From the tablets of Imilik.

The tablets of Imilik contains many strange tales. Here he writes of some fairytale of the mountain men.

Their lore book is being written now, and i will release it before i release the art this time around. So stay tuned, and enjoy this little snippet in the meantime.

Among the barbarians of the mountains, there exist fairytales of how, long before the elves, and even long before man ever dwelled in Tenehu, there was a race of giants possessing great wisdom and knowledge of all things. They were almost as gods themselves, and it is said that their priests could move enormous boulders through the air with nothing but song, that they could lift mountains from the earth at will, and just as easily destroy them. They were so close to the false gods that they were almost like them upon the earth. Yet, they were humble and sought the betterment of all life, even mankind—whom the gods were said to have fashioned as servants for them.

But among the giants were those who thought that if they possessed powers so akin to the gods, why not supplant the gods and take their place? The priests knew this to be madness, for one does not seek to disrupt the divine order without consequence. They guarded their knowledge well from those who lusted after power. Yet greed and covetousness are dangerous forces, especially in the hands of those who harbor resentment toward their betters. Resentment bears poisonous fruit, and its seeds had now been sown.

A civil war broke out, so destructive that it is said the sun hid itself, unwilling to witness the horrors. With the sun gone, the world grew cold. The barbarians even fable that this calamity caused the elf-kin’s lands to freeze, forcing their eventual exodus.

In the end, the war was not won by one side’s victory, but by the mutual destruction of this once-noble race. Though the covetous ones lacked true god-like powers, they still possessed some, and unlike their opponents, they did not fear to use their abilities to their fullest, most devastating extent. The surviving priests retreated to the great mountains, imparting morsels of their wisdom and power to the humans they trusted, hoping that mankind might uphold the divine order in their stead. These humans built kingdoms among the ruins of the giants, striving to maintain the balance.

But even these kingdoms could not last, for when the elf-kin arrived, they forced all who would not submit to follow in the footsteps of the giants and seek refuge in the mountains. Yet not even there are they safe.

For the remnants of the covetous still haunt these lands, seeking the last of their hated foes and any who inherited the giants’ wisdom. Known to us as the magicians, they are the greatest fear of the mountain barbarians, whom they stalk to this day.

From the tablets of Imilik.