Greyfen

The Thousand Years war

  Eons ago, as soon as the world was formed, a rivalry between light & dark took seed among the disparate lifeforms upon the land. As it does in every tale, this rivalry grew until each living person was faced with a choice to choose one or the other. Thus, was the “Thousand Years War” born on Greyfen. Seasons would come and go; nations would rise and fall; generations would be born, grow old, and die away to be forgotten to time immemorial; but the war raged ever onward.   It is unclear exactly how long this war actually lasted, because the records from that time are incredibly scarce. However, we know the exact moment when the war ended. For it is an event that every living being on Greyfen would never forget. An ancient prophecy discovered by scholars, spoke an incredible magic spell which would unite all people. These scholars threw themselves into further research, and finally discovered the details of the spell prophesied of. In an attempt to wipe out the darkness forever, the Magicians on the side of the light came together to cast this spell, which they had assumed would end the war, and give the people an opportunity to unite together. The spell worked, but not in the way these magicians intended. For in that moment, every man, woman, and child of all the races, were instantly and permanently blinded from any and all sight. Thus began “The Dark Times”    

The Dark Times

  Not only was every person in the world blind, but every new babe born into this now dark world, also cursed with the affliction wrought by the Magicians. The world was thrown into utter chaos as every individual struggled to survive and adjust to this new malady. But to the Magicians credit, their spell worked. The “Thousand Years war” was brought to an abrupt end.   The struggle to survive was immense, and while most of the population perished under the ushering in of “The Dark Times”, those that survived the newly brought blindness, came together. And though their eyes were blind, for the first time in history, were able to look past the differences that had kept their opposing forces separate since time immemorial. For in a world where no man could see, what difference was there between those who sought out either light or dark?   Prejudice gave way to cooperation. While larger populations couldn’t be supported on a mass scale, causing large cities to fall into disrepair and eventually haunted ruins; smaller communities of people banded together to help and care for one another. The survivors found a new way of life as they progressed from surviving, to growing, and finally thriving under their new conditions. Written language in braille format became everyday occurrence. Well maintained roads became the lifeblood of trade in between communities.   Life carried on this way for [hundreds of years]. Generations born into the blind world, without ever questioning what it would be like to see. Eventually, most of those who saw at one point in their life passed on into the great beyond. The remaining survivors of the original blinding event, the older Dwarves, Elves and Gnomes became recluse, still jarred by their malady, after the rest of the world moved on never knowing what they were missing out on. Occasionally a tale would be told to youngsters about the world before “The Dark Times”, and how their ancestors possessed another sense, one that would allow them to perceive the world around them, that they had no need for their walking canes, and that their books contained nothing to touch. What a strange world that must have been like!  

After Darkness

  “The Dark Times” seem to have ended as abruptly as they began, though it was not noticed until some time later. It was 410 years, 3 months, and 11 days after that spell was cast, that newborn babes had the capacity to see once more. Parent nor child realizing their situation was any different than the other, it was a few years later before it was realized that “The Dark Times” had come to an end. Unfortunately, those times wouldn’t end for those who were blinded by the original event, nor those born during the time frame, for them the blindness was pervasive and incurable.   The newly sighted generations took what their ancestors built and continued to add upon it. Written language was adjusted as the seeing painted lines over the bumpy braille to make reading it faster. Adventure seekers explored the ruins of ancient cities, and would tell tales of the monsters and ghosts that inhabited them. Some cavalier pilgrims even organized parties to clear out revitalize parts of some of the old cities, and new civilization grew from within the bones of the old.   The faces in the world of Greyfen had altered over “The Dark Times”. For in a world struggling to survive, if the person willing to help lend a hand looked any different from you, it wouldn’t have made any difference to you. So it was that the races intermingled, and the hard lines that used to define “Orc”, “Human”, “Elf” and “Dwarf” became descriptive characteristics instead.   It has been 213 years since “The Dark Times” ended, and it is here that our story begins.