The Battle of Frostsvale
The battle of Frostsvale is a legend passed down through generations of valehunters. It serves as a reminder of the cost of hunting demons as well as the origin story of the valehunters' sacred valley.
Summary
A long time ago, Frost the Flameslayer was the most powerful and elusive adversary of the demon hunters. He terrorized the land for three hundred years, killing hundreds of hunters who had tried to stop him.
However, the demon had much larger goals in mind. Frost had determined to ascend to the ranks of the Archdemons and take his place among the Ivory Court. He eventually discovered a ritual that could open up a gateway to the Abyss and infuse him with the power of an Archdemon.
After years of fighting and losses, the hunters gathered together to make one final stand against the demon and prevent him from ascending to godhood. They tracked him down to his underground shelter in the Jademouth valley, where they discovered that Frost had already summoned an army of aberrations to guard him in anticipation of their attack.
The two sides clashed in a battle that raged for hours. Fire and magic exploded from both sides, leaving not a single tree standing in the entire valley. Minutes before the demon would finish his incantation, three hunters managed to break through the hoard of monsters.
They were Hiroki Ishida, leader of the demon hunters, Sho Tanihara his closest friend and a renowned warrior, and Priya Sharda, Ishida's former apprentice and trusted lieutenant. The three rushed towards the center of the ritual circle to kill the Flameslayer.
Unbeknownst to the other hunters however, Tanihara had already betrayed the order and warned the demon of their approach on the valley. Just as Ishida was about to reach the demon and end the battle, his former friend killed him and then turned on Sharda. The two fought, and though Sharda eventually emerged victorious, it was only seconds after Frost had spoken the final words of the incantation into the smoke filled air.
A tear between worlds opened up around the ritual circle, and the Abyss poured through into the valley. Massive shards of black glass rained down on the surviving hunters and monsters alike. Frost was flooded by the vast essence of the Abyss, and both he and Sharda were pulled into its grasp.
In one last desperate attempt to stop Frost, Sharda sacrificed her own soul to the Abyss in order to bind the ascended Archdemon far from the surviving hunters. Bound in a distant and unknown land, Frost the Archdemon of Chains waits and grows his power in anticipation of the day that he can escape his prison.
Historical Basis
"Why does everyone assume that Frost survived the Abyss? It's been hundreds of years now. Surely if he became an Archdemon he would have found a way to come back to Frostsvale by now to finish us off."
"Perhaps he is dead. But isn't it better to remain wary and vigilant than to succumb to complacency?"
Most of the legend is based on fact. There was a battle between the valehunters and Frost's summoned aberrations in the Jademouth Valley. The cavern that forms part of the valehunters' grotto had been used as a shelter by Frost as he was preparing for his ascension ritual. The black glassy spires that pierce through the ground across the valley are monuments of the moment the Abyss broke through into the natural world.
Variations & Mutation
The events after Frost and Sharda are pulled into the Abyss are unclear. However, the Archdemon of Chains has never returned to the valley, leading many to believe he was trapped somewhere else. Most valehunters choose to assume that Frost is alive and prepare for a possible second battle against the ascended Archdemon.
The motivation for Tanihara to betray his fellow hunters is also debated. Some believe that Frost had offered to make him an immortal Archdemon as well. Others suggest that the demon had threatened him or someone close to him if he did not comply. However, in most variations of the legend Tanihara's motivation is considered irrelevant as nothing would have excused his actions in the eyes of the valehunters.
Rebirth From the Ashes
After the battle in Frost's valley, the demon hunters chose to repurpose the demon's former underground shelter into a resting place of the dead. They carved out several additional rooms to form the valehunters' grotto and agreed to gather there every summer solstice to commemorate the fallen.
Gradually, the annual ceremonies became opportunities to hold important meetings and initiate new apprentices as well. Frostsvale became one of the few recognized meeting places for the normally solitary wandering hunters, and its origin grew to become an integral part of their shared legends. The order even began referring to themselves as valehunters rather than simply demon hunters.
The First Fallen Blackwood
After the raging battle, all trees in the valley had been felled or consumed by flame. To commemorate all of the brave hunters who had died fighting against the demon, the survivors planted a single blackwood tree on the spot where their leader Ishida had fallen. This tree became the first Fallen Blackwood and remained the only tree throughout most of Frostsvale.
When the blackwood finally died, the valehunters planted a second sapling in its place. This tradition has continued ever since and represents the rise of new hunters who will always carry on the work of those who have gone before.
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