Sacred:History & Mythology
The Creation of the World
In the beginning, there was chaos! The world was darkness, fear and dread! But then the Gods arose from the blackness and slew the Demons of Darkness. They banished them to the dimension of evil and brought light and order where before there was none. However, the Demons were furious with the Gods and sought ways into the plains that the Gods now created. Life blossomed in a thousand worlds when the Gods sowed their seed. But soon afterwards, death consumed these crops when the Demons of the Underworld succeeded in breaking down these heavenly wonders. Therefore, out of their own blood, the Gods created the Heart of Ancaria to unite all living things and seal off the plains. Fire, earth, water, air and space flowed into this Worldstone, the foundation of all existence. The Demons raged against the Gods who had banished them and they sought to possess this Worldstone. However, the paths leading to the mortal world were barred, so they spread mistrust, poverty, hunger and pestilence among the creatures of the Gods and they filled the hearts of mortals with a lust for war, destruction and a craving for absolute power...
The Seraphim Army
When the Demon Lords had thrown the heavenly creatures into chaos and the Sorcerers of Darkness had learned to use the blood of innocents to unlock the gates of hell, the demon spawn poured out over the worlds in their hordes. In battles lasting eons, the Gods were steadily driven back and the Heart of Ancaria was in danger of falling into the hands of the Demon Lord. Behold, Sophja the Goddess of War arose and sacrificed herself by confronting and falling at the hand of Worganar, the highest of the Demons. However, when Worganar rejoiced, believing the heart of the world to be within his grasp, from the blood of Sophja rose new warriors: the Seraphim. The Seraphim used their heavenly powers to destroy Worganar and his followers and drove the Demons back to the hell from whence they came. Then, as peace finally appeared to be at hand, the Seraphim were charged with the protection of the Golden Heart. They broke it into five pieces and hid the pieces in the furthest corners of the Kingdom. However, blessed with heavenly power and with their superiority in battle, the Seraphim became arrogant and conceited. In their aloofness and high spirits, they neglected to protect the five elements, and so they were discovered and stolen by a darker breed of power-hungry Elves, the Dark Elves...
The Seraphim of the Present
The Elves, the proudest of the heavenly creatures, fought against their power-hungry brothers and sisters of darkness. However, the Dark Elves, now in possession of the magic elements, used blood, fire and disease to overcome this noble race. One last time, the Gods sent their Seraphim army to stop the slaughter. However, strengthened by the magic of the elements that now flowed freely throughout the Ancarian world, the Priestesses of the Matriarchy of Dark Elves swept away huge swathes of the Seraphim and only a few survived. The salvation of the mortals came in the form of the Dwarfs of Gnarlingen, later to become the Dwarf stronghold of Gnarlstat. Armed with their broad axes, these proud warriors hacked at the ranks of Dark Elves and drove them back. During these battles, the remaining three of the five elements were recovered and brought to safety. The Seraphim were annihilated, with no army and only a few custodians of the light, who had to return to their heavenly origins and dedicate themselves to the protection of good...…
The Kingdom of Aarnum I
One thousand years ago: Sophia, Royal Priestess and Protectress of the fortified monastaries of the Seraphim leaves the monastery at Icecreek Dale to her son, Aarnum I. Aarnum, a wild and impetuous man who has grown up in a world where Orcs and Dark Elves exert a murderous rule over the land and enslave the population, longs for peace. However, the Seraphim, weakened and small in number, refuse to help him. Aarnum flees to the forest stronghold of Tyr-Fasul in the Land of the Elves and gathers together an army of soldiers and knights errant. Aarnum deprives the Royal Priestess of her power and, with the help of his troops and the Dwarfs of Gnarlstat, he gathers a powerful army and captures Mhurag-Nar Castle from the Dark Elves on the Ancarian plains. Aarnum renames the castle Braverock, establishes his power as a worldly King and denies the Seraphim any authority within the borders of his small Kingdom. The sons of Aarnum I extend their Kingdom's sphere of influence with an iron fist. Knights, ruffians and bands of thugs roam the land, hunting and killing Orcs, Ogres and Dark Elves.
Seas of Blood
Morgast, second son of Aarnum I, proves to be particularly brutal and extends the persecutions to include Witches, Sorcerers and Mages as well as traveling minstrels and other nomadic folk. Between the capital Braverock Castle and the fortified monasteries, he builds Thundercliff fortress, soon to be known only as Crow's Cliff. This is because of the thousands of crows and ravens that feast on the corpses dangling along the grisly avenues of gallows, scaffolds and graves stretching out from the Seat of Morgast. Meanwhile, the Dark Elves are plotting a grim revenge. Using poison and treachery, they penetrate from the north, through the catacombs of the Dwarven stronghold of Gnarlstat and annihilate the Dwarven population. Not a single Dwarf, neither man, woman nor child survives the massacre. Barricaded in the stronghold, the Dark Elves build the fortress of Zhurag-Nar on the ruins of Gnarlstat, and from here they dominate the north-eastern plains of Ancaria.
The Desert Wastelands
The Orcs, who once populated all the plains of Ancaria, are driven away to the east and south. While they are either enslaved or killed by the Dark Elves in the east, those hordes of Orcs dispersed by the royal troops to the barren wasteland of Khorad-Nur in the south manage to eke out a miserable existence there. However, the Orcs are hardened by these harsh conditions. The hordes develop warrior cults and brute force becomes the ruling factor in the demanding life of an Orc. In contrast, courtly customs are introduced to the houses of the nobility in the Kingdom. The Orcs soon learn to survive in the wastelands and start producing armor and weapons in the forges of their villages and mountain settlements. In the centuries that follow, the south of the Kingdom is subjected to continuous raids by the Orcs, whose increasing power is attracting other greedy creatures: Ogres, Goblins and Trolls willingly join the Orc troops.
The Wars of Succession
The break-up of the Kingdom is threatened under King Vladimir VI. The noble houses of DeMordrey, direct descendants of Morgast I, of Oblividon in the east and of Mascarell in the southwest compete for succession to the throne and divide the Kingdom into separate, self-sufficient baronies whose only duty of obedience is to the King himself. In the family of Vladimir DeMordrey, the Dark Elves find willing allies and together they cast a shadow of intrigue and assassinations over the Kingdom, during which the houses of Oblividon, Ransenmar and Wiedenfeld, among others, are destroyed. However, Vladimir's reign of terror stretches further. The persecution of the Mages is not confined to the Barony of DeMordrey; they are hunted as renegades throughout the entire Kingdom. On the intercession of Baroness Magdalena of Mascarell, Vladimir calls a halt to the persecution and executions and deports the sorcerers to the furthest regions of the dark moors in the east. Here, they are forced to endure a miserable and dangerous existence. To pay for this act of mercy, Magdalena of Mascarell has to marry Vladimir's son Alexor, who then shortly strikes his young bride dead in a fit of rage.
The Reign of Blood
Prince Valorian, a direct descendant of Aarnum I, is banished by Alexor I and grows up in exile in the fortified monastery of Icecreek Dale. While out riding one day, he rescues the Speaker of the Elves of Tyr-Hadar, Laralasa, from a group of DeMordrey's soldiers. Valorian very nearly loses his life during the episode and only escapes death thanks to the healing powers of the Elves, who nurse him back to health at Lebensbaum, not far from the village of Timberton. His brave intervention touches Laralasa's heart and she falls in love with him. Valorian discovers the Elves to be courageous allies. With the help of the Elves and the Seraphim of Icecreek Dale, Valorian succeeds in toppling King Alexor from the throne at the Battle of Faeries Crossing and seizes the crown for himself. Valorian I ends the reign of terror and liberates the serfs. The sorcerers can return to the Kingdom and court sorcerers are introduced, while the Seraphim receive the status of Paladines as part of this restoration and are no longer subject to any worldly jurisdiction in the Kingdom. Valorian may not enter into marriage with Laralasa and so he weds Alexor's niece, Moridya DeMordrey, in order to make peace with the House of DeMordrey.
The Great Peace
Valorian's grandson is King Aarnum X. Aarnum's power is based on an established system of trade and taxation that extends to all corners of the Kingdom. The Elves of Tyr-Hadar send forest runners to the Kingdom to help the royal trackers while the Seraphim secure the peace and administer justice. Relations with the House of DeMordrey are strengthened by a new alliance. Vladimir DeMordrey is now Aarnum's highest-ranking field marshal and military protector of the Kingdom and commands the best-trained and most powerful troops. The young Baron DeMordrey successfully protects the Kingdom by strengthening the town of Bravewall on the authority of the King. However, this decision means that the economically insignificant towns of Gloomoor, Highmarsh and Moorbrook are henceforth completely isolated from the protection of the Kingdom. Aarnum's son, Prince Valor, is currently fighting the troublesome Orcs in the south of the Kingdom. The young prince has not yet chosen a bride, however, Lady Druusa DeMordrey and Lady Varia of Hedgenton are among the most beautiful and desirable women in the Kingdom.
Present Time
With an iron fist and bitter ruthlessness, the powerful Prince Shaddar - a descendant of the hated Morgast I, who once drowned the land in the blood of countless innocent victims - ruled in his ancestors place. His Dark Elf name Ilim Shaddar, Wanderer in the Realm of Shadows is both an heirloom and a prophecy, for he has long since sold his soul to the powers of darkness. Shaddars own sister is said to have been violated and murdered in dark rituals. But Shaddars lust for power over life and death has led to his own damnation. Instead of suffering death in the flames as the magician community of Mystdale Castle demanded, Shaddar was banished into the deserts of the South. That in itself would be a death sentence for any normal mortal.
During the next few centuries, nothing was heard of the ruthless mage. But to this day, even the Orcs, Goblins and Ogres do not dare to speak aloud the name of the Wanderer in the Realm of Shadows. It is said that at the edge of the rocky plains it is possible from a distance to see Shaddar-Nur, the tower of darkness. And so the many races of Ancaria quietly tell stories around their campfires of the nightmarish ruler from those gruesome days. And many a troublesome child has been frightened into obedience by tales of the cruel Shaddar who comes in the night and takes away those who misbehave.
Indeed, the mysterious black magician is still very much alive. For Shaddar has conjured up a Sakkara Demon. These Demons are masters of the damned souls of Hell, the Undead - and the offspring of that devilish brood that was driven from Ancaria by the Seraphim in the old times during the Wars of the Gods. But the conjuring has gone horribly wrong and the powerful Demon has turned against the one who called him forth. For the first time since the Seraphim warriors banished the hellish brood, a demon is again stalking Ancaria. The horrific Sakkara cult, which is banned in all civilized regions of Ancaria, seems to be active once again...
Already, bandits and mercenaries are pushing their way towards Ancaria, accompanied by slavecatchers of the Sakkara cult. King Aarnums kingdom is increasingly under threat and seems to teeter on the brink of collapse: Goblins, slaves of the much feared Orcs from Khorad-Nur, are already attacking from the desert regions. Prince Valor, the wise old rulers heroic son, asks the Kings Field Marshal Baron DeMordrey for assistance. But DeMordrey, a brilliant strategist and cold-hearted seeker of power, has long been devising plans of his own...
As the hero of Sacred, you are at the very center of this epic story of power, murder, political intrigue and demonic magic. Only your proficiency with the blade and your numerous skills can save the blossoming Ancarian civilization from certain doom. Six fascinating characters are waiting for you to guide them through this truly great adventure.
