Timmorran was the greatest wizard to ever live and the founder of Greyhaven. He was born to a Loth K'har tribe, the nephew of the Uthuk Lord Llovar Rutonu, but would become a renowned hero of Talindon in the First Darkness. The Orb of the Sky was his creation, a marvel of arcane power that shaped the world from the point of its creation onward. He can also be credited with the formulation of Terrinoth's modern system of governance by the Council of Thirteen. While King Daqan officially founded Terrinoth, it was based on Timmorran's ideas and plans.
Much of what is written on magic and history in Terrinoth comes from Timmorran, and his wisdom is oft invoked as the most reliable source on any topic. Whether he did more good or harm overall is a debate better avoided in polite company, such is the absolute love of the baronial humans for the legendary mage.
The Rise of Timmorran
On the Night of Summons, Llovar Rutonu Lokander summoned the horrors of the Ynfernael into his tribe. His brother Llander’s wife, Rala, gave birth to a son. This boy would be named Timmorran Lokander. Nightseers hailed the child, prophesying that he would grow into a man of great import. Fearful of his brother Llovar's increasing depravity, Llander and his family fled from the wastes to start life anew before they too became fresh victims of Llovar's blood-soaked predations.
Llander's Flight to Lorimor
The fugitives made for Lorimor, which was by now a burgeoning coastal empire with a reputation for cosmopolitan culture and schools of learning. Llovar regarded his brother’s abandonment as a dreadful betrayal, and he called for Ynfernael forces to curse the runaways. The effectiveness of such curses is not known, though Rala died of a lingering sickness on the road and Llander mysteriously vanished shortly before Timmorran, by now a boy of five, reached the gates of Lorimor far to the west.
Timmorran Studies Magic
Timmorran struggled for a while as a friendless orphan, begging for copper coins on the streets of Lorimor. His talents for magic were untrained, but already apparent, and he turned to street sorcery in order to obtain money. (There are those who suggest he used tricks to swindle and rob, though Greyhaven suggests they cleave to the accepted history that he performed miracles for the entertainment of astonished crowds.) A conclave of local wizards learned of Timmorran’s talents, and they swiftly inducted him into their order and taught him to apply magic in a more methodical fashion.
Assassins of the Q'aro Fenn
As Timmorran’s powers grew, a nightseer warned Llovar about the threat his nephew posed, prophesying that one day Timmorran would strike down the Lord of the Uthuk Y’llan. Llovar publicly scorned such pessimism and had the nightseer’s brains struck from his skull.
While his public attitude was arrogant and dismissive, he must have been secretly concerned, for he dispatched three killers, feared mage-assassins known as the servants of Q’aro Fenn, to find and slay Timmorran. (Q’aro Fenn is thought not to be a name so much as a title that translates roughly as “demon-bone witch” in the language of Terrinoth. It certainly does seem appropriate, as she was one of Llovar’s lieutenants and chief of his assassins according to some of Timmorran’s writings.)
The Mercurial Sal Meringyr
In Lorimor, Timmorran had become apprenticed to a celebrated wizard named Sal Meringyr. The impulsive Sal exercised great power and heroism, but he had an overweening ambition to pursue the possibility of crystallizing arcane energy. After all, were not the Tears of Latariana supposedly crystallized Empyrean energy? While he must be taken to task for planting this dangerous idea in his young apprentice’s head, the fact is that without Sal Meringyr, the tale of Timmorran would have ended here. The assassins of the Q’aro Fenn finally tracked Timmorran down and assailed him, but Sal fought to save his apprentice, killing two of the assassins and sending the third into flight. The wizard paid dearly for his bravery and died of the wounds he received that day.
Timmorran fled across the seas to the far-off continent of Ghom and made a new life for himself in Al-Kalim, also known as the Sunderlands. He offered his services to the tribe of Ashan the Elder and grew to become an ever more potent magician and adventurer, as well as a friend to one Waiqar Sumarion.
The First Darkness
According to ancient records, Llovar had finished his consolidation of the tribes of the northern plains by the year 478. Allied with the orcs and dragons, the armies of the Uthuk Y’llan brought about the time of the First Darkness as they marched to despoil the lands of Talindon, Dunwarr and the eaves of the Aymhelin.
Timmorran's Great Deeds in the War
In the year 481, Timmorran persuaded his friend Ashan the Elder to send forces to the defense of Talindon, reasoning that if Llovar could not be stopped there, he would bring war to Ghom in time. They arranged for an army of Sundermen to be assembled and struck a deal with the fleet of Lorimor to sail them from Ghom to Lorimor and then up the Flametail River to join Falladir’s forces. The plan took a full year to come to fruition, and in 482, Timmorran reinforced the alliance. His army began to mop up bands of raiders that were harrowing the farmlands of southeastern Talindon.
In 483, Timmorran’s campaign began in earnest. With the consent of Falladir and Triamlavar, he ordered the allied army to split into two contingents, one commanded by himself and the other by the famed Sunderland general Waiqar Sumarion.
Timmorran sent Waiqar to relieve Thelgrim of its siege. In the meantime, Timmorran’s enchanted army, now joined by Falladir and Triamlavar, sought out the Uthuk and their allies. At the Battle of the Burning Hills, they baited an army of Orcs into attacking their strong, elevated position, leading to a conclusive victory in which Timmorran struck down Chief Lukosh with his magic. Timmorran considered Orcs violent brutes, but he sensed that they had little love for the Ynfernael. He reckoned that the only reason Llovar could rely on his Orc allies was because of Lukosh’s bloodthirsty brand of personal loyalty. Sure enough, the Orcs soon began to desert the Ynfernael cause and by 486 Llovar would no longer be able to call upon a single Orcish regiment.
Waiqar was keen to press the advantage, though Timmorran was more circumspect, advising that the allies consolidate their victories and concentrate on defeating Uthuk forces in southern Talindon. Regrettably, Waiqar would not heed this advice. He gathered a warhost and led them into the wastes of the Charg’r, directly to where Llovar was said to have raised a great Black Citadel from which he was directing his campaign.
Throughout 485, Timmorran continued to oversee the reconquest of Penacor lands, and his armies scattered the Uthuk before them. Timmorran found it hard to celebrate, however, for there was no news of what had become of Waiqar and his army. To all appearances, they had simply vanished into the Charg’r Wastes.
The Host of Thorns
In 487, the Uthuk Host of Thorns invaded Talindon, sweeping all before them. On the Ashen Field, the Host fell upon an army led by King Falladir and his sons. They fought valiantly. A blow from King Falladir’s sword nearly cleaved the head from Melinesh, while Prince Parren drove a lance through the heart of Nashaia. But Llovar had numbers, magic, and malice on his side, and by the end of the day, the three Penacors lay dead upon the field together with the soldiers who had pledged to follow their banner. A small group of ragged survivors, led by the noble young Baron Daqan, escaped the slaughter. Only the fury of a great tempest prevented Llovar from running the shattered survivors down. They could only ride off through the pelting rain to warn Timmorran of Llovar’s renewed force.
The Locust is Ended
Timmorran ordered his troops to regroup in the foothills of the Razor Crags. He chose a strategic location for a desperate stand, the flanks of his force protected on one side by the deep waters of Lake Clearstar and on the other by the sheer slopes of Mount Goltok.
While he waited for Llovar’s Host of Thorns, Timmorran was astonished to hear reports of an army approaching from the rear. He and his troops were relieved to find that it was a force of Dwarves from Thelgrim. Halgir Son of Grom had talked the Dunwarr Deeplords into committing Dwarven troops to the war. This is well remembered in Dwarven history.
Llovar’s troops arrived at dawn and threw themselves forward in waves, with frenzied Uthuk line-breakers and demonic beasts spearheading each blood-filled attack. The Battle of the Locusts had begun. The air was thick with arrows and bolts of magical power, and the Uthuk fell in droves, but still they came on. Kul led the third wave, concentrating on giving covering fire to his vanguard as they broke through to Timmorran’s position.
Scything bone blades slashed at Timmorran, but King Triamlavar leapt before the charging Uthuk. While Triamlavar was distracted, Kul punched an envenomed arrow through the Elf king’s belly. Enraged, Halgir Son of Grom challenged Kul to face his axe. For his bravery, the Deeplord’s brains were pierced with a bodkin. Ashan the Elder then stepped up. Kul sent a barrage of shafts that perforated the Sunderman’s lungs. These three sacrifices were not in vain, though, for Kul’s efforts had exhausted him, and Timmorran survived the onslaught.
On learning that Kul’s assault had been repulsed, Llovar called for Dire, his demonic steed whose harness was bedecked with the heads of freshly-fallen lords. The Locust Master called for Q’aro Fenn to join him with his remaining elite warriors. He acted quickly, trying to take advantage of the disorder around Timmorran’s position caused by Kul’s assault.
What Llovar had not anticipated was that Timmorran had been conserving his own magical energies for this very occasion. The two armies clashed once more, and the mountains themselves quailed as Timmorran and Llovar unleashed sorcerous energies of incredible potency. Llovar summoned forth Ynfernael monstrosities only for Timmorran to boil them away with blazing arcane light. Llovar’s blade swung, ensorcelled with green flames and dripping black venom, but Timmorran shrouded himself within a shield of pure force and withstood its blows. Then, Timmorran stretched forth his hand, and a lance of the wizard’s power pierced his uncle’s rotten heart.
So Llovar fell. Dire fell alongside him, the terrible beast’s body dissolving as its energies returned to the Ynfernael. Then, rank by rank, the forces of the Host of Thorns turned and fled from the Broken Crags. The Battle of the Locusts was over; the First Darkness had passed.
In the ensuing chaos, Timmorran and Baron Daqan sought to control their forces, but fueled by desire for loot and revenge, their soldiers lost all discipline. They ran down the fleeing Uthuk and plundered their baggage train. By the time order was restored, the body of the Locust Lord was lost, and the fate of his lieutenants was unknown.
Timmorran and King Daqan
After the end of the Locust Swarm and the First Darkness, the realm of Talindon was left shattered, and the Penacor line extinguished. The war had left the baronies divided, with no clear ruler able to sit the throne. Besides, it was clear that many of the barons wished for the throne to remain empty in order to maintain their own independence. As the barons continued bickering over land and resources, Timmorran thought to bring unity to a now tense kingdom by attempting a new form of government inspired by the lands he had visited in his travels.
Forging a New Peace
With Timmorran's advice, the Lords of Talindon suggested that Baron Daqan accept the Penacor crown. Timmorran argued this to be a suitable transitional step from Penacor rule to the coalition of lords that he envisioned the kingdom to one day become. He persuaded the baron to take the throne, but he also advised him to openly swear that he would have no heirs and would instead install a Council of Barons to govern after him. Due to the weakened authority of the throne following the First Darkness, Daqan was forced to agree. His right to rule would now come directly from the Council of Barons, meaning the lords of the land could be surer that Daqan would hold their interests at heart. The king would reunify the baronies in the interest of security, and facilitate the dividing of the post-war land among the barons so that after his rule, the Council could take power. His coronation was held in 488, and Daqan was soon regarded as a confident and self-assured ruler.
The Rescue of Waiqar
Shortly after Daqan took the throne, Timmorran assembled an army and traveled deep into the Charg’r Wastes to discover the fate of Waiqar Sumarion. After nearly six months, they came upon the Black Citadel of Llovar and vanquished various horrors that dwelt therein. In a deep oubliette, amongst Llovar’s many prisoners, they discovered the forlorn figure of a once-proud general.
Little is known of the details of the rescue of Waiqar, save that when Timmorran returned to Talindon, he urged King Daqan to forbid travel east into the those lands. He gathered every map that depicted the Charg’r Wastes and had them all destroyed.
Terrinoth
King Daqan, perhaps following Timmorran’s instruction, gave a speech in which he declared himself unworthy of the Penacor name and stated that the realm of Talindon ought to pass into history with its rulers. He proposed a new name for the nation: Terrinoth, or “Land of Steel.”
The Ru Campaign
Waiqar’s recuperation took many months, and the signs of emaciation and neglect never left him. Once confident and brash, the general was now given to sullen moods. Timmorran beseeched him to command the army once again. To the rejoicing of his troops, Waiqar accepted.
The general’s taste for recklessness had been wrung from him. He now favored a colder approach to warfare, yet he still managed to win glory for himself. When an Uthuk warlord named Da’Roul Bonesplicer marched from the Wastes, Waiqar commenced the Ru Campaign. He and his troops vanquished Da’Roul, and throughout Ru and the Darklands they annihilated the Uthuk camps.
Yet, in the hour of his triumph, Waiqar scorned all praise. Instead of reveling in his victories, he complained to his captains of the complacency and arrogance of Timmorran, stating that had the wizard seen fit to augment their military efforts with magic, the lives of many brave soldiers could have been saved.
Timmorran's Preoccupations
Timmorran was often absent during this time, traveling widely throughout the world. He was becoming increasingly absorbed with the need to preserve his teachings and abilities for future generations, and he raised a village that would go on to become a place of learning and study: Greyhaven. While he occasionally met with the barons at Archaut, he seemed preoccupied and soon retreated to the Tower of Meringyr, a tall keep he had ordered built in the remote Wizard’s Vale for the purpose of magical research. The keep was, of course, named in tribute to Timmorran’s old tutor, the great Sal Meringyr, whose ambition to tap the Verto Magica had become Timmorran’s own.
The Second Darkness
The death of King Daqan by the hand of some unknown attacker set in motion the Second Darkness. Various people could have benefited from Daqan’s demise, and while official records state that Baron Heronglade was justly found guilty, scholars argue that Waiqar Sumarion may have been the real culprit. After all, he soon used the situation to unleash evil upon Terrinoth.
An alternative explanation - one not often suggested in polite company - would be to note that Timmorran also stood to gain much from the death of Daqan. After the regicide, those who had voiced opposition to the Council of Barons wished no association with Baron Heronglade, and they became markedly circumspect regarding political matters. The Council now ruled supreme.
The Creation of the Orb of the Sky
Timmorran had become ever increasingly obsessed in his ambition to preserve his power for future generations. His dream was to create a reservoir of magical power so potent that wizards who came after him would be able to use it to power countless spells. This magic would be relatively easy to work, and run less risk of inviting any Ynfernael corruption.
He designed a powerful artifact, a huge crystalline sphere of pure magic to be called the Orb of the Sky, which would contain a portion of the Verto Magica’s energy. At the Tower of Meringyr, Timmorran and his acolytes strove to create the Orb, and he invested so much of his own energy into the artifact that he grew visibly infirm.
In 513, Timmorran made a fleeting public appearance at a memorial service for King Daqan held at Archaut. The wizard’s emaciation was a source of shock to those present, and after he left, Waiqar worried aloud about the wizard’s frailty and the trouble it would cause if the Orb fell into the wrong hands.
The Night of Betrayal
The motives behind history’s most famous act of betrayal are known only to Waiqar Sumarion, though it is popularly supposed that he had been turned against Timmorran and civilized people while incarcerated and tortured in Llovar’s dungeons. There in the Black Citadel, a darkness that had grown in the depths must have sprouted into the full bloom of hatred and violence. Waiqar now gathered troops to his barony in Terrinoth, claiming that only he could be trusted with the power of the Orb. As twilight fell on a cool autumn day in 515, a legion led by Waiqar launched an assault on the Wizard’s Vale. His soldiers were well prepared to storm the keep, using an iron-bound ram to shatter the gates. They slew the guards and put Timmorran’s apprentices to the sword.
As Waiqar and his warriors neared Timmorran’s workshop, the wizard realized his folly in making the Orb. He cast spells of unbinding and hurled the crystal sphere to the steel floor of the forge so powerfully that it shattered. Using magic, he channeled the myriad pieces into an enchanted velvet pouch. This he placed in the safekeeping of Lumii Tamar, foremost of the acolytes who studied at Meringyr. Timmorran had Lumii swear that he would distribute the fragments of the Orb throughout the world, entrusting each only to a being he deemed wise enough to use it.
Through a quite unprecedented act of high magic, Lumii turned into a crow and slipped past the terrible forces that laid waste to the Vale, and all but a single fragment went with him. Waiqar and his bodyguard burst into the workshop, and the vile baron was enraged to find that the Orb had been destroyed. Timmorran was exhausted from his efforts, and it was a simple matter for Waiqar to slay the defenseless wizard who was once his friend.
References
- Realms of Terrinoth