Legends and History of Aurea
Forgotten Empires
Under the reign of the Great Empire, much of Aurea's pre-Zetian history was obscured or heavily altered to fit the Imperial narrative of a wild and savage continent tamed by the wisdom and military prowess of the descendants of the Septira. The explosion of more objective scholarship in the Fourth Age of Man has lead to the discovery of kingdoms and vast empires that spanned the continent millennia before Zepharoklos and his brothers founded the fabled city of Zeth.
The Phyrmyran Empire
That giants once ruled central Aurea is no secret, though some human scholars tried to discount the few visible ruins as remnants of a human culture of monument builders. Recently uncovered dwarven records of the War of the Sun, however, record that a race of giants not only lived in the Temesh river valley, but ruled an Empire that stretched from the shores of Sonat Bay to the Two Kings. According to dwarven lore, they built vast cities throughout the region, enslaving other races to their will. It was these ‘Phyrmyrans’ who first built fortifications at the Two Kings, the carvings on which still remain today, some seven millennia later.
Dwarven records claim that these Giants worshiped Mormo as Chagan of the Birchwood Rood and, though they briefly allied with the dwarves against the humans of Aurea, they soon betrayed the dwarves and took both humans and dwarves as slaves. Their leader at this time was the Tyrant Hiranya, though there are few specifics about Hiranya, why he betrayed his dwarven allies and even where his seat of power lay.
Though most ruins of the Phyrmyran Empire have long since turned to dust, the foundations of the Two Kings and the Ruins of the Granite Lords are the two their most famous remains. It is said that the highlands of the Moldogoi Hills and the Negruja Hills still hide giant-sized labyrinths and, for the daring or foolish, giant-sized hordes of gold from an all-but forgotten age.
The Decleam
Some time during the Second Age of Man, it is believed that a group of free humans invaded (or migrated into) the Temesh River valley from the west. The Decleam (or “Dog People”, because much of their remaining architecture depicts canines) seem to have migrated into the region more or less peacefully and it is generally assumed that the Phyrmyran Empire had long since collapsed, though there is an ancient legend of a giant King, known as Elatha, taking a human bride named Eri from one of the tribes of Decleam, who gave birth to a half-giant known as Bres. According to druidic folklore, a half-giant named Bres the Beautiful became ruler of the Tuatha de Dannan for a time during the Long Night, before being deposed by Nuada. Though many druids believe these to be the same figure, some historians suggest that Bres may have simply been a title of giant-blooded rulers of the Decleam passed down through generations.
Some ruins of the Decleam still remain in Dracia, including several henges in the Dracian Wood. It is believed that even more of these henges exist in the deepest, darkest part of the Wood and may contain portals to Otherworld or, at the least, demark places of power that wizards or druids can use to their advantage.
The Aurean Empire
Four hundred years before the foundation of Zeth by the Septira, the human tribes of southern Aurea were united under the banner of the legendary Lars Tarsca to fight against the goblin hordes of the Antasian Mountains. Originally based in the sprawling trade city of Vatluna in the southern foothills of the range, the Aurean Empire spanned from the Two Kings on the northern edge of Dracia southward, encompassing almost as much territory as the Great Empire before its demise at the conclusion of the Third Age of Man.
The Aurean Empire is believed to have been a very loose confederation of tribes dominated by the so-called Icosapoli or 'Twenty Cities' spread throughout the region. Despite being known for mining copper and iron in the Antasian Mountains, the Aureans were poor masons and the vast majority of their structures are believed to have been made of wood and long since disintegrated.
As the Aurean Empire waned, its territory diminished greatly, mostly to assertions of independence by the various Icosapoli. By the foundation of Zeth in 631 BI, the capital had moved to Kortona and had devolved into the Kingdom of Ganesia. By 478 BI, Ganesia had been conquered by the rapidly-expanding Kingdom of Zeth and the final remnant of the Aurean Empire was brought under the reigns of a new Empire.
The Third Age of Man
The Dark Times
The Fourth Age of Man
The Fourth Age of Man on Aurea
| This article is part of the Player's Guide to Aurea | |
|
Introduction · Economics and Trade · Legends and History · Religion · Regions and Realms | |
| Legends and History of Aurea | |
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Forgotten Empires · The Third Age of Man · The Dark Times · The Fourth Age of Man |
