Humanoids
first took to the skies prior to the great war when elves learned the secrets
of spelljamming and mankind learned the science of flight. In the great
war, spelljammers flown by elven wizards matched up with the propeller-driven
machines of the humans, each equally matching the other. The magical defenses
of the spelljammers proved more than enough to counter the planes of man.
This advantage was no more once man invented the first atom bomb. With the
destruction of the elven city of Darshariee with a single blast, the elves
entered into talks with the humans, all the while stalling to allow time
for the final preparations for their departure. The pride of the high elves
convinced them that they could pull off an attack disguised as a mission
of peace and finish the humans once and for all. They assembled their most
powerful mages for one final assault, realizing that defeat was the alternative.
The elves
arrived in a single ship. Mages lined the decks and combined their sorcerous
powers weaving a spell of destruction such as the world had never known,
draining them of their very life energies. The resulting rend in the fabric
of the planes sucked the entire mannish capital into the abyss along with
the elven ship. From the abyss poured horrors with a thirst for destruction,
devastating those in their path.
Word was
transmitted to the hidden outposts of the humans on the bor- ders of human
lands. With the memories of loved ones that perished in the elven attack,
the human generals sent out all their planes to destroy the elven cities.
The battled spelljammers with heavy losses, but a formation of five bombers
made it past the heavy defenses to the heart of elven country. They released
their atomic payloads, scoring on their target cities. The elven cities
of Gardeth, Raipah, Shellariah, Dreshdin, and Alladria were but memories
in an instant. This constituted the glory of the elven empire.
The world
suffered greatly from this exchange. The abyss drained the warmth of the
ear into its endless void. Its foul creatures poured out upon the land,
first with the human countries, but soon spreading throughout the world.
Jera became a place where none could enjoy life. Crops died and people
suffered greately. Starvation and disease became the rule. Many of the
northern humans sought refuge underground where they could find shelter
from the intense cold. They said goodbye to the light of day, many of
them forever. They became over the centuries that passed the dwarves.
Many elves
that could not otherwise escape left the dying forests and went beneath
the ground as well, their hatred twisting them into something horrible.
Many of them had suffered from radiation sickness and those that survived
saw with horror what their folly brought upon the next generation. Many
elves were born deformed. Whether it was from the radiation or from the
magical instability caused by the elves none could be sure, but their
skin grew black, in stark contrast to the fair complections of their race.
These became the Drow.
Beneath
the ground this war continued for centuries even to this day. The drow
delved into the forbidden arts of black magic, the brewing of poison,
and even necromancy in their quest to destroy the remains of the humans.
They raided continually against the dwarves and the humans that had escaped
the wrath of the elves.
The elves
gathered up who they could into their remaining spelljamming craft and
lifted to the skies in tears. The songs of generations would mourn the
beauty that was Jera. The elves sailed to the sphere of Baripah, a desert
world where life changed for the elves from a thing of beauty to that
of survival. Though it was a horrible place, it could sustain life much
easier than Jera in its current state. The elves swore to return, but
not until they had amassed magical power sufficient to heal the damage
that they had caused and restore it to its former brilliance.
