The Encyclopedia of Lynncair

In the beginning of time, many immortal creatures--creatures that we now refer to as the Gods--walked the lands of Lynncair. Each of these beings possessed power-enough to level an army of today's most powerful mortal warriors or magic-wielders, for the Gods could call upon a magic that far surpassed the kind that we use today; the magic of the Gods was the Power Superior, the same power that the Archenchanters later learned to channel. With the Power Superior, the Gods shaped the world as we know it.

The conflict known now as "The Godswar" began when Illarian, the God of Life, wished to use the Power Superior to create a race of creatures known as humans. When Illarian revealed his plans to the rest of the Gods, his peers' responses varied; some, like Tyakan, Tsikara, and Azarban, were supportive of Illarian's proposal, yet many of the other powerful Gods opposed such an undertaking; Magarus and Berangar were among Illarian's chief opposition, stating that he was mad to create another group of sentient beings and that these new creatures would inevitably challenge the authority of the Gods. As the debate grew more and more heated, tempers began to rise and distinct sides were taken; Xiatana and Merustris, two usually neutral entities, sided with Magarus and Berangar in their campaign against humanity, evening the playing field numerically.

Notably absent from the debates, however, were Lord Nightmare and Culamon--the latter, who was lacking somewhat in intelligence, often simply went along with Lord Nightmare's plans. As soon as the Prince of Dreams heard of Illarian's proposal, he immediately decided to steal Illarian's idea, but to twist it to fit his own devices; Illarian had proposed a race be created that would have its own free will to populate the earth alongside the Gods, yet Lord Nightmare decided that a race of similar creatures that were, instead, enslaved and under his supreme command would be infinitely more convenient. And so, unbeknownst to the rest of the Gods, the Prince of Dreams--aided by Culamon--spent his time experimenting with the creation of a new race while the others argued over whether such an act would be appropriate.

Finally, both sides of the debate grew impatient and decided to take matters into their own hands. Illarian began to put the final touches on his new race before being able to breath life into them; meanwhile, Berangar was, characteristically, the first to strike out with violence. He ambushed Tsikara in a grove in her forest to the North of Lynncair; while she was initially caught off guard, Tsikara countered by calling the creatures of the forest to her side to aid her against the God of War. Even then, his onslaught was too fierce; the stone floor of Tsikara's grove-temple ran red with her blood that day. Tsikara was the first God to die.

Tsikara's death spurred others to take action. Tyakan stormed into the War God's citadel and, with the aid of Azarban, overcame Berangar, thus avenging Tsikara's death. After slaying Berangar, the two Gods set off immediately for Xiatana's pyramid in the center of the Great Desert; unfortunately for them, Xiatana had anticipated their arrival and called Magarus and Merustris to her side. At the end of the tremendous conflict that ensued, Xiatana had killed Azarban and Tyakan had killed Magarus before being driven off by Merustris and Xiatana together. The explosion that ensued with Magarus' death leveled Xiatana's pyramid, and Azarban's simultaneous demise is said to be the cause of the great amount of gold and treasure said to lie in the underground caverns of the pyramid to this day.

After the Battle of the Desert, therefore, Tyakan and Illarian remained on one side, while Xiatana and Merustris still opposed them on the other. When Tyakan returned to Illarian's side and informed him of what had happened, Illarian resolved to rush to complete the creation of his new race, so that the deaths of his friends would not be in vain. The Prince of Dreams, in the meantime, had failed to find a way to craft life--as such, he decided to spy on Illarian, and hoped to steal his secret. Lord Nightmare sent his ally, Culamon, to "remove" Illarian so that he would be able to have access to Illarian's home and experiment. Just as he was creating mankind, Illarian was distracted by Culamon's arrival on the scene; Culamon took his master's order to heart, and, in an epic confrontation, took on both Illarian and Tyakan as Illarian uttered the last words of the creation ceremony. Culamon slew Illarian and sent Tyakan fleeing back to his abode in the clouds; this gave the Prince of Dreams the opportunity to corrupt some of Illarian's humans, whom hadn't been "made whole" by their original creator due to his premature death.

At this point, the tide turned against the Prince of Dreams. Xiatana and Merustris, suddenly aware of the Prince of Dreams' vile actions, decided that, since Illarian had already created the race, the only option remaining for them was to oppose the Prince of Dreams' abominations. Both of them came to Tyakan's fortress in the clouds and worked out a truce; then, the trio assailed the Prince of Dreams and Culamon together in what would be the last great battle of the Godswar. Tyakan, Xiatana and Merustris were able to jointly overcome Culamon and they destroyed him utterly, though not before he killed Xiatana. The Prince of Dreams, realizing that he was outmatched without Culamon's great strength, attempted to flee Lynncair, to the North; Tyakan and Merustris, working together and combining their respective masteries over the wind and the sea, gave chase. The fate of these three Gods is undocumented, and remains a mystery that scholars puzzle over to this day. It is commonly thought that Tyakan slew the Prince of Dreams in one final showdown, during which Lord Nightmare defeated Merustris, and that Tyakan was the only God to survive the Godswar; some speculate that he returned to Lynncair and still lives up in his fortress in the clouds.

Unfortunately, the end of the Godswar marked only the beginning of a much larger, more terrible conflict...for on Lynncair remained the races of men created by Illarian, some of whom had been tainted and twisted by the Prince of Dreams. These two peoples felt an immediate deep-sown hatred for each other, and, without leadership from their Gods and Creators, waged a terrible, bloody war.

Ultimately, in parallel to the conflict between the Prince of Dreams and Illarian, Illarian's purer race drove off the corrupted race of Lord Nightmare, who, like their creator, fled North, never to be heard from again. Today, Lynncair is populated by the descendants of Illarian's pure race of humans.