The Unexpurgated History of Hagiv

Hagiv Before the Cataclysm

Most of what is now the Island of Hagiv was once part of the Kiraly Mountain Range and the northernmost reaches of the Vestari Empire. Cold, desolate, and rocky, it provided a natural barrier to invasion by the ice giants of the Cap. Three small, lightly-manned forts stood on its highest peaks, watching for invaders or anyone trying to sneak around the empire through frozen seas.

Several small mining and logging communities dotted the lower slopes of the Kiralys with a total human population in the thousands. Under the mountains, dwarves mined manatite, iron, copper, nickel, and silver.

Day Zero

Hagiv was far enough from the blast to not be immediately impacted. Earthquakes hit for the first time in recorded history and did some damage, including irreparable damage to the dams and other structures used for logging. When the Rain of Filth came, most of the mining families took refuge in the mines and eventually about half of them managed to take refuge with one or more groups of dwarves.

The Thousand Swords

When the Cataclysm occurred, Lurmal Ironmace of the Hagivi Manatite diggers had hired a mercenary company called the Thousand Swords to help his relatively small, prosperous clan fight off aggression from the Iron Dwarves of the Hagivis. They were about fifty miles from the Hagivis when the explosion of Tearra appeared high above the treetops and shook the world.

Agronn Ironhand, then leader of the Thousand Swords, convinced Lurmal he needed their help more than ever. By the time they reached the mines, both the earthquakes and the rains had started in earnest. The clan patriarch tried to stop the humans from entering the mines, pointing out that they might not have enough stores to feed everyone for the duration of the emergency. Agronn assures him the Iron Dwarves will learn to share.

The Iron-Manatite Wars (4916-4919 FYA) After some initially disastrous lessons in tunnel-to-tunnel fighting, the Thousand Swords scored several decisive victories over the Iron Dwarves. When the Iron tried to surrender the tunnels they’d originally been contesting with the Manatite, Agronn insisted that the Iron also hand over the humans they’d been sheltering and most of their food stores. It took several more battles for the Iron to agree to these terms.

At the end of the war, the Thousand Swords numbered 714 men, 85 women, and 22 children. They moved into a large unused section of the tunnels and lived between their putative allies and their enemies.

The Madness (4921-4924)

In 4621, the Manatite Dwarves again had to come to the Thousand Swords for help. They’re seeing clear signs of manatite poisoning in dwarves who live farther up the mountain. And it’s causing madness. Together with some of the lower-level Iron Dwarves, they slowly seize control of the entire mountain they’re a part of and enforce sensible hygiene.

The Goblin Invasions (4926-4933)

As the rain of filth goes on and the seas rise, more and more refugees arrive in the area. The coalition dwarves help them as best they can, particularly with information about manatite poisoning.

Starting in 4626, a goblin horde starts moving in from the south. The humans and coalition dwarves fortify their above-ground position and build Kovar Remeny. They fight a number of skirmishes and the coalition starts to gain ground, but more and more goblins keep coming up from the south and they’re soon joined by desperate humans who need any chance of food or shelter.

In the end, Agronn maneuvers a major goblin offensive into the caves beneath the mountain by appearing to be routed. They succeed in maneuvering around the goblins and pinning them down inside the mountain where they can be besieged from the outside and have to fight the mad iron dwarves from their rear.

Over the next seven years, the Hagivis’ situation was never less than dire. Each battle brought more goblins against fewer defenders. There were fewer than two thousand in all by 4940.

The Sunspire Schism (0-5 DB)

Warden Ordon comes with a small group of wizards to plead with the Coalition to come with them and help take the Sunstone. The Dwarves try to convince their human allies to stay and bring the Sunstone there. When the wizards refuse, the humans leave with them and the dwarves stay.

The Dwarves manage to hang on for five more desperate years until Turuq the Defiler, fleeing defeat in Vyz, comes to Hagiv and takes control of the goblin hordes there, promising them demonic power. The last few hundred coalition dwarves are driven back under the mountain and survive by blasting all but one known entrance.

The Demonbreaker War (13-16 DB)

Human and sidhe forces land on the western shore of Hagiv and drive towards the Fortress of Hagiv where Turuq and his demons are holed up among the fortifications the coalition built. The Dwarves under the mountain eventually join the fight to liberate their island.

When the Calderans sail against Sunspire, the Ordoni must again withdraw, creating another rift between them and the Dwarves. After the final battle, the Dwarves return to their mountain steadfast, the fortress having been badly damaged in the fighting.

When the Sidhe bring human settlers to Hagiv as per their agreement with the Ordoni, the Dwarves complain, but lack the numbers to do more than guarantee the human settlement is as far away from them as possible.

The Deep Delver Wars (37-39 DB)

Led by a coalition of unstable iron Dwarves who suffered years of manatite poisoning during the Rain of Filth, the Dwarves attack Daybreak (the main human settlement.) Many of the Dwarves die and those who are taken prisoner are put to work raising food and building defenses for their conquerors.

The Hagivi Expansion (50-122)

Humanity spreads out over Hagiv, founding Szasz, Sefia (now Nagev’s Glory,) and the Gaveks. Dwarves start to become permanent second-class citizens and elves become much more common.

The Thalassan Conquest (122-126)

The Thalassan Empire comes to the shores of Hagiv and conquers the island. For the most part, they keep Hagiv’s institutions and power structures in place, but those institutions serve the Empire. Dwarves rights are curtailed even more.

The Thalassan Era (126-488)

Hagiv remains a colony of Thalassa for three and a half centuries with varying degrees of happiness on the subject. When the Ionan revolution starts, Hagiv also moves towards independence and rebels in 488.

The Hagivi War for Independence (488-494)

With Ionan help, the Hagivi rebel against the Thalassans and drive them off the island. Once the war is over and the Ionans are focused on trade, they treat Hagiv as something of a vassal state.

The Glorious Revolution (515-519)

Led by Nagev, a young dwarf who stumbles on a shard of the Sunstone, the Dwarves and lower-class humans rise up against the humans and elves. The nation has never really recovered from its previous revolution and crumbles under the onslaught.

The Betrayal at Daybreak (519)

During the revolution, the Dwarves and allied humans agree to share power in the new People’s Republic. As victory becomes imminent, the Dwarves fall on Daybreak (the center of their human allies) and massacre them on the flimsiest of premises.

The Nagevi Era (520-615)

Over the next few years, Nagev closes off Hagivi society more and more from the outside world, consolidating power through his Revolutionary Council, the Sunstone, his priests and his clerics.

Never the sharpest blade, Nagev becomes more and more erratic as he gets older. By 615, he’s 122 years old, blind in one eye, paranoid, and demented.

Current as of 615 DB