The Drought Wars By Tony Kenealy The world of Genayria is a world of extremes. From the tall jagged peaks of the Glass Mountains in the north, to the sprawling plains and the blighted wastelands of the south. A world where distrust and the hatred of other races has been a way of life for generations. Each of the Great Races looking for ways to wage war in a bigger, better and more spectacular swathe of destruction than the others, and where alliances between Elves, Men and Dwarves are seldom formed. Where magic flowed through the land, magic that could be used for good, but magic that could also be used for evil. A war torn land where the ravages of nature stand side by side with the ravages of war. But it was not always so. There was a time, before the Drought Wars when the races traded goods, lived side by side, and honored the traditions and customs of each other. The Dwarves with their great mountain kingdoms had dug deeper and deeper and climbed higher and higher into the Glass Mountains. The Dwarven Lairs were a sight to be seen, vast staircases winding down into the depths, clinging to the cavernous walls, spanning dark underground gorges. Huge forges could be seen, with flames flaring up as awesome metal weapons and armour were forged out of the molten ore mined below. The Elves with their homes in the forests built vast cities that blended in with the trees, at one with their natural surroundings, a melding of Elven artistry and natures growth. A sense of peace and tranquility always emanated from the Elven cities, places that were havens for the sick and those requiring rest. The Elves also built vast fleets to sail the oceans, travelling far across the sea, gliding across the waves in beautiful ships that shone with an inner light. Then there was Man, who built vast cities of wood and stone on the sprawling plains, fighting nature as they cultivated crops in barren areas and changed the courses of rivers to irrigate their harvest. Jealously they defended their livelihood against marauding Orcs and Goblins and the many other verminous creatures that roamed the land. i-Kore model The three Great Races traded with each other, the constant flow of trade caravans travelling the well-worn roadways, trading in all manner of goods. Those traders lucky and wealthy enough to hire the services of a Wizard, travelled using the Ryft Gates, an ancient magic that opened a portal, a warp corridor, between two points, making travel instantaneous and thus trade even more so. Then came the Drought. The rains didn't come, the temperature rose and water started to run out. Firstly the Elves, noticing their dwindling supply and the drying up of the streams that flowed through the forests, called upon Man for aid. In the beginning the great cities on the plains assisted, water was shared, at a price, with the Elves, but as the rains still failed to come and their supplies also started to run dry, Man started to pull back, protecting their own supplies with walls and armies. The Elves, desperate for assistance, turned to the Dwarves, but they found the great gates to Dwarven kingdoms shut to them. The Dwarves, having witnessed the dwindling of Mans water, were not going to fall into the same trap. They refused to help, barring all Elves and Men from their cities. The Elves had nowhere to turn other than to ancient magic, long since used only for good, but now in their hour of desperation, the Elven Wizards began to look at ways of taking the water they so desperately needed, by force. The Ryft Gates, for the first time in their history, were used as a mechanism of war. A vast Elven Army travelled through a Ryft Gate to raid the water supply of FireHelm, a vast Dwarven City. The battle raged for days, many thousands of Elves and Dwarves were slaughtered, the precious water stained red with blood. Thus started of the Wars of the Races. The Drought Wars. The Great Races moved vast armies through the Ryft Gates, attacking each other for the precious liquid they all so badly needed. The Drought and the slaughter continued. Other races, also affected by the Drought, joined the struggle. Orcs and Goblins from the east, led by great Wizards who had recruited them as vast armies, lay siege to the Great Races, but even then, the Races would still not join forces to destroy this new menace. Evil creatures, beyond comprehension, crawled from out of the blighted wastelands, to join the Wars; abominations of Dwarves, Elves and Men, and other races. They were creatures of Chaos, spawned from the blighted wastelands and from the dark magic that flowed through that realm. The drought finally broke, but the Wars did not cease. A deep sense of mistrust of others had been embedded into the Races. No longer would they trade, when they could attack and steal what they needed. For centuries this has continued. The search for bigger and better ways to wage war, for better machines of destructions, continues unabated. The Ryft Gates, once machines of trade are now portals of destruction. Through digging deeper and deeper into the ancient magic of the Gates, the Wizards, now the most wealthy and powerful people in Genayria, have delved into other worlds. By doing so, they have brought upon Genayria more death and destruction, and creatures that once lived only in their children's nightmares, have joined the slaughter. The Wars continue. Vast armies against vast armies fight and die. Then, as Wizards who have delved deep into the art of Necromancy raise the long dead armies, they fight again, and again, and again… War rages on as the land of Genayria turns into the Eternal Battleground. The six Aspects of Magic