeline.