The War of Bitter Ashes

author: Loremaster Elias of the Blind Brothers

Liam Falcon became Emperor in the prime of his tempestuous youth. The wounds inflicted on the realm from the Orc Rebellion were still raw, the most painful of which was the loss of slave labour. The Eastern conquests were now rebelling. Hammer Fall, the jewel of the Jade Sea, had declared itself a Free City. Other protectorates threatened to follow suit.

Expansion to the South was now blocked by Seven City Necromancers who were becoming more powerful with each raised corpse. The Naga and their Lotus Empire controlled the richest seas and islands and no one in their right mind would go underground to challenge the Dwarves.

All that remained for the Emperor were the Western forests of Irollan, and a particularly luxurious territory occupied by a temptingly peaceful tribe of dreaded Orcs. The Emperor sent the dependable Pavel, Duke of Griffin, with orders to rub two pieces of flint stone together and start a fire.

Queen Tuidhana for her part had isolated her family from her Elven cousins when she refused to bow her knee. For thousands of years the Elves had lived amidst the trees with over a dozen fiefdoms protecting vast wooded expanses of Sylanna's most virgin territories. For Tuidhana, the Dragon Goddess of Earth was the Highest Order and the Druids had always picked their High King in inspired dreams.

Arniel thought this "dreamocracy" unreliable, threw the Druids aside, and placed the crown of oak and leaf on his own head. Only Tuidhana had openly refused to accept his coup. Alone and isolated, Tuidhana accepted council from the mysterious Faceless.

Had it not been for the War of Bitter Ashes it is unlikely that Tuidhana would have renounced Sylanna and embraced Malassa. The Falcon Empire had greater numbers and their alliance with the Angels had given them an incomparable advantage. When the Faceless entered the fray, the odds became even.

The War of Bitter Ashes is said to have started in the 540th Year of the Seventh Dragon, when the armies of the Holy Falcon Empire, lead by Emperor Liam himself, invaded the Southern forests of Irollan in retribution for alleged raiding by the Orcs that had settled there. That is what is written. The truth is more complex.

The Orcs had been given lands by Queen Tuidhana at the end of the Orc Rebellion in YSD 504. The Emperor wanted them, attacked them and built a line of imposing forts along the Elven border. Tuidhana, fearing that Falcon would chop forest and plant field, gave Liam an ultimatum: leave or become food for the roots.

Tuidhana agreed to meet the Emperor in person. Arniel, the self-proclaimed High King of the Elves, appeared at the Emperor's side, ordering Tuidhana to cede the disputed forests to Falcon. She left the banner tent without saying a word. That very night the forts and camps of Falcon were attacked and routed. The War of Bitter Ashes got its name from Liam's retaliation. He set the forests ablaze.

The War of Bitter Ashes

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