War of Ascension

The War of Ascension was a conflict that involved all of the Realms in, about, and adjacent to Aasha. It is the defining conflict of the current age. Primarily, the conflict was between what is known as the Archprisoned or Old Gods and members of the current pantheon of Gods - the Eight (see Deities of Aasha ).
During the war, kingdoms were laid to waste, peoples were made refugees, geographies changed forever. In the end, the forces of the Eight vanquished those of the Old Gods and imprisoned them and their followers in a prison in Limbo.
The world that remained was utterly destroyed or in chaos. All of mortal-kind had to start anew. So different is Aasha after the War of Ascension, that people count time from the moment the Old Gods were imprisoned. Thus all the dates are followed by either an A.A. (after ascension) or a B.A. (before ascension).
The Circle of Sages have made it their entire effort to uncover and preserve the knowledge from before the Ascension and since.

Mythological History

It was Ravi, first of the younger gods, who first noticed the mortals' plight. As light and justice embodied, it greatly saddened him to see mortals suffering and dying for the whims of the Old Gods. He took pity on them and asked Tsuki to bless them and offer them shelter from their woes.
This angered the elder gods, and they caused that the mortals suffered even more for Ravi and Tsuki's insubordination. To punish the younger gods, the old gods banded to together to fight and expel Ravi and Tsuki from heaven. Sa'aya blocked out the sun and drenched Aasha in darkness. Carthrax spread putrid diseases among the mortals to sap thier strength and dwindle their numbers. Mogis with his demon hordes and Mulin with her savage monsters hunted down mortals and laid waste to their cities. Janjerra enslaved the prisoners of war and made them work in death camps to support the war effort. Hadeon rose the dead to undeath and turned the Ravi and Tsuki's followers against their own loved ones, and Ara sent tempests to drown out their prayers.
When the situation was dire, when hope was all but lost, five more young gods stood to protect Ravi and Tsuki and the rebel mortals: Baedu'u, Balaam, Imix, Jern, and Melikki. Olastra and Melikki protected the mortals from disease and the storms. Baedu'u gave mortals tools to create weapons and Imix trained them in their use. Balaam calmed the souls of the dead and sent them back to their slumber, and Jern taught the mortals how to use magic.
What followed was a war without end. Countless souls went to the afterlife in the the name of freedom, justice, and righteousness. The war changed the shape of the land. Where there were plains were suddenly mountains, and where there were mountains were swallowed up into the sea.
It would have continued that way forever unless the old god Typhon, the great trickster, lord of chaos, and king of liberty, did not intervene. Typhon knew that there would be no freedom for anyone as long as war reigned in Aasha. So to carve out his future domain, he decided betray the elder gods and side with the younger ones. But the Eight did not trust the Lord of Tricks, and bound him to an oath he could not break: if the elder gods were defeated, he would be bound to keep them imprisoned. The betrayer had a choice: to have power over nothing or to make the oath, and lose his freedom in just one thing. And so, beside a sacred willow tree using the eternal rod of law, Typhon made the oath.
With the combined power of the nine gods, the elder gods were defeated. The Eight and Typhon created Limbo, a plane of chaos for Typhon to rule and the future prison of the old gods. Ravi, Tsuki, and Imix expelled the Old Gods to Limbo. Their bodies were trapped in stone and wood by Baedu'u and Melikki, their minds imprisoned by Jern, and their souls trapped by Balaam. Typhon created a maze around them so chaotic no entity could enter or leave and the old god became the Archprisoned forever.

Conflict Type

War

Start Date

-10 BA

Ending Date

1AA