Age of Reckoning
From WARpedia
The Age of Reckoning is the epic time period in the Warhammer world history in which Warhammer Online takes place. Set outside of the main Warhammer timeline, the events and conflicts of the Age of Reckoning have been tailored to provide the best possible setting for an MMORPG[Wikipedia] while still mirroring the basic elements of the classic game.
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[edit] Backstory Overview
The events leading to the Age of Reckoning start with a terrible Chaos plague which spreads through the Empire. Victims of the plague are transformed into Chaos-tainted mutants, and the population gradually descends into despair and panic. Emporer Karl Franz does what he can to stop the spread of the disease, but when the plague reaches the capital at Altdorf and unrest spreads across the realm he is forced to declare martial law to maintain the last remnants of normality.
[edit] The Fall of Karak Eight Peaks
Meanwhile, the Dwarf stronghold of Karak Eight Peaks is attacked by a massive Waaagh! jointly led by the Orc warboss Grumlok and the Goblin shaman Gazbag from the previously unknown greenskin tribe called the Bloody Sun Boyz. The Dwarfs garrisoning the citadel grimly ready themselves for a long siege, but Gazbag directs a mighty blast of Waaagh! energy against the thick stone wall of the citadel, opening up a breach big enough for the greenskin horde to charge into the heart of the Dwarf stronghold. Karak Eight Peaks falls soon after.
The Dwarf High King, Thorgrim Grudgebearer, sends word to the Empire and vows vengeance against the ancient greenskin menace. Two months later, the gathered Dwarf host is interrupted as it is about to set out by an eerie eclipse. The skies darken as Morrslieb, the Chaos moon, slides across the face of the sun, bathing the land in a dull crimson glow. The eclipse is seen as a portent of doom, warning all those who see it of an impending catastrophe.
[edit] The Decimation of Praag
In the Empire, news reaches Karl Franz of a Chaos warhost led by a mighty Champion of Tzeentch marching from the north towards his borders. By now Imperial society has slipped even further into anarchy, and the Emperor realizes that his scattered forces are not strong enough to defeat the invading Chaos army. With the Dwarfs occupied with the liberation of Karak Eight Peaks, he concludes that the only hope of saving the Empire lies with the High Elves.
[Finubar Seafarer]], Phoenix King of Ulthuan, is already aware of the situation, and when the plea for aid arrives from the Empire, he gathers a fleet of elven warships and sets out personally with hundreds of the finest High Elf warriors, leaving Prince Tyrion to defend Ulthuan in his absence. The High Elves know that without the Empire to hold fast against marauding invasions from the Realm of Chaos, the entire Old World could be lost to the forces of the Chaos gods.
[edit] The Assault on Lothern
This is the moment Malekith, leader of the Dark Elves has been waiting for. Having been told of the gathering Chaos warhost by his most trusted seers, he conceived a plan whereby Ulthuan would be left vulnerable and open for an invasion, allowing Malekith to capture the throne of the Phoenix Kings for himself. Knowing that the Dwarfs needed to be distracted enough not to send aid to the Empire when the Chaos army invaded in order for the High Elves to be drawn into the conflict, he created magical amulets for Grumlok and Gazbag which greatly amplified their powers and compelled them towards Karak Eight Peaks, knowing that a Waaagh! would form around them as they travelled across the Badlands.
Now Malekith's scheme has come to fruition, and he launches his carefully prepared invasion fleet. The Black Arks of the Dark Elves set out from Naggaroth under cover of night to cross the sea to Ulthuan. One half of the fleet sails towards the Blighted Isle, while one half bears south towards the Straights of Lothern. Legions of black clad Druchii spill forth onto the shores of their ancestral homeland, armed to the teeth and accompanied by monstrous creatures.
The sheer scale of the threat arrayed against them from the combined forces of the Dark Elf, Chaos and Greenskin armies forces the leaders of the High Elves, Dwarfs and the Empire to gather at a summit in Altdorf. They pledge to put aside their differences to stand united against the tide of darkness which has risen against them all, to forge an Alliance of Order to strike back against their common enemies who would wipe civilization from the face of the earth.
Now is the time to take a stand. The Age of Reckoning is upon us.
