Sarpadian Empires

Sarpadian Empires is a seven-volume tome that depicts the fall of the five dominant kingdoms of Sarpadia on Dominaria.
==Description==
A vast amount of Sarpadia's history is told through its pages and excerpts are found throughout numerous cards in Fallen Empires. Originally, a mere history text, when found during the Time Spiral crisis it had taken on magical properties capable of summoning creatures from the past.
*Vol. I was a basic collection of history setting the context for the set.
*Vol. II dealt with the Order of the Ebon Hand and their creations the thrulls, the cause of their eventual downfall.
*Vol. III told a similar story of the Havenwood elves and their creations the thallids.
*Vol. IV chronicles the orc and goblin attacks on the dwarves and Icatia.
*Vol. V describes the plight of the merfolk as they are driven out of their lands by the homarids' migration to warmer climes.
*Vol. VI told the final chapter of Sarpadia as the final kingdom, Icatia, fell.
*Vol. VII showed that history truly can come alive.
==In-game references==
Most excerpts from the Sarpadian Empires were presented through flavor text on cards in the Fallen Empires set, which have been supplemented by a few additional cards in subsequent years. The following represents every excerpt from Sarpadian Empires in Magic.
Excerpt 	Volume 	Card Source
"Although fragile, the aeolipile could be quite destructive." 	Vol. I 	<c>Aeolipile</c>
"Not all armies enjoyed the services of a medic. For them, Balm of Restoration was that much more valuable." 	Vol. I 	<c>Balm of Restoration</c>
"Although the Dwarves staunchly defended their walled city-states against the Orcs, their civilization was the first to fall, and its name was sadly lost." 	Vol. I 	
"Born and bred of fungus, thallids were nearly impossible to kill." 	Vol. I 	<c>Feral Thallid</c>
"The cooling climate forced the Elves to experiment with new food sources." 	Vol. I 	
"Orcish armies often employed the smaller, swifter, and less intelligent Goblins as spies." 	Vol. I 	
"Trained to battle the followers of Tourach, the Order of Leitbur was not as successful in later conflicts with orcish and goblin raiders." 	Vol. I 	<c>Order of Leitbur</c>
"Initially bred for sacrifice, the thrulls eventually turned on their masters, the Order of the Ebon Hand, with gruesome results." 	Vol. II 	<c>Basal Thrull</c>
"The derelor's greatest contribution to the Ebon Hand was the inspirational effect its creator's execution had upon the other thrull breeders." 	Vol. II 	
"The eerie, wailing Hymn caused insanity even in hardened warriors." 	Vol. II 	
"Tourach's power was such that his followers deified him after his death." 	Vol. II 	
"Many Initiates sacrificed a hand to become full members of the Order." 	Vol. II 	
"Until the Rebellion, thrulls served their masters faithfully—even at the cost of their own lives." 	Vol. II 	<c>Thrull Retainer</c>
"In crafting intelligent Thrulls to assist in sacrifices, Sahr inadvertently set the stage for the Thrull Rebellion." 	Vol. II 	<c>Thrull Wizard</c>
"The size of the obvious Fortress walls often misled foes. Actually, the Elves enchanted the forest itself to provide the first line of defense with tangling vines and stinging thorns." 	Vol. III	<c>Elven Fortress</c>
"Elves often tipped their arrows with a drug that caused a deep but harmless sleep." 	Vol. III	
"As the climate cooled, many elves turned to thallid farming for food, while the hunters honed their skills on what little game remained." 	Vol. III	
"Thallids could absorb energy from the forest itself. Even elves were at a disadvantage in fighting them." 	Vol. III	<c>Fungal Bloom</c>
"There were often more Thallids after a battle than before." 	Vol. III	
"The identifying ornamental growths of alpha thallids may be hereditary, or catalyzed by some chemical signal." 	Vol. III	<c>Sporecrown Thallid</c>
"As the climate worsened, some Thelonites turned to fertilizing with fresh blood in an attempt to keep Havenwood alive and growing." 	Vol. III	<c>Thelonite Monk</c>
"The danger in cultivating massive plants caught the elves by surprise." 	Vol. III	
"Scholars still debate whether the Thallids were truly sentient." 	Vol. III	
"When their community grows cluttered, thallids begin a traditional bobbing dance, then trek out in all directions." 	Vol. III	<c>Yavimaya Sapherd</c>
"The Brassclaws delighted in lightning raids on Icatian and Dwarven towns; an unprepared enemy is easier to defeat." 	Vol. IV 	
"Brassclaws were typical Orcs—quick to laud their own prowess in battle, quick to jeer at their opponents, and quicker still to run away when things started to look slightly dangerous." 	Vol. IV 	
"The large brass claws worn by some Sarpadian Orc tribes were among the least feared weapons ever known." 	Vol. IV 	
"The few remaining pieces from this period suggest the Dwarves eventually made weapons and armor out of everything, even children's toys." 	Vol. IV 	<c>Dwarven Armorer</c>
"Often greatly outnumbered in battle, dwarves relied on catapults as one means of damaging a large army." 	Vol. IV 	<c>Dwarven Catapult</c>
"Dwarven officers were tireless in battle, moving up and down the lines to rally their troops and boost morale." 	Vol. IV 	<c>Dwarven Lieutenant</c>
"They'd pour out of the warrens to make war (and to make room for the littering matrons)." 	Vol. IV 	
"According to accepted theory, the grenade held some kind of flammable mixture and was carried to its target by a hapless goblin." 	Vol. IV 	
"Without their massive numbers, the Goblins could never have launched such a successful offensive." 	Vol. IV 	
"It was difficult to tell whether the piles of gore within their warrens were mere trash heaps, sacred altars, or warnings." 	Vol. IV 	
"The Goblins' dreaded War Drums struck terror into the hearts of even their bravest foes." 	Vol. IV 	
"Goblins bred underground, their numbers hidden from the enemy until it was too late." 	Vol. IV 	<c>Goblin Warrens</c>
"By the time their enemies noticed the sea's changing mood, the Vodalians had often shifted formation and were ready to attack." 	Vol. V 	
"Dwelling in icy mountain streams near goblin and orcish foes, the river merfolk were known for their stoicism." 	Vol. V 	<c>River Merfolk</c>
"Early Vodalians worshipped Svyelun, goddess of the Pearl Moon. Later she became a more abstract figure." 	Vol. V 	<c>Svyelunite Priest</c>
"Vodalian Soldiers had some unique advantages. Often they would ride into battle on war machines rumored to have come from the far northern oceans." 	Vol. V 	
"The cooling climate introduced a new threat to Vodalia: the Homarids. Once a minor nuisance, they thrived in the changing environment. Their ceaseless attacks strained Vodalia's defenses to their limit, eventually overwhelming the empire."	Vol. V 	
"Although Icatia's Combat Medics borrowed much of their knowledge from other societies, their skills were their own." 	Vol. VI 	
"Without combat medics, Icatia would probably not have withstood the forces of chaos as long as it did." 	Vol. VI 	
"Valiant Icatia was the last of the Sarpadian empires to fall. Its faithful soldiers defended their cities to the very end." 	Vol. VI 	<c>Icatian Infantry</c>
"Because the orc hordes attacked along the entire border, Scouts were essential to Icatia's defense." 	Vol. VI 	<c>Icatian Scout</c>
"Orcs often greeted promotions to Icatian battle with anguished wails and pleas for mercy." 	Vol. VI 	<c>Orcish Veteran</c>
"There are intriguing similarities between the Order and Icatia's Leitbur religion, suggesting the two had a common origin." 	Vol. VI 	
The last known volume, volume VII, was represented in its namesake card: 
*<c>Sarpadian Empires, Vol. VII</c>
==Inspiration==
Sarpadian Empires is a reference to The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, a seminal 18th-century work which chronicled the end of Roman Empire over six volumes (note that Sarpadian Empires was canonically six volumes until <c>Sarpadian Empires, Vol. VII</c> was printed in Time Spiral).
==References==
Category:Artifacts
Category:In-multiverse works