War of the Five

The War of the Five was a series of conflicts fought across Excaria between the dwarves of Aul-Duroth'Tahr, the ancient pre-imperial Humans of the Human Realms, the High-Elves of the Sil'darean Republic, the Feyed Eladrin of Tel'Ar Mil and the Shortfolk of Eromir Gnoa. It started 10'000 years before Stormfall and the exact series of events is lost to history. Later Imperial scholars however believed that the war started when a band of thieves breached the vaults of Kuh'Karakzath, capital of Aul-Duroth'Tahr and stole the Duroth'Zuhl, a legendary gemstone found in the depths of The World Spring and supposedly had the power to create live. The dwarves believed it to be the source of their creation and their most holy artefact. Even though no one knows where the thieves came from or where they went, the armies of the outraged Dwarves descended from their mountain homes for the very first time in their history. They attacked and pillaged their neighbours, the pre-imperial Humans and Shortfolk, who in turn raised their armies and begun to march. Within a few short years all five great societies of the day were fighting a total war with each other, leading to unprecedented suffering and carnage.
The War of the Five lasted for almost 1'000 years, the Duroth'Zuhl was never found but the war carried on despite that, perpetuated by its own scale. Each side committing atrocities to avenge previous atrocities, which in turn invites another horrible reprisal. The war ended abruptly, the exhausted mortals would have kept fighting until only one side was still standing but that very war and the suffering it caused, spawned The Umbral Lords and brought about The Endtimes.