Pre-Orcish Dwarovar history details begin in the year 6500 BA with the Aul-Dwarovi civil war and ending 500 years later in 6000 BA with Ducaniel, a precursor elf, creating the orcs. The majority of this period discusses the war between Aul-Dwarov and the Precursors, including Ducaniel's continued campaign after the war ends.
Civil War[]
One of the most pivotal events in Dwarovar history prior to the Aul-Dwarov war with the Precursors is the War of the Bloody Gem in the year 6500 BA, a civil war erupting with the addition of the Ruby gem to the Dwarovkron....
War With the Precursors[]
Declared in 6300 BA, the Precursor Empire and dwarven Empire of Aul-Dwarol would officially go to war, with Precursor Fleets sailing from Aelantir.
As Precursor forces shipped over, in 6284 BA the hold of Dûr-Vazhatun fell for reasons unrelated to the war. These astronomers, fascinated by the precursor's creations, had spent days at a time gazing at the sky to catch glimpses of them. This fasciation quickly turned to madness, a sickness known as Astral Terror. The hold fell to ruin, with the sane Sapphire Dwarves fleeing to Kar Durghoir ('Citadel of Dark Ice', though present day known as Hardy Hole), the citadel guarding the entrance to Giant's Anvil Mountain. After regrouping they'd continue to Krakdhûmvor.
With the arrival of the Precursor fleet in 6276 BA, Arethon, Precursor Emperor at the time, and Aldan blockade Ovdal Tûngr and encircle it. Sabotaging the hold, they create a large underwater explosion near it, flooding the mines before moving on to Shazstundihr. A year later Ducaniel marches through the Harpy Hills to the hold of Hul-Jorkad, laying siege to it with his own forces. After a 47 year siege, in 6229 BA Mhoki Brightbeard, champion of Shazstundihr, slays Emperor Arethon during the siege, routing Precursor forces. Aldan calls for peace and breaks off the siege as a result of the Emperor's death. Although Precursor forces stagnated after the loss of the Emperor and the call for peace, Ducaniel had managed to beach Hul-Jorkad in 6210 BA, establishing it as the first Precursor foothold in the Dwarovar. The stagnation wouldn't last for long, as in 6200 BA the Precursor forces, save Ducaniel, would withdraw from the rest of the world and retreat to Aelantir.
Ducaniel's Campaign[]
As Ducaniel's campaign furiously continued in the Dwarovar, the dwarves of Gor Dûrgheled, among the greatest Rune-Smiths of their race, would see opportunity like no other. Combining magical blood with their rune magic, yielding what would be seen as both great and terrible results. The blood rune magic was unstable, causing the death of many, dwarf and precursor. Despite it allowing the dwarves to push back Ducaniel's forces with ease, the costs were far too great for the other holds of the Dwarovar, including Amldihr and High King Magni IX, Due to Gor Dûrgheled claiming it was a necessary sacrifice to ensure the war was won and refusing the High King's demand in 6174 BA to abandon blood rune magic, Aul-Dwarov would cut off contact with the hold until they were no longer preoccupied with the war and could be dealt with.
By 6100 BA, without reinforcements, Ducaniel has been pushed back to the fourth level of Hul-Jorkad with dwarven forces having had retaken the upper three floors. Ducaniel, now trapped, begins his orc experiments. The Precursor threat subdued, and Ducaniel now trapped, Aul-Dwarov is able to turn their attention to the Obsidian Hold. In 6068 an army composed of many of holds marched onto the Obsidian Hold. The Obsidian King, known for his mastery of rune magic, and who's name has been lost to the ages, had prepared the largest runic circle recorded for one final spell. Gathering the entire hold in the circle, the Obsidian King enacted the spell, leaving but an empty hold for the Aul-Dwarovi forces. Transported to the Underdark, a level deep below where no dwarf had gone before, the Obsidian King had been turned to a husk by the spell. Now regarded as the Runefather, he became the object of their worship, kept alive through faith and magic. This period, known as "The Harrowing Times" for them, was one where they would care a new home for themselves in the Underdark. The other dwarves, witnessing the devastation brought by the spell, abandoned and considered the hold unsafe. It was left to crumble over time and be forever lost. Even today, debate still follows who was truly the traitor, with many claiming Aul-Dwarov didn't appreciate the Obsidian Dwarves' sacrifice, and others calling the blood rune magic immoral and unethical.
For 100 years the dwarves are unable to break in and retake the final level of Hul-Jorkad, allowing Ducaniel to finish his experiments in 6000 BA. By combining the genetic material of goblins, elves, and even some ogres, he created the orcs. Hordes are quickly raised under his command and unleashed onto the Dwarovar, wiping out the dwarven garrison of Hul-Jorkad before they could report the outbreak. This outbreak of the orcish hordes would mark the beginning of the next age, the Orcish Warpath.