An Enemy from the South

The period known as the Age of Shadows is one that many do not dare speak of, for its name was earned by some of the greatest wars the world has ever known. No one is quite sure who or what sought to begin the war, but all remember that it was Nengurth, the corrupted land in the south that was home to the banished arcanist elite of the Arcanis Empire, that became the enemy of all other lands. Corrupted further by their infernal and demonic patrons, the remaining arcanist-lords launched an assault upon Meranthis, with armies of devils, demons, and strange, corrupted creatures from deep beneath the earth.
Brought together by a common enemy, the mortal races united in war for the first time and stood against the assault of evil that came from the south. Exact details of the war were lost to time, but all know that for nearly five hundred years, Meranthis saw nothing but death and violence, with a great many lives being lost, the greatest casualties among humanity. Nengurth’s power was great, but even Tiamat’s grand design could not stand against a united world, and the arcanist-lords were pushed back to their corrupted land and sealed within it by a great chasm in the earth. Many wished to forget what they had seen, and Nengurth became a name whispered between folk, a grim reminder of the great evil that dwells in the world.
When the war ended, the world was left to rebuild, with much of the human kingdoms either brought to ruin or abandoned long ago. Though the gods had long since vanished from the world, priests prayed to them for guidance, and while they answered quietly, the answers still inspired the peoples of Meranthis to come together to rebuild, and the Age of Shadows came to an end, and the world it left behind was forever shaped by the memories of evil.