The Ninth Age (3633 - 4208) - The Age of Elven Twilight

The battle of Underwood was particularly savage on the High Elves; they were delicious prey to the Alhoons, and in the battle and its aftermath, the majority were killed. The horrors of the remainder of the war kept them from recovering, though at least that meant they weren't caught when the Archmage's action destroyed Gnoll-type magic. They did, at least, have their archived lore to fall back on, as the Elf Queen preserved their libraries in what was to become Concord. To-be-Concord itself was caught flat-footed, in a way, by the end of the war; after being built and used as the foundries for the Empire/Elf/Dwarf alliance, war's ending left it without purpose. The Elf Queen used its reconstruction into the fabled 'city of amity' as a spur to recovery, giving all three Shards something to work on together with the dwarves, founding what was eventually to become the economic engine that drove the Elves' recovery. But that was not to come to fulfillment until the next Age.

A new custom arose among the High Elves. Every day, at the start of the evening meal, the diners sprinkle a bit of ash onto their plates, then ritually clean it off, signifying the work that needed to be done to reclaim their race - but also that from desolation can come the beauty of the High Elves, signified by their fine porcelain dishes. In later years, this custom dwindled some, from an everyday occurence to just special/eventful meals. But it still remains, and is honored.

The Growing-Shaper was something that no one could claim to have discovered, or invented, and yet it was too useful to ignore on that basis. In shape, one was disquieting, looking like nothing less than a mushroom grown horribly wrong; yet inside, it held a chamber where seeds could be placed. By focusing psionic energy on the Shaper, a Shadow Elf could mutate seeds into a form they liked. Such seeds were often the only things that could grow in blasted lands, and to all appearances they looked like normal - even extra-ordinarily healthy - plants. The Wood Elves were grateful for the plants that could restore their green lands and forests. Yet there was always the uncertainty, of just what might be lurking within the plants, given their strange origin.

The Wood Elves tried to regrow their forests and fields. The pine, ever a provider of friendly cover, in all season and all weathers. The common crabgrass, for ground cover is essential to prevent all from being washed away. And wheat, as one of the most flexible and prolific food plants. They were saddened by the lack of diversity, the mundane nature of their forests, and the lack of their formerly wondrous vegetation; but that must be saved for a time when the race is stronger, and could turn away from survival to bring back joy and wonder. It was at the time that they developed ways to create the famous Elven Waybread, used for travelling long distances, needed in forests which often lacked food.

In retrospect, the seeds for what happened in this age were sowed during the 8th Age. Wizards had gotten drunk on power, which they now lacked. The Red College had gone too far in its desperation and used rather than bound demons. And the High Elves, who among the wizards had always been the voices of restraint and caution, well, they were no longer present in the halls of magic to keep the younger, brasher races in check. And another gnome had become Archmage, which never seems to end well.

How deep had the rot gone in the Red College? Deep. How long had the Diabolist done her work, or was she even aware of it? Nobody really knows. The Witch Hunters nearly found out too late, and then it was a desperate race, messengers going out to all the great powers of good and evil, a brigade of their hardest, most dangerous execution agents riding for Bald Mountain as fast as their steeds could go.

They interrupted the ritual, but it had already started. As the earth broke, help arrived; the Emperor, General Lead, the High Druid, many others. Finally in the end came the Three and the Great Gold Wyrm, flying in formation as they rained death down upon the fallen magi below. But in the end, only one thing saved the world; the Great Gold Wyrm physically blocked the chasm to the Abyss with its own body. Afterwards, the Red College was purged, and reformed almost from scratch. It was put strictly under the control of a Triumvirate of Emperor, the Grand Master of the Witch Hunters, and the Archmage, and its numbers limited and strictly regulated.

Many wizards of the day spent time trying to either seal the hell-rifts, or fight what emerged from them. The Witch Hunters emerged as heroes, saviors, and their glory brought with it power, funding, and gifted recruits.

A hero wizard of the battle at Bald Mountain is still remembered today. Meryl, posthumously known as 'the Stainless', was perhaps the only senior member of the Red College who was not a part of the conspiracy, and played a key role in helping the Witch Hunters uncover it. Her bindings and counterspells and demon-abjurations were vital to the early stages of the battle, when it was just a band of elite Witch Hunters against an entire college of demon-summoner wizards, and without her they would have been overwhelmed before aid arrived. She died of the many wound sustained before clerical healing could reach her. She is remembered today largely because the Witch Hunters were grateful and the wizards REALLY needed someone that day they could feel good about.

The gnome Archmage continued on because they hadn't actually been a part of the conspiracy, just too lax in supervision. People blamed them for it anyway as it was their wizards and anyway, gnome. The Archmage tried to get the White College to take a larger role, which they did happily, and started a program where many members of the Black College took holy orders, to become battle mage-priests. This was less popular, but some went on to celebrated careers. Regardless, suspicion of wizards jumped through the roof, and once again in the countryside people were likely to burn you as soon as look at you if you didn't wear a white robe. Also about this time the idea of nipples and needles as a test for 'demon witches' grew in rural folks minds. To this day wizards fumes and make scathing remarks about this.

In the Ninth Age, lycanthropes were a serious, though not overwhelming problem. The Silver Cleric watched over the Southern Empire, battling lycanthropes. The Archmage, however, viewed it as someone else's problem, but when they did assist, it was usually either through Blue Wizards forging magical silver weapons, White Wizards providing wards against shapeshifters and working to improve village dwellings and defenses, and Black Wizards going 'Why use silver when I can hurl fireballs at you'. In general wizards tended to be wary of them, as the legend of the Ebon Magewolf made clear that even a wizard who was pure at heart and said his cantrips by night, could become a WOLF if a lycanthrope bit him, and the moon was full and bright.

Icon Notes

• The Diabolist: Possibly behind Bald Mountain and possibly not. She was rumored to be everywhere and yet rarely seen. The Diabolist and the seventh Silver Cleric had a battle which ended in his horrible death, but then the Blue jumped her and looted her fortress; she would not be seen in public again until the tenth age.
• The Silver Cleric: The first was a scion of the Imperial line who was worried about the rising problem of lycanthropy. He and his successors fought an ever escalating war against lycanthropes. By the end of the age, his followers had become fanatics who even slaughtered good-aligned lycanthropes. The Silver Clerics lived slightly extended lives, but many died fighting lycanthropes. This Icon lasted into the Tenth Age. The Diabolist and the seventh Silver Cleric had a battle which ended in his horrible death, but she was soon driven into hiding by the Blue, while an eighth Silver Cleric was chosen in Santa Cora, the capital of the Silver Cleric.

Emperors of Note

• Ursula IV (3633-3681): Barely old enough for the throne, she was the Emperor's niece through his sister. She took the regnal name of Ursula to mark a new age and to assert Divine Favor. She promoted worship of the Gods of Light and appeasement of the Gods of Darkness. By the end of her reign, the Empire was still a mess but improvements had been made.
• Oliver II (3729-3756): A mostly useless Emperor who spent his time building a giant gold statue of himself in the mistaken belief this would make him a Golden Emperor. During his reign, Bald Mountain was fought.
• Oliver IV (3813-3829): A warrior Emperor who spent his reign fighting the 'Ogre Empire', which was west of the Empire. He died fighting them, but his son Hugo IV defeated them.
• Hugo IV Ogreslayer (3829-3883): If he wasn’t dead, the cult of Jammanderu would be trying to kill him. The Ogre Empire worshipped Jammanderu, Bogdozan, and Thanatos, and Hugo had to battle their potent priests, who had slain his father. He broke into their main temple and destroyed it and slaughtered the priests. He then methodically hunted down and butchered as many ogres as he could. The Crusader is known to have a large statue of him and regard him as a model.
• Liam the Only (4018-4033): Terrified of lycanthropes, he sequestered himself in the Imperial Palace and essentially abandoned governing; the Silver Cleric and the Imperial Council ruled the Empire with the Cleric as his regent. He eventually became afraid food had were-poisons in it and starved to death. On his death, the Silver Cleric stepped down to everyone's shock and resumed his normal lycanthrope fighting duties, crowning Oliver X. No Imperial has been named Liam since and the name is nearly extinct.

Food Fads of the Ninth Age

Imperial foodways had to change with the routes to other lands now either closed or very hard to use. A series of fads swept the Empire.

• "Authentic Commoner Food": Between 4000 and 4020, there was a fad for 'authentic peasant food' among the nobility, which meant a lot of rough bread, honey, stews, and pudding. At times, this made it hard for peasants to afford food, and this was based on texts from the Seventh Age, which themselves had reflected fantasies about the peasants.
• Highrock Stew: In Highrock in the Eighth Age, a practice of many gathering to share food and create huge pots of a common stew which everyone ate became popular there. In the Ninth Age, there was a fad for it across the Empire in the 3860s.
• Pudding Pops: In 3919, in the month of Fervor, on the 21st day, the Spring Equinox, the ground shook very gently in the southeastern Empire. Proudfort and the defenses of the Sea Wall braced for the usual sort of invasion from the sea of some hideous giant monster which normally follows earthquakes here. Instead, three days later, a giant black cloud spread across the sky from the ocean and then for weeks, it dumped black rain, riddled with volcanic ash. And then the sky didn't fully clear up for a decade. This was the Great Murk; everything got colder and the growing season shrank. Everyone assumed it the beginning of an apocalypse, but instead, very slowly, all the ash drained out of the sky. Many now believe this was the fringe of an age-ending apocalypse in some other land and the Silver Cleric announced a volcano the size of Necropolis had exploded in another land. During this time, in winter, anything left out overnight froze. Someone came up with the idea of creating fruity puddings and freezing them in a mold around a stick and selling them as treats to children. While this is less common in the Empire now, some still do it and oddly, it spread to the Frost Giants of the Northwest, who absolutely love it.
• Shalashala: During this age, limited contact with the distant western land of Manzabwe was achieved; you have to pass through the Moonwreck, then a cold desert, to reach the Zabwean Grasslands, where a set of city states compete with each other and study the Classical Arts and Magics. One of their foods passed into the Empire and during the reign of Darius II (3766 - 3813), there was a huge fad for Shalashala. Shalashala is a form of processed barley, which is turned into small pellets like rice. It is used in much the same way, but you can grow barley in far more places than rice. Today, it is common peasant food around Santa Cora.

How the Age Ended

In the final years of the age, a plan long set but previously unsuspected took place. The leader of the Fire Giants, Dragan Stronghammer had united the giants of the North for the first time in thousands of years. He then marched south against the Empire. With both wizards and Elves damaged, the war went poorly, though it was the western Empire who suffered the most. The magical stresses of the war led to the first hellholes opening, which plagued both sides. The Witch Hunters, who had already had to step up their game after Bald Mountain now really had to do so, helping to lead to their tenth age peak.

The Death of the Emperor came when traitors stole the necessary reagents and the Golden Carapace could not be deployed. Dragan was cunning and his spies turned out to be everywhere. Similar betrayal also led to disaster at Horizon.

The Silver Cleric, however, crowned a new Emperor at Santa Cora and new forces rallied to face the Giants and their humanoid hordes near the southern shore of the Midland Sea. Fearing the Giant would attack the Abyss and try to let in the Demons, the Great Gold Wyrm's Paladins charged into the fray and the new Emperor rode a golden dragon into battle. And with him rode a hundred knights on dragonback. Dragan's death led to the breakup of his horde and now the Imperial Hand and the Witchhunters and the Silver Cleric all hunted for traitors in the Imperial Government, though the Silver Cleric was mainly looking for lycanthropes.

Demetrius I married his Gold Dragon ally, who took the name Hermia I, and founded the line of Dragon Emperors, who were human but with some of the power of Dragons in their veins.

And the battle seems to have led to the rise of many cults, demons or otherwise, from the dark energies unleashed by Dragan's army and the final battle too close to the Abyss.

Things Which Remain In Later Ages

• Castle Vostov: Every single member of the Vostov family of wizards died at Bald Mountain, all 27 of them. Today, their castle of Vostovberg sits crouched atop the mountain of the same name. In its day it was first a solemn, imposing citadel of learning, then in later years a chateau of decadent orgies and infernal rituals overseen by the five Vostov Countesses and their seven daughters. Nobody dares enter the castle today, but those who pass hurriedly by say it is still in good repair, and many report seeing women upon the walls or behind windows or atop towers. Some of the descriptions sound an awful lot like the Vostovs.
• The Court of the Demons: The Court of the Demons, a creation of the Shadow Elves during the civil war, thought lost, now resurfaced. When a visitor arrives at the entrance, they are drawn into a vision quest that involves them being paraded through a legion of demons - first through shame, spitting and jeers of the audience, graduating through increasing degrees of respect, until by the end the 'guest' is being saluted and feted by the etheral 'Lords of the Demon-Hall'. It was created to be a training experience, bringing the subject through stages of denial and realization to their pinnacle of achievement. In the post-war 'enlightened' period, it is supposed to be a correctional facility - bringing the unfortunate subjects to realize their crimes and to horror at their actions, through identification with the evil beings at the end. Or so the Shadow Elves claim, anyway. The Wood Elves are more dubious, but don't feel like they can really say anything about it at this point.
• The Coward's Name: Imperial humans no longer use the name Liam unless they hate their children, due to the cowardice and paranoia of Emperor Liam the Only (see earlier). Ironically, people who are stuck with this name in the 13th Age are often super-tough from a lifetime of kicking people's ass for harassing them about it.
• Livy's History of the Second Age: Livy was the Court Historian of Antonio II (1084 - 1112 IY); at his emperor's command, he wrote a 34 volume history of the Second Age. He emphasized the glory of the age, the wonders it created and the role of the Emperors, both good and bad. In the Seventh Age, the Golden Emperors suppressed it, tired of comparisons of their age of glory to the Second Age. Only three volumes survived. In the 9th age, the Gnome Archmage somehow time traveled or resurrected or cloned Livy, who was commanded to replace the missing volumes. But without his notes, he could only produce A Gloss on Livy's History of the Second Age, which gives rough 5 to 10 page summaries of each of the missing 31 volumes and adds interesting anecdotes and illustrations to the three known volumes. Livy Reborn then began Livy's History of the Eighth Age, dying of old age in the middle of Volume X of a planned twenty-two. The surviving full volumes are III: Christopher III Goblinhammer (488- 513), XI: Wonders of the Empire, and XXXIV: The End of the Second Age. These all survived due to being in a dragon's hoard. Certain rumors claim that Volume XI appeared in the sky with the Gods when they cast down the Golden Emperors but this is usually assumed to wishful thinking.