The Grey Wardens

The Grey Wardens are an order of warriors of exceptional ability dedicated to fighting the darkspawn throughout Thedas. They are one of the main heroic factions of the Dragon Age series.
They are known for ignoring their recruit's racial, social, national, and even criminal background so long as they are skilled enough to fight darkspawn.
They have been instrumental in saving Thedas from numerous darkspawn blights.
==History==
===Founding===
The Grey Wardens were founded in the year 305 of the Ancient Age during the First Blight. During this time, the whole of Thedas was locked in a brutal war against the darkspawn horde. They were originally a band of veteran warriors who came together in Weisshaupt Fortress in the Anderfels, the western part of the Tevinter Imperium. Their leader, Carinus lead them on a crusade against the darkspawn, sacrificing everything that was important to them in the process, including their families.
One of their members, Nakiri of The Donark forest, suggested consuming the darkspawn blood in order to gain their power (something his people were well known to do). Tevinter mages in the group added to this knowledge, and elven slaves also contributed ancient knowledge from Arlathan in return for being freed from their slavery after the blight. It was from this that the ancient grey warden ritual of "The Joining" was created where new recruits would drink the blood of darkspawn, mixed with lyrium, and a drop of blood from an archdemon, and gain the ability to sense them when they were nearby. Few could survive the ritual however, and those who did had their lifespan shortened due to the taint. "The Joining" symbolically cut their ties to all worldly concerns, in order to dedicate themselves to fighting the darkspawn. They then adopted the name Grey Wardens, and would accept anyone, no matter their race or background, without distinction if only deemed suitable to join the order.
===First Victory and Ending the First Blight===
The Wardens first appeared on the field of battle during an attack on the city of Nordbotten, mounted on griffons, plunging into the darkspawn with each Warden taking on crowds of ten or twenty darkspawn at once. They managed to successfully break the horde and win the battle. To the people of Thedas, they became a ray of hope in the darkest of hours, and quickly gained renown. The griffon mounts they rode on became highly revered among the wardens and thus were adopted as their symbol. The Grey Wardens started receiving tithes, supplies, and recruits from all lands; they grew, building fortresses and functioning as elite shock troops making quick and devastating strikes on the darkspawn hordes, as well as rallying the mundane armies to greater deeds.
Over the course of 100 years, the Grey Wardens helped to beat back the evil darkspawn hordes until the year -203 Ancient (992 TE), the Grey Wardens, along with an army allied army composed of soldiers from the Tevinter Imperium, the tribes of the Ciraine (the lands that would become Orlais), and Rivain, confronted the main darkspawn horde and the archdemon leading them, the Dragon God Dumat (formerly the Tevinter god of silence). After a long and bloody battle, the Grey Wardens finally slew Dumat and the rest of the horde lost its will to fight. Over the next seven years, the wardens eradicated the remaining darkspawn and were raised to legendary status and most nations gave formal promises of support for further darkspawn invasions. Among the tithes that were given to them was also the Right of Conscription which allowed them to draft anyone they wanted into their ranks.
=== The Second Blight ===
200 years after their victory over the darkspawn, in the year 1:5 Divine age, another of the ancient dragon gods,  Zazikel, the god of chaos & freedom, was awakened and corrupted by the darkspawn taint. The new archdemon immediately began leading the darkspawn horde on another warpath against the rest of Thedas and thus began the Second Blight.
The Horde's first target was Nordbotten, the city where the Grey Wardens won their first major victory against the darkspawn. The city was completely ransacked and destroyed, causing the Tevinter Imperium to withdraw from Anderfels to protect its own land. The Anderfels area was in much trouble, and even the Grey Warden headquarters in Weisshaupt came under siege by the darkspawn.
Luckily, the newly founded Orlesian Empire sent its armies to assist the wardens. Led by Emperor Kordillus Drakon I, they won several victories against the darkspawn before ending the siege of Weisshaupt fortress in 1:33 Divine. Together, both the Grey Wardens and the Orlesian armies successfully drove the darkspawn out of Anderfels. Anderfels became part of the Orlesian Empire and The Grey Wardens converted to The Chantry.
In the following decades, The Grey Wardens continued to drive back the darkspawn until the year 1:33 Divine when the Grey Warden warrior, Corin confronted & slayed the archdemon at Starkhaven in the Free Marches, sacrificing himself in the process & ending the Second Blight.
=== The Third Blight ===
In the year 3:10 Towers age, 115 years after Zazikel was slain, another Blight began. This time, the Archdemon leading the Darkspawn was Toth, the former dragon god of fire. The initial attacks occurred in central Thedas in Tevinter and Orlais. However, despite the hordes being larger than those of the previous two blights, The Grey Wardens managed to organise a rapid defense and successfully hold them back.
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