Skaalmark

The **Skaalmark** is located on the continent of Wendos, bordered by Zweisslûnd to the north, Astafall to the east, the Ash Sea to the south and The Pale to the west. It is a realm shrouded in mystery and darkness. None dare travel through The Skaalmark, as it is said to be home foul creatures beyond imagination. Rumour has it that The Skaalmark is dominated by cults of necromancy, aristocratic vampire families and savage packs of werewolves.

## History

### **The Agamari Elves**

From the First Light, the lands of the Skaalmark were entrusted to the Agamari Elves. These elves lived according to their divine purpose for over five and half thousand years before they encountered the first humans to enter the region.

### **The Vaerg Migrations**

In the 7th century 6E humans started to migrate south, into Skaalmark, from The Hinmar. These human tribes were known as the Vaerg Culture. These primitive humans were largely nomadic, occasionally constructing small settlements and burial mounds.

At first, the Agamari were content to let these new creatures pass through their lands, but the the Vaerg soon came into conflict with the elves. The Vaerg started hunting the animals of the land and tearing down trees to build tools and shelter. The elves, tasked to be protectors of the land, took offense to this and started attacking the Vaerg tribes.

### **The Vaergo-Agamari Wars**

Throughout the later half of the 6th era, The Agamari and Vaerg continued to skirmish with each other. These conflicts never amounted to much, as both cultures lived in small communities that had little to no contact with each other. This started to change in the early 7th era, as the Vaerg started to form into larger community groups. Up until this point, most conflicts between the elves and humans were rather one-sided. The Agamari knew their lands well and carried out devastating raids against the Vaerg. This started to change as these new tribes started to work together to fight against the Agamari.

Over the next few hundred years, the human populations grew further and the Agamari started to dwindle. Their sacred forests were torn down by the humans as towns and hill-forts began to spring up across the land.

### **The Blood Curse**

In the 3rd century 7E, the Agamari were at breaking point. Most of the forest homes had been invaded and destroyed and their population was dwindling. The last leader of the Agamari, an elf whose name is lost of history, saw that his people were on the edge of extinction and sought drastic measures. He summoned the greatest sorcerers in the land to help weave a spell that would aid them against the humans. They practised forbidden blood magic and engaged with dark powers in order to save their people. At last, when the Vaerg were besieging the last Agamari grove, the mages unleashed their spell to save their people. The magic that was unleashed did just that, but at a terrible price. This spell was later named The Blood Curse.

### **The Purge of Skaalmark**

The magic that was unleashed cursed and blighted the land. The attacking humans took on a feral and bestial form. In their rage they turned on each other, tearing and biting at the flesh of their former allies. Those that survived fled from the forest, forming into small family groups. These packs of wolf-men roamed the countryside, hunting and feasting upon any animals or humans they encountered.

The Agamari thought themselves victorious and celebrated the withdrawal of the attackers. But as they drank and feasted, they noticed that food did not satisfy their hunger and water did not quench their thirst. They started to become pale and weak. They avoided sunlight and only came out at night. As the hunger and thirst grew, they became desperate. They tried everything until at last it was revealed that they could only be satiated by blood. The Agamari then started to attack human settlements, capturing the townsfolk and draining them of their blood. The vampiric elves soon realised that they could not maintain the appetites with such raiding and they needed a steady supply of food. To this end, they began to keep the humans like cattle, draining enough blood to feed but not enough to kill them.

As the wolf-men and Agamari hunted the remaining humans, the curse started to affect the land itself. Thick clouds covered the sky and the land grew cold and dark. Sinister mists slithered through the pine forests, whispering to any who got caught in them. As the the blight spread, the ancient burial mounds of the Vaerg started to stir. Those long dead emerged from the ground and wandered the world once more.

Over the next 500 years, the human population dwindled. The Agamari, who once worked together to survive, began to turn on one another. The vampires learnt to control the wandering undead and used them as foot soldiers to wage war against their kin. The lycanthrope packs continued to roam the country, hunting and killing whatever they could find, even each other.