The Human Imperium lasted 1072 years. Forty-four Emperors reigned in peace, wisdom and splendor and all the lands and peoples of Erda were under its hegemony. During this time of peace arts, crafts, music, learning and magic thrived. Then five great and powerful wizards took an oath and decided to try to end the terrible curse of man – death.
These five became known as the Great Necromancers, and they practiced their dark arts in secret, for such things were forbidden to be practiced and the ancients had warned against dark magic. Some say their study of the dark arts corrupted them, some say they already had dark hearts. Their ever increasing lust for more knowledge and power drove them to raise a terrible army of undead and unleash it upon the world.
Gallantly the armies of the Imperium fought against them, only to be repelled battle after battle until the great capital city itself was sieged and nearly overrun. To the center of their empire the human race and their allies did gather with their arms and banners, in their final attempt to banish the undead darkness. At the last stand the undead armies were finally destroyed, but at a terrible price, many great warriors of the realms were killed. The last emperor was slain, and the unbroken Imperial Line that had endured for over a thousand years was now broken.
But the fall of man and their once great empire came finally not from the Great Necromancers and dark magic or from their undead armies, but through man's own greed and the lust for power. Many lords did make claim to the crown and throne for one reason or another, but none would bow to the other. Thus a long period of civil war set in, adding and further prolonging the misery of the world.
In the wake of their victory over the Great Necromancers, the human lords did in a few years what the Necromancers could not accomplish in three hundred – destroy the Imperium that had endured for over a millennium. The very thing they had fought so hard to protect was laid to ruin.
It is now the year 480 of the Fourth Age.
480 years have passed since the fall of the human's grand empire. The lands are broken. Many places are now wild and untamed. Magic has grown old and weak and the Gods continue to be silent and absent. The former constituents of the once great empire now plot, war and vie for power over each other. Many rulers still claim the throne for themselves.
Meanwhile, a new plague has slowly started to creep over the lands spreading somehow from one place to another. Some call it a blight, and the undead and foul things are now seen wherever the blight spreads. Orcs and goblins have become bolder in their raids and plundering. A general feeling of uneasiness has set in and a silent sense of dread fills the hearts of most people. Trust does not come easy in these troubled times.
These five became known as the Great Necromancers, and they practiced their dark arts in secret, for such things were forbidden to be practiced and the ancients had warned against dark magic. Some say their study of the dark arts corrupted them, some say they already had dark hearts. Their ever increasing lust for more knowledge and power drove them to raise a terrible army of undead and unleash it upon the world.
Gallantly the armies of the Imperium fought against them, only to be repelled battle after battle until the great capital city itself was sieged and nearly overrun. To the center of their empire the human race and their allies did gather with their arms and banners, in their final attempt to banish the undead darkness. At the last stand the undead armies were finally destroyed, but at a terrible price, many great warriors of the realms were killed. The last emperor was slain, and the unbroken Imperial Line that had endured for over a thousand years was now broken.
But the fall of man and their once great empire came finally not from the Great Necromancers and dark magic or from their undead armies, but through man's own greed and the lust for power. Many lords did make claim to the crown and throne for one reason or another, but none would bow to the other. Thus a long period of civil war set in, adding and further prolonging the misery of the world.
In the wake of their victory over the Great Necromancers, the human lords did in a few years what the Necromancers could not accomplish in three hundred – destroy the Imperium that had endured for over a millennium. The very thing they had fought so hard to protect was laid to ruin.
It is now the year 480 of the Fourth Age.
480 years have passed since the fall of the human's grand empire. The lands are broken. Many places are now wild and untamed. Magic has grown old and weak and the Gods continue to be silent and absent. The former constituents of the once great empire now plot, war and vie for power over each other. Many rulers still claim the throne for themselves.
Meanwhile, a new plague has slowly started to creep over the lands spreading somehow from one place to another. Some call it a blight, and the undead and foul things are now seen wherever the blight spreads. Orcs and goblins have become bolder in their raids and plundering. A general feeling of uneasiness has set in and a silent sense of dread fills the hearts of most people. Trust does not come easy in these troubled times.