HISTORY OF THE FLANAESS

The commonly understood history of anyone with a rudimentary education. the Flanaess begins just over one thou- The current time is the Common Year sand years ago, when the great conflict (CY) 591, which is also 1235 OR (Oerid- between the ancient Suloise and Baklun- ian Record), 6106 SD (Suloise Dating), ish empires forced massive migrations 5053 OC (Olven Calendar), 3250 BH eastward across, around, and even un- (Baklunish Hegira) and 2741 FT (Flan der the western mountain ranges. This Tracking). resulted in the mixture of races and cul- Note: When calculating Common tures that defines the modern Flanaess. Years prior to the Declaration of Univer- Tales of the era before the migrations sal Peace in 1 CY, remember that are fragmentary and poorly understood. Common Year reckoning has no “year Did monstrous creatures rule Oerik be- zero.” Thus, the time elapsed between 5 fore the advent of humanity? Did the CY and -5 CY is only nine years, not ten. great races of humans, elves, dwarves, and the like arise by fiat of the gods or DISASTER AND MIGRATION journey here from elsewhere? Did the The root cause of the animosity between elves raise humanity to civilization, or the Suel Imperium and the Baklunish did humans achieve this on their own? Empire is lost in time, but the end result Did the Flan once have their own em- of their final war haunts even the mod- pires and civilizations? Who built the ern day. After decades of conflict, the oldest tombs in the Cairn Hills, the half- Suloise Mages of Power called down the buried ruins in the Bright Desert, or the Invoked Devastation upon the Baklun- deserted stone cities in the Griff Moun- ish, resulting in an apocalypse so tains? Where were the fabled realms complete that its true form remains un- ruled by Johydee, the Wind Dukes of known. Entire cities and countless Aaqa, Vecna the Whispered One, the people were purged from Oerth, leaving High Kings of the dwarves, or the elven few signs of the great civilization that King of Summer Stars? What became of thrived from the Sulhaut Mountains to the mysterious Isles of Woe, and who the Dramidj Ocean. dwelled there? No one knows with any In retaliation, a cadre of Baklunish certainty. wizard-clerics, gathered in the great pro- Even histories of the early years of the tective stone circles known as Tovag migrations are unclear on many points. Baragu, brought the Rain of Colorless The Oeridian tribal realm of Thailand Fire upon their hated enemies. The skies was so thoroughly absorbed by the king- above the Suel Imperium opened, and dom of Aerdy that it survives only in all beings and things beneath this shin- name as the Thelly River. The ancient ing rift in the heavens were burned into kingdom of Ahlissa, ruled by the Flan ash. So terribly did these attacks plague and easily conquered by Aerdy, is known the world that they have come to be today only for its founding wizard- called the Twin Cataclysms, a term un- queen, Ehlissa the Enchantress, and a derstood by nearly every resident of the magical nightingale she made. (The Flan Flanaess. The Dry Steppes and Sea of here have almost vanished through in- Dust are geographical reminders of this termarriage.) So it goes for much of unbridled magical power, now lost to all recorded time. people—perhaps for the better. What is presented here is a history of Thousands survived the early years of the land accepted by most learned au- the Suel-Baklunish conflict by fleeing thorities and understood by almost east over the Crystalmists. The Oeridi- History of the Flanaess

ans, a confederation of barbaric tribes in Farther east, the most powerful of all close proximity to the warring empires, Oeridian tribes, the Aerdi, reached the took the wars (and attendant raids from Flanmi River. From there they spread orc and goblin mercenaries in the em- outward again, conquering indigenous ploy of both sides) as a sign to migrate peoples and fellow migrants alike. In eastward in search of their ultimate des- time, the kingdom of Aerdy ruled the tiny. They were the first large group to whole of the eastern Flanaess and enter the lands of the Flan, which they moved its borders westward. One hun- termed the Flanaess. dred and ten years after the defeat of the Suloise refugees soon followed, some- last meaningful threat to Aerdi sover- times working with the Oeridians to eignty, at the Battle of a Fortnight's pacify the land, but more often warring Length, the leader of Aerdy was crowned with them over which race would domi- as overking of the Great Kingdom. nate it. For over two centuries, Suel and Overking Nasran also marked the birth Oeridian fought for control of the region of a new calendar, and with the Declara- from the Crystalmists to the Solnor tion of Universal Peace, the sun arose in Coast. Many Suloise were debased and the east on the first day of the first wicked, and they lost most of these bat- Common Year. The writ of imperial tles and were pushed to the periphery of Aerdy eventually encompassed holdings the Flanaess. as far west as the Yatils, controlling the Though some Baklunish folk migrated southern Nyr Dyv with a small garrison eastward, many more fled north toward at an insignificant trading post known as the Yatil Mountains, or to the shores of Greyhawk. the Dramidj Ocean, where their ancient From 213 CY on, the Aerdi overkings cultures flourish to this day. The very grew lax, caring more for local prestige nonhuman mercenaries the Oeridians and wealth than for the affairs of their had sought to avoid found themselves vassals in distant lands. This period was swept up by these migrations. Many of called the Age of Great Sorrow. As each the foul creatures that now plague the sovereign passed, he was replaced with a Flanaess arrived following the Oeridians more dimwitted and less competent suc- and Suel. These renegade mercenaries cessor, until the outer dependencies of trailed after human migrants in search Aerdy declared their independence. The of plunder, food, and slaves. viceroyalty of Ferrond led the way, be- coming the kingdom of Furyondy. Other KEOLAND AND AERDY regions also broke away from the inef- The most successful union of Suel and fectual government of the overking over Oeridian came in the Sheldomar Valley, time, creating their own governments where Keoland was founded eighty years after achieving success in their wars of after the Twin Cataclysms. The Suel rebellion. Houses of Rhola and Neheli joined with By 356 CY, the ruling dynasty of Oeridian tribes on the banks of the Aerdy, the Celestial House of Rax, had Sheldomar and pledged themselves to grown especially decadent. In response, mutual protection and dominion of the the western province of Nyrond declared western Flanaess, an agreement that set itself free of the Great Kingdom and the course of history for the region for elected one of its nobles as king of an the next nine centuries. Of all the new independent domain. Armies gathered realms formed during those tumultuous from all loyal provinces of Aerdy to sup- days, only Keoland remains. press this brazen act. At this time, however, barbarians from the Thillon-

2 History of the Flanaess

rian Peninsula raided the Great King- a thirst for blood, destruction, and con- dom's North Province, forcing the quest. overking to divert troops from the west- Political struggles within Furyondy ern front. Nyrond easily survived and prevented the king from acting deci- thrived. sively in this period, when the evil of Iuz The Kingdom of Keoland awoke from might have been permanently checked, a long slumber in the third century, ex- Instead, the cambion lord flourished un- panding to dominate its neighbors. This til 505 CY, when he appeared to vanish short-lived Keoish empire lasted almost from Oerth. In truth, Iuz was impris- two centuries before far-flung wars and oned beneath Castle Greyhawk by the internal strife laid it low. The outer de- Mad Archmage Zagig Yragerne, former pendencies declared their autonomy, lord mayor of Greyhawk. In Iuz's ab- and Keoland resumed its peaceful isola- sence, orc tribes and disloyal former tion. subjects squabbled for control of his lands, allowing the forces of weal to rest THE IVIDS AND IUZ for a time. The darkest chapter in the history of Three developments kept Furyondy Aerdy began in 437 CY. In this year, the and its allies from complacency. First, upstart House Naelax murdered the Rax part of Iuz's leaderless realm soon broke overking, inaugurating a series of grue- away to be ruled by a nearly equal evil, some civil wars called the Turmoil the Horned Society. Between Crowns. Within a decade, Ivid I Second, the notorious Horde of Ele- of Naelax was recognized as the undis- mental Evil arose, a collection of cultists puted overking of all Aerdy. As Ivid was and villains headquartered at a temple rumored to be in league with powerful south of the town of Verbobonc. The evil Outsiders, the Malachite Throne of Horde was the puppet of Zuggtmoy, the Great Kingdom became known as Iuz's abyssal consort, who instructed it the Fiend-Seeing Throne, and the once in bizarre teachings at the behest of her mighty and upright empire became a absent lover. The Horde's banditry was bastion of evil and cruelty. finally vanquished in 569 CY at the Bat- The lands of the Flanaess soon be- tle of Emridy Meadows, where Prince came acquainted with an altogether less Thrommel of Furyondy led forces from subtle form of evil with the rise of Iuz, in Furyondy, Veluna, Verbobonc, and other the Northern Reaches loosely aligned realms in victory and the destruction of with Furyondy. In 479 CY, a minor des- the temple. Adventurers put down an pot in the Howling Hills left his domain attempted resurgence of the Temple of to his “son,” a being known as Iuz. Elemental Evil in 579 CY. Within a handful of years, Iuz had con- Third, faithful orc and human ser- quered his neighbors, setting up a small vants of Iuz became zealots dedicated to realm for himself. Tales told by refugees their absent lord. In time, the leaders of entering Furyondy spoke of unmitigated these cults devoted to Iuz displayed evil: Iuz was building a road of human magical power, igniting Furyondy's skulls from the Howling Hills to his worst fears. In 570 CY, a meddlesome capital, Dorakaa. Worse, divinations and warrior-adventurer named Lord Robilar rumors marked Iuz as the offspring of freed Iuz from his imprisonment. Iuz an unholy union between necromancer returned to his lands more powerful and and demon; he was seen to be a half- wicked than ever before, with an unholy fiend towering 7 feet in height, driven by priesthood leading his forces in his un- holy name.

3 History of the Flanaess

STORM CLOUDS of the Thillonrian Peninsula. Ancient The years from Iuz's return to the Grey- legend predicted that the return of Va- hawk Wars (570-581) are often seen in tun, who had vanished centuries ago, retrospect to be the prelude to later con- would signal the birth of a barbarian flict. Several destabilizing forces came empire in the north. Unfortunately, this into play, upsetting the old balance of particular “Vatun” was actually Iuz, whipping the northmen into a war power in the Flanaess. The most insidi- ous of these powers was the Scarlet frenzy. Brotherhood, a secretive monastic order The barbarians invaded the Hold of Stonefist, which allied with them after first reported in 573 CY, the same year in which Prince Thrommel of Furyondy, Iuz ensorcelled Sevvord Redbeard, the hero of Emridy Meadows, vanished from Master of the Hold The combined host the world. then smashed through the Griffs and Semiregular skirmishes between into the duchy of Tenh, which was swiftly overwhelmed. The barbarian alli- Aerdy's South Province and Nyrond erupted into open hostilities in early ance soon crumbled, but the damage 579, when Overking Ivid V made war was done; Tenh and Stonefist belonged against the so-called “Golden League” to the Old One. Returning to his home- (Nyrond, Almor, and the Iron League). land, Iuz then conquered the Horned Though this dreary war lasted through Society, Bandit Kingdoms, and Shield to the end of 580, it resolved nothing Lands in quick succession. Furyondy except to drain the coffers and man- was invaded, and much of its northern territory was captured and laid waste. power of both Aerdy and Nyrond, leaving them weakened when continen- Iuz held the northern Flanaess in a tal war erupted in 583. death grip. The ravaging of the Shield Lands by Taking advantage of the chaos, Ivid V both the Bandit Kingdoms and Horned ordered the Great Kingdom's armies to muster, with the intention of paying Society in 579-583 CY similarly served to weaken this entire region, leaving the back his foes for centuries of impudence. Shield Lands in ruins. Iuz took note of The war that followed was staggering in scope and consequence. Almor was ut- this and made use of it in his grandiose plans for conquest. terly destroyed; Nyrond was invaded; An important though seldom noticed Sunndi was conquered. The nobles of event took place in 581 CY, when an the Great Kingdom fell upon one an- agent of Vecna, the Whispered One of other, terrified of their insane overking and eager to steal the lands of their ancient Flan legend, struck down the en- tire Circle of Eight. The Circle had acted neighbors. In the chaos, Medegia was subtly as a balancing agent for years, despoiled and Rel Astra attacked by the Great Kingdom's own military. Ivid at- preventing any one power from domi- nating too much of the Flanaess. Though tempted to ensure loyalty by having his the Circle's leader, Mordenkainen, re- generals and nobles assassinated and turned his colleagues to life using reanimated as intelligent undead (ani- powerful magic, the group was in disar- muses), with all the abilities they possessed in life. He in turn was also as- ray when war again erupted in the sassinated, though the church of Hextor distant north in 582. restored him to undead “life,” after THE GREYHAWK WARS which he became a true monster known as Ivid the Undying. In 582 CY, the god Vatun appeared to his subjects among the barbarian tribes 4 History of the Flanaess

The madness of war bred more war. In went to the Bright Desert to form their 584, south of Greyhawk, a half-orc own kingdom. Fearing further disrup- named Turrosh Mak united the vile tions, the delegates hurriedly signed the nonhuman tribes of the Pomarj. Mak's Pact of Greyhawk. Ironically, because of armies boiled north, conquering several the site of the treaty signing, the great of the cities of the independent Wild conflicts soon became known as the Coast, then capturing nearly half of the Greyhawk Wars. Principality of Ulek. The appeals of Prince Corond of Ulek to Yolande, the RECENT RECOVERY elven queen of Celene, fell upon uncar- The “Year of Peace” (585 CY) saw little ing ears. Celene closed its borders to of the sort. War raged in the Principality even its most trusted allies, refusing to of Ulek against orc invaders from the let elf blood fall in human wars. Pomarj, and efforts to retake Sterich This same year, decade-old paranoia were initiated in the west. The Circle of regarding the Scarlet Brotherhood came Eight was brought to full membership true, as advisers in courts throughout once more and began acting against the Flanaess were found to be Brother- every power its wizards perceived as ty- hood agents. The Lordship of the Isles, rannical or dangerous to the common Idee, Onnwal, and the Sea Princes fell welfare. under the influence of the Scarlet Sign, In the fall of 585 CY, King Archbold from treachery or invasion. Barbarians III of Nyrond was almost assassinated from Hepmonaland and the Amedio by his younger son, Sewarndt. Fighting Jungle were used to secure captured erupted in the capital, but Archbold's lands. The Brotherhood was revealed as eldest son, Lynwerd, won the day, taking an evil, racist order dedicated to pre- the throne in Fireseek 586. In 587, King serving the culture and purity of the Lynwerd incorporated much of ruined ancient Suel Imperium, without regard Almor into Nyrond, but he now strug- to the lives of others. gles to maintain his tottering realm in For three years, the whole of the Flan- the face of staggering difficulties. aess flew banners of war. Nations fell as In Coldeven 586, Canon Hazen of Ve- new empires were born. Demons and luna employed the Crook of Rao , a devils from the Outer Planes were sum- powerful artifact, in a special ceremony moned en masse by Iuz and Ivid V, and that purged the Flanaess of nearly all hundreds of thousands of mortals died. fiends inhabiting it. Outsiders sum- Finally, the battle-weary combatants moned by Iuz, Ivid, or independent evils gathered in Greyhawk to declare peace. fell victim to this magical assault, which Harvester 584 CY was to see the signing became known as the Flight of Fiends. of the Pact of Greyhawk, fixing borders King Belvor III of Furyondy quickly and mandating an end to hostilities. joined Canon Hazen in declaring the On the Day of the Great Signing, how- Great Northern Crusade, an ambitious ever, Greyhawk suffered a great military action aimed at regaining land treachery: Rary, one of the Circle of lost to Iuz during the Greyhawk Wars. Eight, destroyed his companions Tenser By the end of 588 CY, the armies of and Otiluke in a great magical battle, Furyondy had restored the nation, as then fled. Many suspected that the for- well as Critwall and Scragholme Isle in mer Archmage of Ket had hoped to hold the old Shield Lands. The destruction the ambassadors hostage, perhaps cap- and debauchery revealed as Iuz's agents turing Greyhawk itself in the process. fled sickened the crusaders, king Belvor Instead, he and his cohort, Lord Robilar, declared eternal war upon the Old One, 5 History of the Flanaess pledging to settle for nothing short of Xavener I rules the United Kingdom of the complete destruction of Iuz himself. Ahlissa (founded in 587) from his new Raids against Iuz from Furyondy and capital of Kalstrand. Both leaders would the Shield Lands continue to the pre- like to destroy each other, but financial sent. problems and internal power struggles Wars on the border of Iuz's empire have forced them to devote their ener- burned in the east as well. Iuz's control gies toward rebuilding their armies and over the ruler of Stonehold ended in infrastructure. Sunndi, the largest sur- 588. Swiftly afterward, a many-sided viving member of the Iron League, war began in Tenh, involving the mutu- became a kingdom in 589. ally hostile forces of Iuz, Stonehold, the The Scarlet Brotherhood gained much Pale, and Tenha expatriates. The war in the Greyhawk Wars but suffered later goes on today. reversals. In 586, the people of Onnwal Immediately after the Flight of Fiends, rose up against their occupiers, reducing it was announced in Rauxes that Ivid V the Brotherhood's holdings to the capi- was no longer overking, though it was tal, Scant. Idee was lost to Ahlissa in unclear if he had actually died. Conflict 587, and the Hold of the Sea Princes col- engulfed the capital in a matter of hours lapsed in a bloody civil war that began in as many of Ivid's generals and nobles, 589 CY. Still, the Lordship of the Isles filled with rage and ambition, marched remains under the Scarlet Sign, and upon Rauxes. No one can explain the agents of the Brotherhood creep into events that followed, but the city itself courts across the Flanaess, sowing their was soon engulfed in a strange magical evil plots. field. Few willingly approach Rauxes The Flanaess today stands on the now, given the bizarre eldritch forces verge of a dynamic new age. The last that prevail where the ruined city decade has seen terrific wars, refugee stands. migrations, the rise and fall of whole na- The provinces of the broken Great tions. The exploration of foreign lands is Kingdom are now reunited, but into two on the rise, trade is surging upward once mutually hostile powers. In 586 CY, more, and opportunities for heroism Herzog Grenell of North Province de- (and profits) are unlimited. The Flan- clared himself overking of the Great aess awaits those who would seize its Kingdom of Northern Aerdy. Overking adventures and shape its future. CREDITS

Author: Gary Holian, Erik Mona, Sean K Reynolds, Frederick Weining Source: Living Greyhawk Gazetteer

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