The Lost Guard of Tor Anroc
As written by Korta Galaith, EU Guild Leader of The Lost Guard of Tor Anroc
Transcribed by Alith Anar (aka Arathnar Daemonbane, vice Swordmaster leader and Ambassador of the Lost Guard of Tor Anroc)
During the Sundering every settlement of every realm lost some of its population to the dark gods, well all but one, Tor Anroc. The people of Tor Anroc stood strong and resisted all the temptation the chaos gods put before them. Sometime during the Sundering, when the High Elves had been beat back into their great cities and the Druchii stalked the land, the dark gods realized that they could not sway the elves of Tor Anroc, so decided to drown the city beneath the ocean that was its life blood.
A bitter battle soon followed; inch by inch the armies of Tor Anroc were forced off the islands surrounding the city. High Mages battling with double their number of Dark Sorceresses to keep the islands afloat. The seas boiled and the many monsters that had lay, in slumber, at the bottom of the sea-bed now tore through the waves in search of prey. As each High Mage pulled back to the city, the islands they were on sank to the depths. Until finally only one island was left, the isle that contained the city itself.
After days of fighting the evil Mages the ruler of Tor Anroc at that time, the current rulers Father, decided to evacuate the city. A great flight then followed, every large sea-worthy ship had their lower decks and holds packed cheek to jowl with the citizens of the city that hadn't been called up as militia. While their upper decks contained what was left of the cities militia and once grand army. Every ship that left the cities harbour was accompanied with at least two High Mages. Without these mages the ships would have quickly sunk in the raging storms and been overrun by great sea-beasts. With the mages the ships had a clear passage of calm sea which enabled the ships to reach the small mainland harbor that was owned by the Ashoun Clan. Upon reaching this harbor the ships were abandoned to the sea while the entire population of Tor Anroc fled to the Fortress of Tor Ganralin, which was situated many miles inland.
Once the entire population of the city had been evacuated, only nine elves were left on the island. These were the most powerful mages of Tor Anroc, one of which was the ruler of the city and the head of the Ashoun clan. Slowly the armies of the Evil chaos gods took over the city despite the best efforts of the nine. In a last ditch attempt to prevent the Chaos gods gaining control of the city the remaining mages sunk the city, taking themselves and thousands of Chaos worshipers to the depths.
After seeing their city dragged beneath the waves by the evil of the Chaos Gods and the Dark Elves, the population of Tor Anroc barricaded themselves into the fortress of Tor Ganralin, hate for the Dark Elves burned permanently into their souls. The fortress itself has never been taken over and stood strong against all assaults the Chaos gods threw at it. The Dark Elves turned their attention the fortress soon after Tor Anroc fell, but their attacks failed to break through the Fortresses wall that were carved out the living rock and so for 10 long years they laid siege to the Fortress but eventually the Chaos Gods turned their attention elsewhere and the Dark Elf armies retreated from the Fortress to plague other lands.
Now, the Elves of Tor Anroc are greatly mistrusted by the other elves of Ulthuan because during the Sundering many pleas of help were sent to the army of Tor Anroc but they seemed to be ignored. In fact none of these messages ever reached the army as there was no island or city for the messengers to deliver to. The Fortress of Tor Ganralin was a well kept secret and few elves other than the elves of Tor Anroc knew of it.
Now I must go, what you have just heard is a brief history of the elves of Tor Anroc during the Sundering. Soon to follow this history will be histories of how the elf returned to Tor Anroc, a structure of the Army of Tor Anroc and also plans of the city itself.
The Truth Revealed.
After the siege of Tor Ganralin, Dagda Ashoun sent out envoys to every province of Ulthuan to assess the damage caused by the sundering and to return to their city home of Tor Anroc with news of the situation. Shortly after these envoys left, hundreds of heavy elven cavalry flooded out of the small gate and headed towards the sea and the port that would take them to their home, Tor Anroc. This column was charged with clearing the way for the citizens of Tor Anroc to return home.
Within hours the remainder of the Tor Anroc Guard and the cities civilian population was on the move. A line of elves walked wearily out of the small gateway and along the blood-stained road towards the ocean and their homes. Dagda Ashoun and his inner circle headed the column and were the first to see the dreadful sight.
As they rounded the final spur that hid the ocean from view they saw the destroyed port where the charred skeletons of many ships lay from when they were abandoned in the flight to the fortress of Tor Ganralin, many years earlier. The once seething ocean was calm now, the deep blue waters stretched as far as the eye could see, and to the west there was nothing. Nothing but water all the way to the horizon. No destroyed city. No charred ruins. There was no trace that their island home had ever been there.
The Lost Guard.
Grief struck
the citizens of Tor Anroc. The last bit of hope that had remained in
everyone's heart, the hope that they could return home and live in
peace, was shattered. All the pain felt for love ones that every elf
had lost had return only to be amplified ten-fold. Many elves just
dropped whatever they were carrying and slumped to the ground and sat
staring out to the ocean where the city once was, all hope and light
gone from their eyes.
The leaders of the nation gathered in a
circle and decided what to do next, how to find the answers they
needed and who to get them from. After hours of discussion it was
decided that the Guard of Tor Anroc would divide. Each of Dagda's
trusted generals would take a company and head in separate
directions, with orders to exterminate any dark elves or chaos
worshiper they came across. One company would remain at the fortress
of Tor Ganralin and protect the citizens and craftsmen of Tor Anroc,
while the other nine companies would roam the land of Ulthuan and
purge it of the Dark Kin. Dagda's own company which comprised of
his most trusted and veteran warriors and some of his inner circle
mages of Tor Anroc with their bodyguards would head to the White
Tower of Hoeth to find the answers. The decision was also made to
carry out these plans the next day to allow for a day of grieving for
the lives lost in the wars.
The next day as the sun rose Dagda
stood on a plinth that had been erected the previous night and said
with his voice magically amplified: "The time for grieving is over,
there is a dept we are owed. The grand army of Tor Anroc has no home,
we are lost, was are The Lost Guard, but we have a purpose. The
Druchii sank our fair land and drenched us in blood. Every elf
standing here today has lost someone; the Druchii spilt the blood of
our fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, sons and daughters on this
land. But no more. We have been disturbed from our peaceful slumber,
the beast has been awoken, and we are owed revenge, and revenge we
shall have. The guard is now lost and we are searching for our home.
We shall not rest until every Druchii is purged from this land, their
kin shall never be allowed to step foot on this land again.
While
they still live, we shall still fight.
While they still breathe,
we shall not rest.
Our blades are bare. Our armour is strong. Our
hearts are afire and we will have our owed revenge.
A/N: This is the collective history of The Lost Guard Of Tor Anroc, a Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning guild that is currently recruiting for members, please check us out if you are interested the link is in my profile.
