Dragonrealm

Brief-Summarized history of Nigeri

     Nigeri came to being nearly 111,000 years ago, with its recorded time beginning at what we today know as 90011 AE (Ancient Era).  As the ancient records tell, the two known races at the time - the Draekrah (dragons) and Gryphons were at war, the reason lost to antiquity.  At the end of the war, the Gryphons were exiled to the island continant today known as Graimak, leaving the Draekrah with the entire mainland continent.  A council named this land Nigeri, and appointed their highest general as Rathi (King).  Recorded time (then referred to as the Draekrahn Calendar Date) began during the coronation ceremony.

     In the year 61,031 (DCD) ships began arriving on the northwest shores, bringing with them an exodus of strange two legged creatures who called themselves Elves.  These creatures quickly learned how to kill Draekrah and reports of entire families being slain for scales, claws, and gems prompted the Rathi to take a census of all Draekrah and send an army to the elvish leaders to attempt a peace agreement.  When this peace attempt failed, the draekrah began constructing mountains over their cities to protect them from invasion.

    Tha'an, the Draekran capitol was invaided by an elvish army in 62,019 (DCD).  Much of the city was slain by the time the army was fought out.  The Rathi was mortally wounded during the invasion, and his chief advisor Synacra claimed that the Rathi's last command was that he was to take the throne.  The council of elders however coronated the Rathi's nephew instead and Synacra publically vowed revenge against the royal family.  He was later banished for attempting an assasination on the new Rathi's life.  After the destruction of Thaan, the new Rathi ordered all organized cities abandoned and sealed off, commanding that dragon families return to living in forests and caves to ensure the security of the race's existance.

    A number of years later, the Rathi commanded many Draekrahn mages and alchemists to gather in an attempt to transform captured elves into Draekrah, this effort being an attempt to remove racial barriers between the opposed empires.   nearly half a century later an elven army invaded the workplace for these experiments, slaying the involved draekrah and capturing members of the two new surviving bipedal species that resulted from the experiments.  the closest of these races to their original elven selves were called Humans, and the more dragon-like were called Dramen.  Over the decades these attempts at transformation took place, 62 attempts had proven successful. Seeing these former elves as abominations the invaders slaughtered the former-elf dragons leaving few alive.  The invasion promted the Rathi to declare war on the elves once again.

    At the end of the war, less than a tenth of the draekrah and elven populations remain.  Synacra's body was reportedly found among the elves, having been mortally wounded in battle, what appeared to be the remains of a spell marked over him with his own blood.  During the war it appeared that the weakest of the 'transformation' races, Humans, weakened in metabolism to have a lifespan not to exceed 100 years, could reproduce and grow their population quicker than even draekrah.  It was only a short time before their own empire dominated the landscape leaving Draekrah and Elves to hide in mountains and forests together for survival.

   in the year 99,989 (DCD) (which marks 0 OE, Ongoing Era), the Rathi was found dead in a cave with his newly hatched clutch, the entire family slain by humans.  No members of the family were known to survive.  Disorder took over what remained of any dragon empire during the following 92 years until one survivor of the family's slaying,  Ahgjan Ordragc, was discovered having been captured and kept a slave on a human farm.  He was quickly educated and given his father's position, but with nearly no kingdom or subjects left to rule.

   The first act of Ahgjan was to appoint to himself Arcanys as his chief advisor.  The new Rathi was quick to take a mate and was awaiting his first clutch only to have his mate vanish with no trace and leaving him only two eggs.  In his mourning, Ahgjan gave temporary control of the empire to Arcanys and went on an extended tour of the empire promising to speak to each and every Draekrah.

   Ahgjan returned to Mt. Tha'an with a new mate to find Arcanys mad with power and the little remaining bit of empire in ruins.  Arcanys was banished and order soon returned to the slowly redeveloping empire.  A newcomer to the land named Arix was quick to succeed Arcanys as cheif advisor. Geneological studies later found that this Arix is truly Rathi Ahgjan's brother, secretly sent away from the land prior to hatching as a precaution by their father.

   Arcanys soon returned to the empire, but introduced himself as the reincarnation of his ancestor Synacra.  Using magic, speed, and streingth he quickly overthrew the Rathi, and all who denounced Synacra were imprisoned and forced into slavery.  Nearly a year passed before Ahgjan and many of the slaves escaped to the west and rebuilt their empire.  Years passed before war finally broke out, Ahgjan calling on the Gryphons to aid them in exchange for a long desired peace between the races and a welcome return to Nigeri for the exiled race if the war was won.  Synacra died in combat against Arix, who then had planned and reportedly succeeded to sacrifice himself while slaying Synacra's evil spirit so that no new incarnation of the evil dragon could return to trouble Nigeri again.  At the end of the battle, the remains of Synacra's empire collapsed.  A race called Daeris which Synacra had created from prisoners were at that time rounded up and imprisoned.

   Nearly fifteen hundred years had passed when a mysterious dramen freed the Daeris in exchange for their services.  Claiming to be ordained by Synacra himself as a high priest, he began gathering followers who he convinced to believe that Synacra was an ascended god.  Using the Daeris and dark magics to force his will those who didn't wish to be harmed fled with Rathi Ahgjan once again to the west, and formed a border along the edge of the desert to protect themselves from any invading forces.  The high priest of Synacra declared himself emperor of the new Empire of the Black Dragon.

   Both empires have strongly developed their territories.  Many generations of Ordragc have passed since the aging Ahgjan, known today as "The Great Rathi Ahgjan,"fell asleep, but it was decreed by the elders upon his passing that the first green-scaled male hatchling of the royal family be given the name of their ancestor.  Today, one such descendant holds the throne of the western empire, as the seventh high priest of Synacra holds the eastern empire.