Child, why have you come to me? A bedtime story? I suppose you could use one. No need to be ashamed. The bombs used to keep me awake as a child, too. Would you like some classics? The Frog and the Ox? The Prideful Rat? The Fool with a Crown? Oh, what's that? You wish to hear of the God Wars? Now, what made you want to know the tale of this tragedy which has plagued our lands for two centuries? Oh well, I guess I can't reason with you. Let me take you back to a time three hundred years ago, before the age of the immortal gods who rule our lands. To a time when the world was in Mortal hands.

We start not with the birth of some hero. Instead, we begin with the destruction of a nation.

It was in 192 of the Imperial Era when the small nation-state of Cruisland was conceived as one of the many Great Eastern States. Upon its inception, it took up a religion that stood against the values of the foreign world. It stood against absolute freedom and equality, the two things the world thought it could achieve. It believed in a system of strength, which was established by the Old King for the Empire of Farsivil, which composed of nearly half of the entire world. For a hundred years, Cruisland stood as a fledgeling kingdom under constant threat of invasion by the outside democratic and republican forces. Cruisland was in the north of the People's Republic of Tsin, and they realised, through various revolutions in many Tsin States, that Cruisland was growing. However, it wasn't a whole entity. Cruisland was ruled by a single consul, the Consul in Cruisland. It was, however, split into five states, each separated by Tsin land. One of the many Consuls' nationalism and patriotism brought him to the conclusion that Cruisland must be united physically, not just spiritually and mentally. However, his religiousness also prompted him to turn this quest of reuniting the Cruislani State into not only the First Unification War, but also the First Crusade of the Divine, which was made to incorporate the conquered Tsin States into the Cruislani religion and philosophy. Surprisingly, both worked. Cruisland was united, and the Consul in Cruisland became the King of Cruisland.

Cruisland, however, being a former Tsin State, thought that the only way to truly make Cruisland great was a great war to establish an empire, and to be self-sufficient, as the Cruislani were sufficiently lacking in most resources except iron, which they had an abundance of. The Cruislani, through clever politics, managed to trick the young president of the republic into falling for the Cruislani religion and philosophy, as well. The masses were influenced immediately, and within three months, ninety percent of the Tsin had converted from serving Set, the god of freedom, except for the state of Icofilip, which declared itself an independent democracy. Of course, Cruislani invaded Icofilip, and installed a branch of the Augustus Family, the same family ruling over Cruisland, to the throne. Of course, this was enough to scare the devout republic to the west: the Republic of Grodran. The Eastern Deserts, which had an abundance of resources and ancient Tsin cultural sites, which Grodran was vying to destroy. Tsin couldn't stand for this, and neither could Cruisland. Cruisland gathered the anger of the Tsin people. The Tsin had declared their support and loyalty to Cruisland, and the Cruislani, in turn, lead the Tsin to victory. This war resulted in the handing over of the Eastern Deserts to the Tsin, and the Occupation of Grodran. The president of the Tsin Republic was forced to step down by the Cruislani, and the king of Cruisland declared himself the the Tsin Emperor, the King of Cruisland, and the Emperor of the Cruislani Empire. This newly-born nation suddenly became the world's enemy, and at the same time, the world's strongest nation. In the advent of the Great Crusade, Cruisland was forced to fight against the world for militaristic, imperialistic, and moral goals. Cruisland thought of itself as the nation that would save Terra from itself, that it would bear the Old King's cross. The followers of Set, of course, didn't take this kindly, and began to gather its forces. The entire world was up in arms against Cruisland. However, Cruisland found a new ally in the Northern Commonwealth, the largest nation in Terra, which had once made religion illegal before the emergence of the Cult of Set, and then had a massive conversion to the Old King's religion after several centuries. The Northern Commonwealth declared an alliance, and the two nations fought together. However, despite the Commonwealth's massive numbers, their enemies pushed them back. Cruisland's emperor abdicated, and the Empirio of the Northern Commonwealth lost nearly all of his power to parliament. Set had infiltrated their nations, and millions converted.

One nationalist in Cruisland, however, grew up hearing the local legends of the Old King, who once ruled half the world from Cruisland, once known as Farsivil. He was the king among the gods who ruled, but he himself never called himself a king nor a god. He was an iron-fisted king, who, with the power of the godkiller, the Iron Rod, took control of the world in his own crusade. However, his own corporal, a Galackti named Set, betrayed him to free the world from his iron fist. When Set used a godkiller on the Old King, however, the Old King was not affected. However, it transferred the Old King's immortality and divinity to Set. The Old King's spirit was expelled from his own body, and his immortal incarnation was locked up in a prison underneath a Cruislani forest. Set still ruled the world in spirit form, gathering his armies to eventually fight against the Old King's spirit, as well as the Being the Old King worshipped. This nationalist grew up, and rebelled against the Republic of Cruisland with the White Army. You must be wondering why the era this took place in was called, 'the Era of Strife.' After the Crusade ended, an international ruling body was established headed by the Terran Ruler. For sixty years, the Terran Ruler's title had been passed down from generation to generation within a single family. However, accusations of incest and corruption had made them unpopular. With the execution of a supposed traitor and witness, who was the Guardian of the Dark Continent, the flames of war had been sparked once again. Covetous brothers from the ruling family had declared war on one another, splitting the world's allegiances. After three centuries, the world's unity had been broken, and the great tensions lead to strife, then war.

Now, our little introduction has showed us how the pieces have fallen into place. Are you ready to hear the rest of the tale? Good.
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Things to Know About Terra
Terra is made up of two supercontinents, and one more continent. The first supercontinent is the Great Terran Continent. In the far north, there is only snow and forests. To the far northeast, there is an evidence of a land bridge that connected the Great Terran Continent and the Green Continent. In the far east, there are multiple archipelagos and islands that can hold strongholds.

The Great Terran Continent is split into the East and West. The East has a large desert at the centre, the Eastern Deserts, with various settlements, and to the north, there is a snow-covered desert that acts as a sort of buffer zone between Tsin and Commonwealth cultures. In the Far East, there is a series of rivers that make the land very fertile. The islands and archipelagos on the southeast were tropical. On the West, it's very hilly and mountainous, with mountain ranges that always had raging blizzards. The Western Islands, including Baranten, the home of Karaanex, Set's imprisoned malevolent general and son, were hilly, but had barely any mountains. The northern islands were very snowy, while the islands to the south were just dark and rainy. The far north, whether East or West, was always cold, and winters were very harsh, and to the far north, there is an area so cold that the major empires could no longer expand there, except the adapted Northern Commonwealth, which, by law, was under its command. Only various tribes and settlements had learned to adapt there. A wall had been erected around the northernmost point of Terra to protect the world from corporeal daemons under the command of the malevolent Karaanex. To the Northeast is a forest spanning thousands of kilometres, and is also uninhabited by the Human empires. It is inhabited by Vampire races, and ruled by the Drakul Bloodline.

Not much is known about the Green Continent, except for the fact that in the mid-north and the south, which is filled with deserts and jungles, the only inhabitants are the violent Greens.

In Terra, the technologies are fine. It is at the age of industrialisation. Steam-powered technologies have spread far and wide, from simple household items, to weapons. The main resources being exported is nameless, and has been called the Substance by scientists. The Substance is a crystalline mineral that produces various amounts of heat, depending on the chemicals mixed with it. For example, the Substance mixed with oxygen would produce a simple warm crystal, but expose one already exposed to oxygen with fire, and you will have a fast-burning rocks, which is why crushed Substance rocks have been used as propellants for various weapons. However, due to the fact that the Substance is rarer than the combined recipes for propellant powder, powder is still more widely used in weapons. The Substance, when interacting with other gasses, can serve as sufficient fuel for various vehicles and technologies.

The immortals, or the Old Ones; 'gods,' if you will, are from the various races in the world. They usually hold tremendous power, but after Set's uprising, most of the immortals lost their power, with only those that pledged allegiance to him being allowed to rule from behind the scenes. Some immortals, however, now travel in search of what they want, now that their responsibilities as rulers were over.

b]HUMANS[/b]– This race was the native race to the world of Terra, arrogant, sometimes ignorant, but at the same time, the species that dominates the world, for they are intelligent and resourceful. They dominate almost every field, from warfare to sciences, from industry to studies. It is also a well-known fact that all of the first generation of the Old Ones, or the immortals, are Humans.

ELVES– This humanoid race is distinguished by their tall stature, pointed ears, and violet eyes. They come from distant worlds, and arrived in Terra only recently, building great cities of diamonds in the Western Islands, grown in their home from a world far, far away. Their lives are very long, with some even living for thousands of years.

DWARVES– This humanoid race is distinguished by their short statures but muscular frames. These live near mines, living off their work as smiths, miners, warriors, and skilled engineers. They don't really have their own kingdoms in the surface, but underground, their kingdoms are great. The greatest civilisation built by the Dwarves was the Elia Castle, a grand castle hidden inside a cave called Elia's Maw.

VAMPIRES– These humanoids live off blood. They have a very pale complexion, and sharp white fangs. Under the sun, they are severely weakened, but in a single night, a single legion can conquer an entire kingdom and kill off all its inhabitants. They drink blood from all races, but anything blessed would weaken them severely, even if they aren't under the sun. If blessed and placed under the sun, they will burn. They reside in the dark winter forests of the far north, as well as swamps. Their true forms are that of bat-like humanoids with wings, but can easily transform.

GOLEMS– They are less of a race, and more of a host of machines. They are usually mindless, and can be made from various solid materials, from clay to tungsten. They can serve many purposes, but under a god, they are used in armies, and may have been supplied with some sort of intelligence by their superior gods. They can be either very distinct from, or very similar to other golems. Some are as big as three meters, while some can be as big as a mobile tower, but such Golems take years to build. They may not always be intelligent, but they are usually the ones making accurate calculations and strategies should they be given a mission by their commanders.

GALACKTI– These are godlike beings with immense power, but unlike the gods, they can be killed with any normal weapon, and unlike the gods, they have supernatural powers. They serve their respective gods or monarchs, often acting as generals or advisors. They were once Humans who were gifted powers by the Old Ones. They can be malicious, cold, calculating, and traitorous so that they may achieve godhood, but some are loyal and true to their monarchs. They are distinguishable by their mask-like faces and horns protruding from their heads that look like crowns.

NIGHTMARES– These creatures are malevolent beings, all of which serve under Karaanex, and are usually different creatures mashed together to form an abomination. The Nightmares are strong, and could kill a man with a single proper punch.

DEMONS– These creatures are loyal only to Karaanex, and have the mark of their god embedded onto their foreheads. Their ichor is black, and their eyes are dark, depending on the kind of demon. Some demons are Lesser, which are usually human-sized, and can sometimes be as small as imps; they are red in color, and have black wings. Some demons are Greater, having greater height than most other intelligent creatures except Golems; red in complexion, and having dragon-like wings, these creatures are quite intelligent, very swift, and very powerful. The last kind is the Great Black, having greater height than the Greater Demons, and having a black complexion with green glowing eyes. They lived in Terra far longer that Man, but the Demons have been hiding in a different plane of existence until Man became too corrupted, opening a portal to their plane.

THE GREENS– This is the collective name for the mischievous races with varying intellects. They are classified into Orcs, Ogres, Goblins, and Hobgoblins. They all serve under the Great Warlord Zerken. They know only war, chaos, and mischief.