The Unexpurgated History of Kaza Orok
Contents
Kaza Orok before the Cataclysm
Before the Cataclysm, Kaza Orok was a bitter, rocky, largely unexplored area of Veruaten. Known for its wealth of gold, manatite, and ironwood, the Veruaten mined it heavily, fighting with the many humanoids and other monsters that lived in the region. A large population of First Orcs lived in the area and eventually domesticated dragons.
Day Zero
Word of the Cataclysm took more than two weeks to reach the area and was largely viewed as not their problem, being half a world away. It wasn't until the sky darkened, the rain of filth started, and the waters started rising that anyone realized it might be their problem.
The Inland Migration
4920-4942 FYA Throughout the Cataclysm, humans kept moving further and further inland as one city after another was swallowed by the sea. Frequent bouts of the twisting rain transformed more and more of them into goblins and many battles were fought between humans, dwarves, and elves on one side with the newly-goblinized on the other.
The Goblin Purges
4923-4927 FYA For almost five years, the humans of the area made a concentrated effort to kill every humanoid in the area. Millions died on each side and the goblins slowly coalesced under a single leader, based in the mountains that would become part of Kaza Orok.
The Orc Wars
4927-4936 FYA Coordinated under King Tandaugh, First of his Name, the humanoids of the area marched out in force, taking first the northernmost mountains, then working their way south. Tandaugh expected the waters to keep rising for a while and, by luck or intuition, was almost exactly correct about where they would stop.
Tandaugh's Dragonriders exacted a terrible price on the human-led forces, driving them back in a trail of charred corpses a mile wide. Soon, Tandaugh controlled all of the Eastern Veruaten Mountains as far south as Caer Petra.
The Betrayer's War
4936-4944 FYA So named by human historians, the Betrayer's War is called Hupka nuk Bolkod (literally translated as the "Great Ass-Kicking.") by the orcs. The Angus MacReedy, the commander of Caer Petra made cause with Tandaugh's forces and killed those who refused to go along with the change in sides. When he opened the gates to Tandaugh's army, Tandaugh marched through in force, then stabbed MacReedy to death in the castle's central courtyard before announcing, "Any man who will betray his people to a horde of orcs will betray those orcs as freely as he breathes. Now, he can do neither."
The human-led forces would siege Caer Petra until they were destroyed in 4944. Before he died, the Calderan wizard Egai Peux cursed the stronghold with the Curse of the Seedless.
By the time the rains stopped, Kaza Orok's population was almost 90% humanoid or twisted.
The Seven Sieges
4938-4948 FYA (8 DB) At the start of this period, the seas had risen high enough to break Kaza Orok into seven separate islands with no discernible navy. Tandaugh's Dragonriders, bolstered by the Sixth Claw of the Dragonfires flew thousands of sorties, holding the coalition together. Losses were again terrible on both sides. Untold numbers of ships, men, goblins, and dragons fought tooth-and-nail for their survival and millions died. The area west of Kaza Orok became the Haunted Sea.
By bits and pieces, the goblins and their human allies built a gunpowder navy and eventually broke the human-led fleet.
It was during this time that Yaph the Necromancer called down a wasting plague on Loch Gorrham, one in which the victims would waste away and rise again as undead. Inside Loch Gorrham, Lochlann Lusk summoned Prince Azzach Fireborn, a Diabolical prince and made a deal with him. There would be a permanent gate built to the prince's plane of origin in return for him ending the plague. Loch Gorrham became known as the City of Devils.
