CHAPTER THE THIRD

The beginning of the Third era, also known as the "Golden Age of Man", is marked by the emergence of men as the dominant race on the continent, this dominance being not in rulership, but in numbers only. Because of their relatively short life cycles, the population expanded swiftly, and spread over the entire continent. This threatened to drive the other races into extinction, as humankind proliferated and expanded its domain.

Kingdoms and empires took shape and knowledge in all manner of things became widespread and great. The great mages discovered secrets of monumental power known as the "Great Magicks".

Then suddenly, calamity struck. A scourge was visited upon the face of the earth in the form of a horrendous disease afflicting only the human race. In a period of a decade or less, it had swept over the face of the continent and killed over half of the human population. By the time it had run its course, only 1 man in 5 would survive this horrible onslaught. Within a short 50 years, the progress of centuries was reversed, and human civilization deteriorated into barbarism. Cities were deserted or sacked and burned; Law was all but lost, and Chaos ensued.

In the opinion of some, the Great Plague was the manifestation of some victory of the Lords of Chaos. To others it was the jealousy of the Gods for the great knowledge that man had developed that sparked this horror. Whatever the reason, it was a catastrophe of unimaginable proportions. With it ended the "Golden Age of Man."