Over the centuries, in their effort to keep the ever-encroaching forces of humanity at bay, the elves of the world have collectively waged an incredibly effective campaign to curb humanity’s mastery of magic. It is estimated that humanity has lost somewhere between half to three-quarters of its collective magical heritage due to the work of the elves.
In the First Age there were of course wars, conflicts, albeit usually started by humans. Even though the gods walked the mortal world at this time and thus their presence was felt more than in the Second Age, wars took place. Some gods allowed this to take place as the destruction or fear of destruction led to new creations. Some allowed this because the mortals should be allowed to do what they will and face said consequences. Other gods simply observed this behavior unique to mortals. Some gods applauded it and lived for it – like the Lords of War and some gods of Malice. Some benevolent gods did intervene and stop their followers from warring.
The elves, being a long-lived race, on average had more experienced and more powerful Gifted than humans, but humans had more numbers as they procreated quicker. Even with greater numbers humans tended to kill and conquer other humans, and Ameya, as both the dwarves and elves tended to be more difficult opponents to overcome. And the races typically stayed segregated into the environs that the gods had made them stewards of. This changed, and near the end of the First Age, before the War of the Gods and the subsequent mortal holy wars, humanity was beginning to cause real pain to the elves. The elves, not wanting to go the way of the Ameya, began to discuss amongst themselves the world over what to do with the threat humanity was becoming. Before any broad action could be taken the War of The Gods and mortal holy wars ensued.
In the Second Age, as civilizations rebuilt, humanity was at first slow to rebuild, but as it did and became more organized it spread quickly, more quickly than before. The humans sought more resources to rebuild, more land to conquer, and once again came in conflict with the elves of the world.
The elves, with their long memories, did not wish to repeat the ruin that happened centuries earlier during the era of holy wars. It seemed to them that humanity had quickly forgotten that pain, but of course humans are short-lived, thus their memories are as well. The elves had always observed the disparity in power and experience between their Gifted and Gifted humans. A fair number of elves had thought that without magic humanity would be lost, even with their numbers. And the elves observed that most of the Gifted humans used, whether they needed to or chose to, spells – a way to cast magic that required some components and was learned thru equations, formulas, texts, etc. As humans have the shortest life spans of the races, and honing the Gift can take time, it seemed that humans came up with these spells as a shortcut to use the Gift whereas the Gifted of the more long-lived races typically spent decades becoming more naturally attuned to the magical energies of the universe. The humans, being shorter-lived, are always in a hurry. Over the next several centuries the elves of the world counseled with one another in regards to the threat humanity posed. It was easily agreed upon that the elves of the world needed to somehow limit humanity’s magical prowess.
We should act now while humanity is on its knees. Before they do to us as they had done to the Ameya.
Perhaps humanity will have learned, let us watch.
The only thing humanity knows is how to take – they are like locusts.
They have learned nothing and forgotten everything. In just a few, short centuries they act as though no great wars ever took place, and some are beginning to push into our forests. Now we can push them out easily enough, but not forever.
It is true, many are still warring. There is great discord amongst them.
That will not last forever.
No.
And they breed like rats.
That is also true.
We must act now, remember the Ameya!
Remember the Ameya!
What shall we do?
Deny them knowledge of Magic. Without this they are nothing.
How? They can attune to Magic just as we?
But they do not. They use their spells to cheat. Without those spells, the tomes and scrolls, it will take them until they are old and near death to reach what our people reach when they are still but in their youth.
Agreed.
But if we do this they will surely come for us, should we not do this as retaliation if they invade, let them make the first offense?
They will surely come for us anyway as we have what they want and are unwillingly to give it to them freely.
They are not all our enemies.
Not all of them were the enemies of the Ameya, but enough were.
The elves’ worldwide effort to hamstring humanity’ magical prowess happened in three, relatively distinct phases:
Phase I of the Great Theft.
200– 600 S.A. (Second Age)
The majority of elven societies in the world begin a coordinated, worldwide effort to steal magical knowledge, and items, away from humanity – keep magical items and knowledge out of human hands by going to ruins and taking what they can before the humans get there. False magical items and texts would be made and put into the world for humans to find. False legends of magical treasures would be made to keep humans from the real ones.
Starts subtly – buy, trade, quietly steal, corrupt, foul. Nothing too overt yet – goes on for some centuries and continues thru today.
Humanity does not communicate worldwide the way the elves do so few if any humans know this activity by the elves is taking place all over the world at the same time. Some of this theft/destruction does for some groups of humans seem to be retaliation for invading elven soil. For other groups of humans it seems as an attack on them for no reason. Some humans simply do not know where the texts went or who burnt the library down. The human response is mixed.
Phase Two of the Great Theft: 600 – 800 S.A. Humanity is organized enough to once again start posing a significant threat to elves around the world.
Human activities against the elves are now more than just annoying. Elven tactics get more overt:
Target all Gifted humans on the battlefield – obviously. Sometimes making examples of their bodies/decorating the battlefields with the bodies of Gifted humans to dissuade humans from further attack on elven lands. Spirits of many fallen Gifted humans continue to roam ancient and not so ancient battlefields. Some undead Gifted humans came to be as result of the wars between humans and elves.
More overtly – steal and/or destroy all magical tomes and items humans have and try to keep such items out of human hands as much as possible.
During military conflicts with the humans, which the elves would let the humans initiate so that the elves would be in the right, the elves would/may do the following:
Go into human lands and burn libraries to the ground, destroy as much of human written knowledge of magic as possible – teams of elves do this, not whole army units;
continue to spread misinformation about spells;
destroy large swatches of human lands between human territory and elven forests = no human’s land/a wasteland that would act as a reminder to the humans and a buffer between elven and human lands (no human civilians to be killed).
These elven tactics go on for a few hundred years.
Some human societies do not learn from this and this kicks off centuries of back and forth conflict between neighboring human and elven societies.
Humans start to try and make more tomes of what is left and more magical items – underground. May have begun in some cultures to lead to printing press and standardizing of parts.
Phase 3 of the Great Theft: 791 S.A. to present.
In 791 S.A. the first elven community targeted non-combatant, Gifted humans after said humans’ society invaded that elven community’s lands. For the next several hundred years this becomes the modus operandi of many elven communities.
So: teams of elven mageslayers went into the heart of human lands to kill Gifted humans, as well as plunder, destroy, and/or corrupt all sources of magical knowledge and items said elves could find.
900 – 1400 S.A. is the main period when Elves, at large, target non-combatant, Gifted Humans if those humans’ society invaded elven lands. It takes some human societies longer than others, and some more than a few times, to learn what will happen if their societies invade the elves. One human society attacks elves, elves retaliate, this human society leaves elves alone for century or so, forgets, attacks again, elves retaliate, humans leave elves alone, another century or two, humans attack again, elves retaliate. To some extent this is the way it was in the First Age between humans and elves, which truly frustrates the elves as you have many elves who have lived thru the centuries on-and-off conflicts with the same culture or society of humans but of course never with the same exact humans. Three centuries ago we fought and we took their magical items, killed their Gifted, created wastelands – did they forget so soon? Yes, they are humans, of course they forgot so we will have to teach them again.
Humans, once again traveling around world for trade (sometime into mid/late second phase of the Great Theft) tell each other of what the elves are doing. Not all human societies take heed. Some use this as propaganda to invade elven neighbors.
Another tactic that is the most debated amongst the elves of the world to this day is the use of pre-emption against humanity. Why wait for the humans to attack us? Strike first and eliminate the threat the locusts pose. To date, no group of elves has pre-emptively attacked any humans as the elves do not wish to cede the moral high ground to humanity.
Different groups of elves chose to employ different sets of tactics from amongst those described and others depending on their history with humans in the region.
Elves still look to stifle the magic prowess of humanity to keep humanity at bay.
Not all elves and human societies are at each other’s throats or have a history of conflict, some human-elven relationships are quite respectful and productive.
Not all elves think the same.
Some elves have trading posts with humans (outside the elven forests).
Lots of variance in elven activities and agendas in regards to humanity.
The thing that is similar amongst the elven communities of the world is keeping an eye on Gifted humans and keeping magical items and knowledge out of the hands of humans as humans are the most destructive and war-loving of the races.
Results of the Great Theft.
The Great Theft has been so successful that today only a small number of Gifted humans have the knowledge to of how to cast spells upper level magic (above Level 6 from a D & D point of view). The elves realize that this will not keep humanity’s knowledge and skill of magic held in check forever, especially as humans need not learn magic from tomes, scrolls, songs, etc, and that new spells can be developed and old ones rediscovered.
The Great Theft resulted in humans doing the following and more:
Many Gifted humans being hidden away and/or told not to show their Gift. The Gifted are more precious than gold. Many Gifted humans were more protected than royalty. Luckily, the vast majority of elves only hunted down humans with the Gift when their peoples were at war. Elves are not evil, they simply wish to survive. If the elves are not threatened they will not retaliate.
Humans begin to increase dependence on invention of non-magical weapons geared towards killing elves, wiping out forests – fire/incendiary, acid, poison; battle machines – non-magical, to attack elven forests; drop fire from above using griffins (limited). More on this below/later.
Development of printing press, mass artifice, mass production of paper – these things done thru magical and non-magical means – really kicks in during the period from 1200 – 1600 S.A.
Magocracies rise to protect the Gifted / stop non-Gifted from attacking elves.
Pre-industrial tools to help with mass production of magical items and general weapons and armor – leads to blast furnaces (water power for bellows), water and wind powered lumber, stone cutting, power hammers and smaller power tools (powered by wind, water, foot, magic). Some tools one might have seen in a late eighteenth century into early nineteenth century workshop in the United Kingdom and/or United States. Just as in the real world, in my world not all human cultures/societies have all these tools/inventions to the same level.
In General:
Technological developments in humanity driven by need/desire to make up for loss of magic and/or to retaliate against or defend against elves.
Items to cloak ones magical abilities.
Lots of artificers and apprentices/non-magical. This plus more texts equals the rise of public education to varying degrees. As no one can be certain who will be Gifted it is in a society’s best interest to make sure as many of its citizens have at least a basic education. This is true especially for humans where their Gifted will more than likely learn thru spells and the more literate they are the faster they can make use of the Gift thru these spells.
In many human societies one will find, even in smaller cities, a bustling trade of minor magical items and many books of magic (albeit less powerful magics). The idea being that if you flood the market/society with magic items and books of all kinds then the elves cannot get them all.
Most human nobles and rich have magical textbooks on their bookshelves.
Spellbooks
In an effort to save what magical knowledge they had, many Gifted human began to make multiple copies of magical texts so it would be harder for the elves to destroy what remained. To this end, the printing press was invented and hundreds to thousands of copies of books containing the spells humanity retained have spread all over the human lands. In this way any one with the Gift is able to pick up a copy of one of these books and learn magic academically. Now, not all the spells humanity knows are easily available to all humans with the Gift. Some spells are passed down from mentor to student. Some spells are locked away or have been taken out of general circulation so that the elves and their allies will not have an accurate idea of just how much magical knowledge humans have kept or lost. Usually the easiest books of spells to find are of the cantrips/Low Magic and High Magic levels/grades one to two. This does not mean every level one book has every level one spell known to humanity in it, but it may have several to dozen plus. The books are usually organized by school of magic, but not always. So, someone could go to the Academy’s library and find a book of level one spells for the school of Abjuration. One could also go to said library and find a book of spells specific to the four-year program for becoming a healer or White Wizard. One could also find multiple printed copies of some Gifted human’s personal spell book with levels Cantrip thru whatever. Essentially, these books of spells act as textbooks, like textbooks for Chemistry, Physics, Calculus, etc that someone can use for preparing, learning, and casting spells, or use as source books to take specific spells from and copy into the Gifted individual’s own personal spell book. In this way, a level one caster easily could accumulate high level spells even though they do not have the ability to yet cast them.
Other means to protect Gifted humans lead to the creation of magical tattoos. These tattoos give non-Gifted humans some magical abilities but were mainly meant to distract, lead elves away from those humans that are Gifted. Along this train of thought magical surgeries were developed where magical items were bonded/grafted into/onto peoples’ bones or other body parts, or the bone or body part (such as an eye) was itself made into a magical item that the bearer could wield magic from. The wealthy may do such things as well as buying magical items – discrete, discriminate, hush-hush. No magical tattoo shops or magical surgery offices. Some human societies may have elite forces that have had their non-Gifted soldiers tattooed or had grafting/bonding or even branding done so as to have more magic users in the ranks of the military. Typically this is done in secret and only those in the government that need to know will. Of course, as these soldiers and others were used as decoys to hide the truly Gifted humans elves caught on and began to tattoo and do graftings for some of their forces to keep up with the humans.
The trade-off to these practices is that now the magical tattoo or grafted item can be detected and this puts the human bearer at risk of possible targeting by the elves should the elves decide to purge said a human’s society of magic users and magical items. Or, if someone in the illegal trade detects the tattoo or grafted item they may decided to separate it from its bearer. The magical tattoos and grafting procedures are expensive, many times more than buying a magical item that will give the bearer the same effect so those typically with magic-granting tattoos or graftings tend to be very wealthy.
As there is no way to both cloak magic and use it at the same time (at least not easily) some of the Gifted humans, that can afford to or find a patron to pay for them, do opt to get some type of magical tattoos – typically something of a defensive nature. Some countries/societies may have rules regarding such practices as turning one’s skin or body part into a magical item. Such as said item can only be imbued with defensive or healing magics; anyone that receives/has a magical body part infused with combat-offensive magics that is not themselves naturally Gifted may be executed, and the individual(s) that created the tattoo or infusion of the body part executed as well (varies from society to society).
Cloaking/Hiding Magic
The problem with having magical tattoos and or graftings/infusions is the problem with magic in general – as of yet very few know how to cloak magic and wield it at the same time. Even before the elves campaign to diminish human magical prowess took place the vast majority of mortals were at a loss of how to conceal or cloak magic and simultaneously use it. Various materials and combinations were tried and are still researched. One can of course hide a magical item by shielding it/covering it with lead/placing it within lead. And a Gifted individual can hide in a room lined with lead. But how does someone that is Gifted hide and use magic to defend themselves at the same time?
The process of Binding could be used on both magical items and the Gifted to hide them. Someone of fairly high stature with the Gift is able to place an enchantment on some material, usually a piece of cloth such as a ribbon, and then tie the ribbon around a magical item, or around the temples of a Gifted individual (neither the item or individual need be completely covered, just encircled by the binding material) and the magic that is in that item is locked within it and hidden; the individual’s connection to the magical energies of the universe is severed. Problems with this: once bound the item becomes just a normal, non-magical item; the bound person cannot cast magic, only the person that placed the binding can remove it, or the binding is removed/gone when the person that did the binding dies. Binding is so powerful that it modifies the fundamental nature of things around the bound person or object. Not many can perform this enchantment. Binding also inextricably connects the enchanter to the enchanted person or object (Prophets, of course, can and have bound Gifted individuals).
Another way to simply hide magical items and/or persons was by putting them in “extra spaces”. Humans, in the past few/couple centuries have rediscovered/reinvented spells to create “extra spaces” that Gifted humans can hide in and places where more than the run of the mill magical items can be hidden away from elves. This will be discussed further in the section about the AAAA. Yet still this only hides.
For the Gifted, clothes made with varying amounts of lead and lead bracelets and such were tried, no luck. Humans, in the past few to couple hundreds of years have found something of a solution. Rather than try to fully cloak the Gifted human from detection the solution has been for the individual to wear an item that acts to deflect detection magic around the individual so that the only thing magical that is detected is the deflection item itself. This way, a kin to stealth technology on fighter jet et al, the magical signature of the Gifted human has been greatly reduced and perhaps a mage-killing elf will pass a human wearing a deflection ring by.
Gifted mortals can have their connection to magic severed thru use of objects that have been magically enchanted such as a manacles to rein in a Gifted individual, or a Gifted individual could, with great cost, have a ring or bracelet or other object made to disconnect the individual to the magic of the universe, but then the object can still be detected (depends on said object). What’s the difference between the object that reins in/disconnects a Gifted individual from magic versus a binding enchantment – only the enchanter can remove the binding (or possibly a Prophet, or a Tasked) whereas anyone, including the Gifted individual could remove the object(s) that are severing their connection to the magic of the universe (depends on the nature of the object they willingly adorned, or was placed on them).
The vast majority of mortals cannot figure out how to cloak magic and use it at the same time. A few have solved this problem, but why would they tell us?
Humanity’s military response to the Great Theft
In response to being diminished in the area of magic humans in part turned to the mechanization of weapons (not to the level of the dwarves): gravity-fed, repeating crossbow and ballistae; steam canons (some societies); air guns; mechanical, semi-automatic crossbows; mechanical sling shots akin to guns; mechanical plus a bit of magic equals semi-auto to automatic crossbows, bows, guns (with ball bearings or conical projectiles); and various other weapons that can fire multiple projectiles at once.
A little magic + mechanical engineering = like semi/auto guns – for elite forces/archers/snipers. Evolved from crossbows, both hand and heavy. Look like handguns and long guns of a sort. Shoot the head of crossbow bolts. Conical projectiles shot via magic. In the nation of Avenmare these magical plus mechanical projectile/ranged weapons are somewhat restricted to the military, Gifted, and some nobles. A one Mathew Serig has some. These type of weapons may also be allowed to close family members of Gifted humans. The type Mathew Serig carries with him is of his own design and looks somewhat like a 9mm handgun with a magazine that loads in the handle. There of course exists an illegal market for such weapons. Some say the authorities somewhat overlook this as long as the weapons do not get into the hands of elves.
Some humans came up with mechanical and armored and/or + low magic tanks and other such vehicles/machines.
Some humans went back to the woods to get what elves took. Sometimes successful, sometimes not, sometimes stand off’s/draws.
Human development in these fields has led to escalation as it always does and out of the need to survive the elves and dwarves have also adopted the technologies and tactics humans developed and made some of them their own (this in part has helped the elves create some of the no humans lands/wastelands that once were productive human-controlled areas). Humans have also taken tactics from the elves and come up with their own teams of mageslayers – usually targeting elves. Humans have also tried to steal what magical items and tomes they can from the elves and sometimes dwarves – the elves are just typically better at the theft as they have a globally concerted effort and humanity’s is at best regional.
As facing an enemy that lives in the woods, humans typically utilized fiery weapons and tactics: flaming projectiles; torches; hurl flammable liquids/substances at the area, then light it up; aerial bombardment of the forests with said liquids and flaming items; Unquenchable (Greek) Fire for some; flame throwers; Molotov Cocktails; fire magics when humanity had them; siege weapons that made use of fire and or flame throwers. Also, acids were used that could assist with making fires or just their own type of destruction.
Poisons to kill the forests slowly.
One tactic was to tunnel under the elven forests and then attack that way via invasion and/or set fire to the forest from multiple locations and/or attack/invade, or tunnel under and slowly poison the forest from underneath, or poison the drinking water/wells. For the poison to work it had to be done at multiple locations at once so usually was minimally effective and easily corrected by the elves. The tunneling and invading/firing was much more effective.
Some human societies have been successful at destroying the elves that their ancestors fought.
With the implementation of no-human-lands by elves and bolstered by dwarven engineers amongst their ranks, (as well as the millennia-old uses of magical traps, wards, etc strewn all over elven lands both forested, and now the wastelands) human attackers had an incredibly difficult time invading elven lands proper to the point that it was seen as incredibly impractical to ludicrous, especially as the elves in some areas made these wastelands, and kept these wastelands, miles wide between their forests and human-controlled lands. Even the most driven and hard-headed humans had to give up. No siege weapons could launch projectiles that far, the elves had become experts on guerilla warfare (fairly early on), and their dwarven allies had engineered devious earthenworks to bedevil oncoming humans. All this is in part why some human armies took to digging tunnels and/or aerial bombardment of forests, usually to little avail.
Some human armies had resorted to not just digging tunnels, but trenches as well, and/or underground or semi-underground fortifications/bunkers to get some foothold in these wastelands and slowly, methodically, push ever forward. This strategy sometimes putting the odds in the humans’ favor. Overall, in general across Aeris, many human societies, at least for now, see it as an unprofitable endeavor to war with elves (or dwarves), but of course not all.
Internal Politics of human societies change.
In those nations where humans wanted to attack elves, or attack again (some centuries passed) the Gifted humans rose up and overthrew the leaders so as to protect their community, thus leading to a fair number of magocracies being created, at least for a while in some nations, some still today. Demagogues riled up the masses and some human societies went back into elven lands with varying degrees of success, sometimes convincing Gifted humans to join, sometimes the demagogue was a Gifted human – lots of variance. Sometimes the Gifted fled, sometimes civil wars erupted within the human society over the idea of attacking elves or doing so again. Advisory counsels of the Gifted take more prominent role in politics, somewhat filling the role the clerics of old use to fill.
Relations between elves and humans today can vary greatly from region-to-region. In general, it seems as though many human societies are on at least neutral terms with their elven neighbors.
Humans have lots of elf-detection equipment. Many Gifted humans have elf-detection items on their person. Some Gifted humans are given free security although doesn’t that make it more obvious who the elves should kill? Debatable. Some areas where Gifted humans live simply have a bit more security presence – debate and dependent on history of elves and humans in that region.
Elves and the Theft today.
The debate continues amongst elves about what to do when humanity’s skill with magic and/or technology increases to the point where once again humans can mount successful, large-scale attacks on elven lands. Another wave of knowledge destruction and corruption? Counterattack further into human lands and lay waste to more? Wipe out the enemy completely? Pre-emption. “Remember the Ameya!”
Elves continue to corrupt human spells by changing equations, incantations, the necessary components, dates and places, etc. Elves make fake items to look like ancient lost scrolls, books, pages, carvings, etc. The elves also make deficient magical items to look old/ancient. The elves than track these items to see where they may find homes.
Elves are ever on the lookout for magical items and sources of knowledge anywhere in the Mortal or Demi Planes and will pay handsomely (even pay humans) for any magical items.
Elves continue to have espionage teams that go out and keep an eye on humanity’s magical endeavors.
Humanity typically resents the elves for doing this. The “Great Theft” is used to inspire war/conflict with elves.
Those places humanity devotes to the study of magic are typically well guarded (at least that’s what the humans think/hope).
The elves will leave humans alone if humans leave the elves alone. No acts against Gifted humans or academies if humans are not warring with elves.
Again not all humans develop the Gift thru spells and the elves are ever aware of this. Intuitive, artistic, and emotional casters have always posed a problem to the elves’ Theft. Luckily for the elves it is very difficult to turn into an equation that which one has gleaned thru inspiration, and not many Gifted humans naturally live long enough to reach the level of magical ability that most Gifted elves reach.
Elves are ever on the lookout for humans with the Gift and in conflicts choose to kill them first over kings and generals. Anyone can wield a scepter, not everyone can wield the Gift.
As far as gameplay goes, in this realm only a handful of D & D spells from Levels 7 – 9 are available for humans.
Three-Quarters of D & D level Six spells not available to humans.
Two-thirds of Level Five spells not available to humans.
Half of Levels Cantrip to Level Four Spells not available to humans.
Or for ease of gameplay cut the sorcerers list from D & D 5e in half.
Up Next: The AAAA: The Academy for the Advancement of the Arcane Arts
