Aurora's Tales: The History of the Valley Elves

       Thousands of years ago, my people entered the Vale and made it our home. We were accepted by the Seldarine as elves, and lived in peace for many centuries. Then the Elfwars began, and everyone turned on the drow, except for the Vale. My people chose not to participate in this war, for not all drow were guilty of the crimes they were accused of. We saw them as our kin still, and we refused to turn on them, which made all other elves, including the drow, turn their backs to us. If that was not bad enough, the Seldarine even turned their backs to us, wanting nothing to do with the only race of elves who refused to fight.

       Our druids sealed the entrance to the Vale, by making the Dim Forest grow to cover the only safe entrance to the valley. Since we were now hated almost as much as the drow, our king decided it would be best to awaken the forest, to help keep unwanted people from wandering in. The forest had always been home to ferocious magical, and non-magical, beasts and awakening them made the Dim Forest one of the most feared places in the south. The Pandarans still reigned over the Barrier Peaks at that time, so they king felt that the mountain range surrounding us was well protected.

       The myths, for that is all that's left, say that the king bound our people as a whole to some manifestation of Chaos, and that is why the other elves and their gods turned their backs to us. The Vale was once called the Valley of Chaos, due to this manifestation of chaos, and it is still a very chaotic place to be. Some say that there is a foreboding presence in the Vale, brought forth by negative energy that dwells there, though I know no one alive today has ever recorded feeling such a presence. Portals and gateways randomly open throughout the Vale, leading to strange worlds and bringing the strange beasts that roam our lands with them. Every Child of the Vale is born with a birthmark, said to symbolize the king's pledge; this mark allows us to travel throughout the Vale unmolested by the beasts, communicate over long distances, and kill us- though we think the first Mage caused the latter. The mark is only supposed to kill us if we're captured and cannot escape in an undetermined amount of time; we believe the first Mage laid this curse on us when he was forcing us to raid neighboring countries. 

       It is a faint rumor that Vecna comes from the Vale, and that he is the entity of Chaos we're bound to- that's just silly though. The King would never have bound us to the lichgod. 

       For a time my people lived in peace and solitude. Eventually gnomes tunneled in through the Peaks, and desired to join our isolated land. The king allowed them, because the gnomes would bring us trade, and they were excellent miners. Humans trickled in over the years with the gnomes, and they joined our society as well. We took in many during the Great Migration who could not find homes elsewhere.

       After a few centuries of my people living in solitude, the king decided that enough was enough, He thought that we had isolated ourselves too much, and it was time to rejoin the world. So our beloved king packed himself and his court, and headed out of the Valley. We know that he spent a couple of months in the Duchy of Geoff, our closest neighbors who we have always had a good trading relationship with, and he was last seen entering the mountains with the promise that he would return when he found a way for us to get back into the Seldarine's favor. There is a prophecy that he will return to us when he has found a way for us to go "home," though no one has ever been entirely sure of the meaning of that. Though after being banished by the drow cunt of Vecna, I believe I have found the home he referred to, but I don't know how to get back there without being banished. No one ever saw or heard from him or anyone of in his court again. I've always wondered what happened to our king, and hope to learn of his fate before I return home.

       It is said that the king bestowed upon the Grand Duke of Geoff an oak chest that contained sacred artifacts, and scrolls dating back to the beginning of my people. The Duke swore an oath to our king, one that included his entire line of descendants, that stated he would protect the sacred relics and history of the Vale until the One True King returned to his people. I did attempt to find it when I went to Geoff, but the ninth daughter of a clan chief doesn't hold as much weight outside of my valley; I was never granted audience with the Duke. I suspect everything has been destroyed by now though, this was almost three hundred years ago. 

       Life in the Vale continued on until about a month after the king vanished into the mountains. He had taken his court with him, a court that consisted of the powerful wizards and druids who managed the Vale's defenses. Suddenly we were left unprotected. The spells they used to shield us were beginning to dwindle, because they required upkeep and no one was left to keep them going. My people spiraled into anarchy and Chaos, which is likely the true reason for the Vale's old name. Suddenly the fearsome beasts who had always protected us, began attacking at random. But no one could leave. Anyone who tried to leave was found dead and bloodied, or never seen again. Rumors began to circulate that we could not live outside of the Vale, because of the oath the king of old had made to Chaos. From what I understand, this is still believed both in and out of the Vale; we don't leave it much, most of my people see little point in doing so- most other races despise us, so living outside our valley can be taxing.

       When we thought all hope was lost, Jaran Krimeeah entered our valley. Krimeeah was a wizard from the Great Kingdom, who had been exiled and came to the Vale seeking a new home. The talents that exiled him from his old home, made him accepted and beloved in his new home. Krimeeah had done much experimenting in planar control and summoning; he was able to take control of the beasts roaming the Vale, and stop them from randomly attacking us. He saved us all, and was rewarded by being made the ruler of the Vale; which was renamed the Valley of the Mage in his honor. The titles "The Exalted One," "The Black One," and "The Mage" were bestowed upon him. These titles are still used by our rulers today.

       Krimeeah brought with him a female drow, who became his Enforcer- no one has ever learned her name. She ran all military defenses, both magical and mundane. Everything went well for a while, and life seemed to return to normal. While music remained the main tool for teaching, Krimeeah gave us little time to play for enjoyment; this is when being a bard started to become undesirable- only those who had lived a long life were permitted into the college.

       Though unbeknownst to the Mage, many of my people wanted our king back, and began seeking information on their rare treks to the outside world. Those who remembered the king found the Black One to be tyrannical, and wanted to be free of his grasp. He would frequently unleash his monsters on those who he felt defied him; so the movement to displace him fell deep underground. Such things were spoken of in hushed tones, for the Mage had eyes everywhere. My people were forced to participate in raids on Geoff and the small villages that lined the Dim Forest. Though we never took gold, slaves, or other treasures- we took basic necessities of living, like grain and cloth. Resources had become scarce during our time of Chaos, and that was the only was the Mage would let us rebuild.

       The Mage was paranoid, and made my people build the Black Keep for him to live in. It is said that the true reason he demanded a new dwelling was because he did not want my people to be reminded of our missing king when seeking an audience with our new ruler. Once it was complete, he set up vicious magical traps in and around the entire Citadel to ensnare anyone who attempted to sneak in. Krimeeah feared the prophecy that our king would return, knowing he would be unseated as ruler. Some say he spent much time studying how he could use the prophecy to his advantage, but nothing seemed to have come from it.

       When mobs of giants began ransacking the other nations in our area, a delegation was sent to beseech the Black One. Someone in the group recognized the Black One, not as Jaran Krimeeah, but as Nyeru of Bissel; another exiled mage, this one had been exiled for necromancy. No one knows what happened to Krimeeah, we know only that one day Nyeru was the new Mage; though he continued to claim he was Krimeeah, the Enforcer backed up his claim so no one ever questioned it. Some believe that Krimeeah handed his throne over to Nyeru and took up plane walking, so that he could better hide from the enemies he had made.

       It is rumored that the Mage has hidden many artifacts in the Citadel and the Keep. At one point it was said that my people guarded the Sword of Kas, or one of the pieces of Vecna- though the legends surrounding that have always been vague. Some say Mordenkainen from the Circle of Eight visited our valley, searching for an artifact the Mage was rumored to own; it was called the Scepter of Shadows.

       The Sundering gravely injured the Vale, and no one knows what happened to the Mage or the Enforcer, but they vanished during the Chaos that began roaming free again- just like when our king left us. It is said that my people renewed our oath to the entity of Chaos that holds our home. The Archmage of the wizard tower took up the throne of the Mage, for the first time in centuries one of our own people leads us; though it is rumored that he only rules because Chaos lets him do so. He is thought to be more the representative of Chaos than the actual ruler. After the Sundering most of our artifacts disappeared, and have not yet resurfaced. I believe that many of the missing pieces of our history are locked in the Citadel- no one has been able to enter it and survive since the Black One moved into the Keep. We don't know if Geoff still holds the sacred chest, since the Sundering could have destroyed everything it contained; no one has ever been granted audience by the Duke either, so we cannot even confirm this part of the legend. We still hope our True King will return to us, with the sacred chest, free our bonds, and lead us home.

Map by Anna B. Meyer

Aurora's Tales: The Ancient Pandarans of the Barrier Peaks

       The Pandarans are an old race that has been extinct for thousands of years. They lived in the Barrier Peaks long before my people took up residence in our valley. The Pandarans were tall, muscular, and covered in black and white fur; their faces had muzzles as if they were animals. While they were a generally peaceful race, having a live and let live kind of atmosphere, they were also fearsome warriors. Every member of their race, except for the very young and very old, trained and practiced their form of martial arts daily. These people were willing to defend what was theirs if they had to, though they always tried a non-violent, diplomatic solution first. When my people came to our Vale, the Pandarans welcomed us with open arms and were the first friends and allies we made. For centuries, the Pandarans lived in peace in their mountain towns, unmolested by all- except for the occasional wild beast that would happen to wander in.

       One day a party of orc adventurers happened upon one of the towns and decided it was ripe for raiding. While the Pandarans did have some treasures, most of them were of a more sentimental value than monetary. They had few enchanted items, since they were peaceful and did not go adventuring themselves; they saw little need to do so, the Pandarans were happy with what they had and did not see a need to seek out excess. My people adopted their philosophy, which made our official exile to the Vale much easier. These orc raiders saw the glints of weapons, some magical, and thought they had stumbled upon great treasures. They couldn't resist raiding this little mountain town. The rest of their day was spent watching the town, learning their patrols, and attempting to distinguish which buildings had the most treasure in them.

       Unaware of the dangers brewing just outside of their little town, the Pandarans went about their daily routines- training, teaching, tending to crops and livestock, and patrolling their borders- dangerous beasts have always been drawn to the Peaks and the Vale, making it both well protects from outsiders, and dangerous for those who dwell within. Somehow the orcs managed to evade the Pandaran's patrols all day, which was quite the achievement for a race as unintelligent as orcs.

       The villainous orcs slipped into the quiet little town under the cover of night, and caught the guard patrolling unaware. Without the element of surprise, the orcs would not have been able to bring the guard down so stealthily, and taking him down so quickly fed their egos and let them think this would be an easy raid. It was around midnight when the orcs made their strike, and most of the Pandarans had retired for the night, giving the villains an opportunity to actually succeed. The large temple where the Pandarans trained to fight was the orc's mark; it had the most foot traffic, but appeared to have the least amount of actual inhabitants, and those who came and went all had shiny looking weapons and items.

       While the Pandarans slumbered, the orcs slipped into their temple and found it to be deserted. No one was to dwell in the temple, they believed that it was too sacred to be lived in; allowing someone to actually live there would be an insult to their Gods, and it would elevate someone to a much higher status in their society, something they had seen bring other races to their doom. The foolish orcs began to ransack this most sacred place, searching for the treasure they believed was inside. All the imbeciles found were religious texts and items, and some mundane weapons and armor. The treasure they were seeking was not there.

       Thinking is not an orc's strong suit, so when the scouts discovered that there was no money to be found in the temple, they decided to attack. While the Pandarans are fierce warriors, it is difficult to put up much resistance when you're sleeping. Gruumsh was with the orcs this night, and they managed to slaughter almost all of the Pandarans while they slumbered soundly. Once they were certain they had squashed the life out of the village they began to ransack each building, slowly and methodically; they saw no need to rush since they believed everyone to be dead.

       The sun rose a bloody red that day, as if the sun itself was in mourning over their deaths. Orcs were scattered throughout the town square, drinking and arguing over who should have what. Some of them were dragging bodies out of the houses and throwing them into a large pile right in the center of the square, preparing to burn the remains of these poor victims; the bloody sunrise outlined the pile, its color matching the blood running down the bodies, staining the once white fur. A lone warrior, who had been trading in the Vale, arrived home to this scene.

       First he wept, overwhelmed with sorrow over the loss of his entire clan. Then he began planning revenge. The warrior knew of some caves not far from the village where he could hide out and prepare his mind, body, soul, and weapons for the challenge to come. He sent two birds with messages requesting help out- one to the nearest Pandaran village, and one to the Vale. His people were our dearest friends and closest allies, he knew we would help if we could reach him in time. He spent the day planning his strike against the orcs, and knew the best time to attack would be that night, when the fools were drunk. At sunset the warrior made his way back to his desecrated home, with his plans swirling through his head; the scene he had come home to played over and over in his mind.

       Twilight was approaching when the warrior reached his home again, and was greeted to the sounds of a rowdy celebration. As he had suspected, most of the orcs were drunk and were carousing around the bonfire they had made of the bodies of their victims. Throwing caution into the wind, the fighter took a deep breath and charged into his town; the rage of this scene burned so hotly within him that all reason and logic abandoned him. His hours of careful planning were for naught.

       Even though the warrior was charging in without thinking, he still had the element of surprise, since the orcs thought they had eliminated all threats the Pandarans may have. Their senses dulled by the copious amounts of alcohol they had ingested during the day made them slow to recognize that they were under attack. The fighter plowed through the first few orcs to stand in his way, since they thought he would be easy to handle since everyone else was; the fools did not stop to think that he was actually consious and armed, making him a real threat.

       In a few moments the warrior had taken down most of the orcs with quick movements of his sword. After watching their comrades fall so quickly, some of the orcs decided to attempt to combat him. While the band of orcs was relatively small, it was still large enough to make this a trying fight for the lone Pandaran. His battle with the orcs raged on for hours, until finally there were only two left to stand against him: the leader, and his second.

       The warrior was tired by this point, he hadn't slept and had been fighting for hours. Several wounds on his arms and torso bled freely, while others caked his fur and clung to his clothing. The pair he was left to face had had an opportunity to observe his combat tactics while he slain their group, and unlike him, they had not been fighting all night; they had a small advantage over him.

       It was nearly dawn when the warrior threw the Second over the cliffside on the south of the village; he died from the impact. His backup arrived in the moments before the sun rose, seeing him silouhetted against the pre-dawn silver sky, locked in combat with the leader. As the other Pandarans whispered a plan to flank the leader and take him down, the warrior drove his sword deep into the orc's belly. The battle was won.

       The village was too badly desecrated for the Pandarans to desire to continue dwelling there. They tended to the fighter's many wounds, put what was left of their dead inside their temple, and dumped the orcs down the mountainside to the treacherous rocks below. The rocks had been modified by druids to create a trap, so the rocks were as spiked and deadly as the metal ones found in pit traps today. After performing a modified version of their death rites, they decided that that village needed to be gone forever. The warrior collected the belongings that hadn't been destroyed, as well as some mementos of loved ones, and by his command the entire village went up in flames. The orcs had already burned most of their crops and slaughtered the livestock, so there were only buildings remaining.

       The warrior entered his new village, the one where his backup came from, a hero. He never considered himself to be a hero though, and despised the attention. As far as the warrior was concerned he had answered slaughter with slaughter, even though it was in the sake of vengance. He had flung his sword down the cliffside before saying his final goodbye to his clan, and vowed never to weild one again- he had taken more than his share of blood. None understood why he refused glory and a position of honor, nor did they understand why he locked himself up in his hut and rarely saw anyone. They had never taken so much life from other beings, and without partaking in a brutal slaughter such as that, it was simply beyond their comphehention.

       It is said that the Pandarans became extinct because of the orcs- our historians claim it was something in the orc's blood that mutated into a plague. While the cause of the plague that wiped them out is unknown, their memory lives in the Vale. Years after the Pandarans were gone, my people visited each of their towns, which there weren't many, and made records of everything they found. Hundreds of years of the history and art of civilization who was old before most races were ever born were found- but no cause to the plague that killed them. My people erected statues in honor of our old friends, and transformed the four villages that were still somewhat inhabitable into outposts. Their stories are still passed on through generations, so none may forget our closest, and first, friends.

The map shows the region where the Pandarans lived

Adventures in Oerth- The Bane of Vecna: Book One, Chapter Two, Blackmoor

The Bane of Vecna:
Aurora, the Valley Elf Bard

Pharin, the Drow Wizard

Skye, the Air Genasi Druid

Dervish, the Kasathe Fighter

Nanu, the NightmOrc Fighter who is late

Lan El'Mandragoran, the Human Paladin

Oryn Talus, the mysterious and ancient "Halfling" who has employed the group

Jayce and Jarrid, the Human Barbarian brothers

Nanu, Jayce, and Jarrid arrived at the museum with only a few minutes to spare before the opening. The trio had had some difficulty getting through the crowds surrounding the museum to get to the doors. Everyone else was in place by the time they arrived, so they quickly took their places. Nanu stood just inside the doors as a guard, Dervish, Pharin's spider familiar, and one of Skye's zombies stood guard at the heart itself, Pharin stood on a balcony overlooking the gallery as a whole, Aurora, Jayce, and another zombie were posted on the right side of the gallery, Skye, Jarrid, and yet another zombie on the left, and Lan patrolled in a circuit through the entire gallery. 

The group was given amulets to allow them to bypass the security wards Oryn had placed on the museum, so that they could cast spells and attack if necessary. They discovered these amulets also allowed them to communicate, and teleport around the museum's grounds. 

Everything went well until around one am, when suddenly members of the group realized it had grown colder inside, their breath had become visible. The temperature continued to drop slowly, subtly over the next few hours. Eventually they realized that their breath was creating ice crystals, and the temperature was still dropping; the leather band Aurora had on the strap to her drum snapped from the cold. There was a minor scuffle with a noble who refused to listen when Dervish told him to stop leaning on a post; after being thrown outside Nanu "mule kicked" him, which resulted in his death. No one else misbehaved after that.

When the last group was admitted entrance, the hundreds of people still waiting outside began to riot. Lan immediately went down to attempt to sway the mob to calm down and leave. The Bane decided they needed to get people out of their quickly, but kicking them out would mean Oryn would have to give refunds. They decided to subtly get them to leave. Pharin made fog appear to be coming from the Heart, and summoned dancing lights to harass the patrons; they thought this was all part of the show, and stayed. Pharin decided to step it up, by sending acid splashes at the crowd, making it look like they were originating from the Heart, and many still thought it was part of the show. Dervish tried telling the people that the Heart was awakening, that their lives were in danger if they stayed, which only got a few more people to leave but most still thought this was part of the show; he isn't as convincing as the bard can be. 

Meanwhile the situation at the gate was growing worse, with people pressing against the mithrilmantine walls that surrounded the museum. The group within the museum finally began to realize that they needed to leave, and began frantically rushing through to make sure they saw everything; they weren't going to let potential doom stop them from this once in a lifetime opportunity. As the people began leaving Oryn, Dervish, and Skye went outside to help with the crowd. Pharin imagined an identical balcony on the opposite side of the gallery, with a window, then stepped over to it to gain a better view of the mob outside. Jayce and Jarrid stayed with the Heart, and Aurora moved to the door to inspire Lan so he would be better able to sway the mob. 

The temperature dropped so low that all of the glass in the museum shattered, and all of the wards went down. Suddenly no one was able to teleport and could not get back to the Heart quickly. A group of cultists came through the broken windows of the museum, intent on getting the heart. Pharin had his familiar encase the Heart in webs to better protect it and make it harder for the invaders to remove it. The fighters were fairly easy to kill, and the Bane was able to keep them away from the Heart. Some how during the fight, Pharin managed to drop a flaming sphere on himself, which the others would have found amusing under normal circumstances.
 Then a drider lich appeared, and that is when the troubles really began.

The drider lich appeared in front of Pharin, and would likely have killed him if not for Skye. Skye unleashed a moon beam on the drider lich which hurt it enough to turn its attention from Pharin to her; unfortunately for Aurora, she was between Skye and the lich, and took a brutal hit from it. Skye was able to finish it off with a brutal moonbeam that was even stronger than the first. 

Two clerics oozed through the windows at about the time that the lich appeared, and stunned Jayce and Lan. The Bane tried to hit the clerics to get them to release their holds on the two, and eventually killed one, the other vanished. While everyone was picking themselves up, a female drow walked in and sealed all of the doors and windows.

She was a priestess of the cult, and had come to claim the Heart. The Bane attempted to keep her from it, but to no avail. Pharin attempted to send his familiar and the Heart to his brother, but the priestess stopped the spell. She banished Pharin, who is from Toril, he lived in the keep that the Ironfang Eight now reside in; had she been able to keep him there for a minute, he would have been unable to return, and the Eight would have ended him quickly. Pharin spent his time going through his belongings and managed to grab a few items before returning to the museum. 

The priestess began methodically paralyzing the group as they attempted to attack her. Lan managed to land one hit on the priestess and injure her. Every other attack was futile, she either overcame them or they were stopped by a sanctuary spell. Nanu managed to get between the priestess and the Heart, and when the priestess magically ordered Nanu to move, she grabbed the Heart, still encased in webs with Pharin's spider inside as guard, and leapt; the priestess paralyzed her in mid-air and she crashed to the floor, still holding the Heart. Lan put up a radiant force field around Nanu to try to keep the priestess away, and Aurora ran to guard Nanu. The priestess banished Aurora, who had a spiritual moment, as the Ethereal Plane she was sent to is where the Valley Elves originated from before coming to this world. Before the priestess could reach Nanu, Oryn appeared with the moon card from the deck of many things. Oryn had been absent from the battle until now, doing a divination ritual to allow him to draw that card. He used his first wish to get rid of the priestess.

After she left the group unwrapped the webbing that encased the Heart, to find it was gone. Somehow the priestess had managed to use her blood to bind the Heart to her, so it left when she did. Pharin gathered up a vial of the bloody webbing in hopes of using it to find her through a spell. Upon discovering it missing Oryn angrily stormed out and was not seen again for a few hours. The group spent the next two and a half hours cleaning the museum, with Aurora singing an uplifting song about the ancient Pandarans who once occupied the Barrier Peaks, the mountains that surround the Valley of the Mage. 

After cleanup was finished the group was brought breakfast, and Oryn finally reappeared. Oryn decided it was now the time for complete honesty, and explained to the group exactly why he had hired them. He explained that the cult they were fighting had now gathered all ten pieces of Vecna, and were planning on using it to bring him back mind, body, and soul- not the lich demigod, but the man himself; they even managed to find the Book of Vile Darkness, which contains the spell needed to succeed. Oryn hired the Bane because there was a chance that with them present the Heart could have potentially been saved. While the Heart was lost, the group did manage to rescue the Sword and Fang of Kas, both of which are needed to complete the ritual. The cult had a way of detecting the sword when it is activated, so Oryn quickly activated it to make them think he had it, and insisted the group take it with them. 

Oryn asked the group to help him stop the cult, starting with going after some of the spell components they need. The components needed were rare, and absurdly difficult to find, so that would be a good place to begin to block the group. The Bane agreed to join Oryn in his quest to stop the cult, and were given nineteen hours to find equipment and prepare for travel.