The foundation of Khalidor starts with Roygarris Ursuul. Roygarris was a powerful warrior who ruled over a small hub of villages of various names. According to his story he was visited by the Goddess Khali, who had willed herself into their plane of existence to place dominion over the land. She chose him as her champion and granted him her power forming Vir. Ordered to spread the faith of Khali, he conquered many tribes and brought them to his hub of villages which became closer together more people joined. Roygarris devoted the name of the new city that was formed to the goddess naming it Khalidor.
As the Lord of Khalidor he continued wars to bring small kingdoms around Khalidor into the fold. After his sixth conquest he declared himself Emperor of Khalidor. There were a few years of peace while he consolidated his power, established the government, gathered power, and built his army. When his forces were amassed he set out to go west where it was said no man dwelt. Surprised he found more than just tribal men in the great expanse.
Many fay races lived in the great expanse, many of whom had built great kingdoms of great power. Many of which held great magic. Convinced that magic could only be used by followers of Khali and that only humans should dwell in the lands, Roygarris waged war on these kingdoms one by one. He first fought the elves, so wise, crushing their kingdoms with his magic. The tribal men who had lived there thought that only the fay could use magic. Yet here this man was summoning Earthquakes and thunderstorms as if nothing. Many cults formed surrounding him, calling the Emperor a "King among Gods". After the cults gained rise in popularity many men called him a Godking. Eventually Roygarris used the name that his subjects dubbed him.
Roygarris continued to relentlessly take the land from the fay races as well as even dragons who roamed the skies. When all were defeated he set to converting the remains to Khali's will. Various genders according to race were systematically wiped out and Khalidoran colonists were sent to breed the races out of existence. As a result many of the regions throughout Khalidor the people have various traits depending on their bloodlines. Some have enlarged teeth, others pointed ears, and some small horns or even a few scales though those are few and far between.
The plunders of war were vast yet instead of putting it into the infrastructure of the empire, the Godking poured it into making the capitol a fortress. Massive walls were built, stone structures everywhere, aqueducts and cobblestone roads throughout the city, a collaseum, and even an advanced sewage system. A large iron wall was placed within the city that held the a large magical spire that the Godking and his servants resided. The city was built to withstand anything. Whether it be an army, dragons, or even gods.
As a result of the lack of infrastructure in the empire, many of the fay rebelled. Joining forces the summoned Krull to aid them. Krull are undead beings from the Void that are summoned through forbidden magic. At Castle Kugluktuk the Khalidorans made their stand against the Krull. Ten thousand versus one hundred thousand fay and Krull. The battle seemed loss so Khalidor retreated, but were covered by Roygarris himself. For twelve hours the Godking fought the Krull and the rebels, dealing massive blows on each end. By the time the battle ended only a handful of Fay survived. So the Khalidor's first civil war ended with the destruction of the rebel army and the death of their beloved Godking, Roygarrs. Thus marking the First Era.
The First CrusadeKhalidor continued to thrive and prosper after the death of their legendary founder Roygarris. The economy grew to outstanding heights and the empire grew incredibly wealthy. Culture thrived and the faith of Khali had spread to every corner of the empire. Only one land remained untouched by her influence. A land to the north called the Freeze inhabited by a great civilization known as Lodricar. It was an independent nation that had not only defied the will of Khali, but also tried to spread their own faith into Khalidor. The Godking of the time, Draven, found this unexeptable. A holy crusade was called upon.
The empire switched to a wartime economy and mobilized its armies. When they arrived in Lodricar they found that the enemy had dug in for defense. A disastrous campaign followed giving virtually no ground. Conscription went into effect and the military bolstered in size. Human wave tactics were used, gaining much more ground. However, the cost of human life was too great to continue the tactics.
Draven created five shock armies as a solution. Each army consisting of ten thousand soldiers that were finely trained, equipped with the best armor and weaponry in the empire, a relentless mentality to serve their nation, and hundreds of meisters to serve as artillery. Draven named these shock armies Khali's Vanguard, in honor of their duty in the Crusade. When deployed the shock armies smashed through the enemy lines with ease, allowing the main bulk of the military to march through to the capitol of Lodricar, Jodan. The Khalidoran host purged the population with force and the use of burning orichalc. They burned the fields to the ground and plowed salt into ground so that nothing could grow in the region again. Legend has it that due to the lack of worshipers, the gods of Lodricar became weak and were killed by Khali. The war left a warning for all who challenged the will of Khalidor. The fear of the Lodricaron Crusade were instilled into the minds of many and war did not face the nation for over one hundred and eighty years.
Although credited for modernizing the military and becoming the most famous Godking in history, next to Roygarris, Draven left the economy in shambles. Taxes were raised from five percent to ten and new taxes were placed on nearly every trade throughout the empire. Due to the large number of conscription during the war, the nation became more heavily reliant on slavery to meet its needs. Nearly eight hundred thousand Khalidoran soldiers died in the war.
WIP