Ish - The Dark Return

A large empire nation in the Southwest area of Atheles.

The Empire of Ish has survived for over 1500 years. It was formed by Da’atra Tiria, a powerful warlord who banded all the tribes together. He was from the deep Southern lands of Ish, and he claimed heritage to the gods of the desert. This belief still holds to this day, those of the Tiria family believed to being part gods and those related to him as the trueblooded Ishians.

Da’atra and his chosen, Empress Taraherra, were both gifted in magic, and used the life power of slaves to build and solidify their empire. The Wizards of Ish were formed, their power gifted to them by the gods through Da’atra. With the use of vast armies of slaves, Da’atra and his wizards subjugated the other kingdoms of the south. Through magic Da’atra and his wife lived beyond the normal life of humans, and their many children took over positions of power throughout the Empire. The empire was taken over by their first son, Ka’atra, who continued what his father began, and built the city of Ish, which surrounded a large lake in the middle of the southern desert.

4134 TM The Empire of Ish (called the Ishian Empire in the North) is formed in what becomes known as the Southlands. The first emperor of Ish is Da’atra Tiria. The Tiria family still rules in Ish now.
4175 Terramahut builds the City of Pathanamitta near what is now the Foothills of Tuk.
4356 The City of Pathanamitta is destroyed by the invaders from Ish. The city sinks into the desert, cursed by Taraherra, the wife of the emperor.
4362 The City of Raza Buraka is built by the escaped Warlord Tel Amarn. He escaped the destruction of Pathanamitta 6 years before.
4383 Tel Amarn dies and his City of Raza Buraka sinks into the desert falling to the curse of Taraherra also. Its Twin city, on the eastern side of the mountains is captured by the Empire and used as a main trade hub.
4693 The People’s Uprising. The current emperor is found guilty of heresy by the Priests and exiled. A young priest named Kalah, who has the divine blood from both his mother as a priestess, and his father as a brother to the old emperor, is ascended to the throne.
4695 Emperor Kalah bans the use of books. He says the emperors have long filled them with heresy and it is better to start anew. During this time, many of the ancient texts and tomes are burnt. He also empowers the Desert people of the Jal Dur desert, promising them their own nation if they rid the wildelands of the elves. This leads to a genocide of the wild elves and though they finally push back and defeat the desertmen, they are left weakened and forever scarred.
4729 (Westlands) The Mages of the West are formed. Ruled by three wizards they congregate in a large keep( Keep of Ismaren in the Misty Moor) along the Western coast ( Above the Vale of current times). Distrusted, they spend most of their time in solitude.
4629 The Mages of the West create the Gatestone. Fearing what they have created, they lock it away deep within their keep.
4743 Small border skirmishes between the Ishian Empire and the Westlands (Endamas) begin.
4745 The Ishian Empire invades North, the priests afraid of the power of the Mages of the West.
4757 The Ishian wizards invade the keep of the Mages of the West. Most are killed and many of their books are destroyed. The Gatestone is found and used to transport large groups of the Empire’s armies throughout the Westlands.
4759 The Emperor Enockt falls ill and dies, and a plague ravages the Empire. A peace treaty is written between Endamas and Ish.
5054 Uthgard begins its war to control Atheles by invading Tiren (The Great War, The Aradan War)
5057 Small border skirmishes between the Ishian Empire and Endamas begin again.
5059 The Ishian Empire breaks the treaty and begins invading the Westlands.
5062 Uthgard attacks Raza Kuraka and takes the city. The Ishian Empire tries to use the Gatestone to retake the city, but instead, they lose the Stone to Uthgard.
5073 The Ishian Empire, worn down by years of war, pulls their troops back and fortifies their borders. The elves stop their war, the high elves retreat into their forest and some of the grey elves and wood elves that are left lend their aid to Seladar (capital of the Aradan Kingdom).
5082 Seladar is destroyed. The city is evacuated. Aeerumar Aradan, last king of Selador is slain by one of his advisors, Caroth. Uthgard uses the Gatestone to open a rift from the battlefield into the heart of the city, ensuring victory.
5132 Second invasion of the West by Uthgard. Seahaven and Bordon, with the help of the Ishian Empire, push back the forces of Uthgard. Uthgard uses devastating magic again, ruining more of the Eastlands. In a massive final battle, Uthgard is defeated and the Warlock King is slain. During the culmination of the battle, the Disappearance happens.
5133 Ish is hit hard for decades by the magical storms that come over the mountains from the ruined wastelands of Aradan. Without the power of the Priesthood, the Empire starts to crumble.
5677 The first recorded instances of the Return.
5683 The Dark Return. Magic flows through the lands.
5690 The Ishian Empire opens its borders and allows small bits of traffic. Much of the knowledge of the past is lost, the West and Northlands are no longer under the control of a single king, but instead separate entities. Bordon is still looked upon as protector of the Westlands and an uneasy peace settles over the land.
5698 South Keep, once a single fortress outpost along the Ishian border, starts to become a well-known trade town.

Wizards of Ish

The Wizards of Ish keep their secrets close. Once trained they are never allowed to leave the ranks of the Sorcerers. Of all the magic groups, theirs was the most untouched during the Disappearance and their stronghold in the center of Ish remains as it has for over a thousand years. But whatever knowledge they may have, they keep to themselves.

Much like the rest of the Ishian Empire their policies are strict, and death or slavery is a just punishment.

One of the biggest differences between the Wizards of Ish and the majority of other magic using groups, is their use of slaves as power reservoirs for magic. Powerful wizards can have a stable of slaves, blank eyed and pale, who are kept on leashes as a source of power for their magic.

Ansely, Mage of Eredar, Eastlands

From the Encyclopedia Atheles

“We are all but servants.”

Ishian wizards view themselves as conduits of God, and therefore as priests instead of workers of arcane magics. The wizards of Ish call themselves the Najur, an ancient word for servant. They, like most in the Ishian Empire, worship Tanthu-Ra, a sun deity. This is why all in the priesthood wear yellow robes.

They are ranked very high within the culture of Ish, with the Grand Priest even being considered higher than the Emperor.

They occupy the Temple of the Sun, a large squat building made of black stone.

They take volunteers from the citizenry to give themselves to God. This means that they willingly become vessels for the wizards to take energy from for spell casting. The Najur see them as disciples, who become vessels to the all power of Thanthu-Ra.

Religious Foundations

In the beginning, there was void and light. When light pulled free of the void, it became Rau, the creator, and the void became Vau, the destroyer. The space between Rau and Vau became Tau, the ocean. Rau and Tau moved away from Vau and when they did, Uau, the earth, was formed. With these three elements, all sorts of life sprang forth, including the holy ones. These were god like beings that helped form what life was on Uau. For long eons, the world grew and flourished. One of the holy ones, Orset, was jealous of other life and set to make himself more powerful by aligning with Vau, which introduced death. But death was not just for the other animals, and now the holy ones, too, knew time and death. As they died, their spirits fell upon the earth, and the terans of the lands who worshipped them inherited their spirits. The more holy spirit they inherited, the more revered they were. This led to wars between the holiest. And there were many tribes fighting. One tribe was led by the powerful lord Da’atra.

It was on his 25th birthday when the great comet came down from the sky. In the crater, there was a man who was found. This was Dhuoth, who claimed to be the child of Tanthu and Ra. This tall being looked different than other Ishians; he was taller and paler of skin. He provided Da’atra with great wisdom and helped him conquer his foes. He also preached to the tribe of the great power of Thanthu the Sun god joining with Rau the creator, marking them as a direct line to Creation itself.

Dhuoth would become the first Grand Priest when Da’atra became the first emperor. Dhuoth would help the Ishian empire grow, and he lived for hundreds of years. No record of death is ever found for Dhuoth, though many historians speculate that he was killed during the usurpation of Ish by Kalah.

The Rebellion – Mages who fight against the tyranny of the Empire and the Wizards of Ish

The Rebellion is a rather new group of mages who oppose the rule of the Emperor and the Wizards of Ish. They are hunted mercilessly throughout the Empire, but as magic has reawakened, they have grown in numbers and in power.

Secret is their strongest advantage, so very little is known of them.