jtk310

t the start of everything the All-Father made all things that walk or swim, all places in which they dwell, the light and the dark, all things that grow or move, and all the lands and waters and heavens. All things he made by his will, and into all living things he breathed his spirit. To rule above the world he made his Angelium, whom we call the gods. To rule in the world, he made the four great races, and all the lesser beasts and beings below them. Thus it came to be that Men first walked out in the world, to tame the wild places, and to build villages, then castles, and at last kingdoms.

Thus it was that the Kingdoms of the First Age rose in an age of hope and promise, but in the face of much blood and peril. Orcs roamed the hills unfettered. Wild beasts ravaged flocks. The work of men was to tame the land, and to defend their people. Men learned to build and to organize their people. At first, men gathered together in caves or small camps, with only crude weapons to guard against wild beast and savage Orc. Then they built temples to the gods, whom in gratitude gave to them the gift of fire, taught them to tame horses, and unlocked for them the mysteries of magic. With their new wisdoms, gifts of other gods, men made finer weapons, and rode to battle on horseback, crafted stone walls and built the first small fortresses.

In time, little forts grew into solid castles and into great strongholds, and small camps grew into villages and towns and the first cities. So, there arose great Kingdoms of which now nothing remains.

This was the age when gods were still seen to walk the land, to fight alongside righteous armies, to inspire the ancient prophets. It was the age when men learned to build and to organize, to become masters of the land and masters of themselves. It was the age in which men learned to be victorious, to stop hiding and to stand firm. It was a time of heroes, of which nothing remains but legends...