Editing Expedition to the Ruins of Greyhawk (section)

== Background == 

The current year is 597 CY.

100 or so years ago, the Mad Mayor Zagig achieved apotheosis and became a demigod in a ritual he conducted in the dungeons below Castle Greyhawk. In the process of doing so he captured and imprisoned nine other demigods, taking a piece of divine essence from each. One of these demigods was Iuz, the half-demon son of the Witch-Queen Iggwilv and the demon prince Graz’zt and he (and the other demigods) remained imprisoned below Castle Greyhawk after Zagig ascended and departed the Material Plane as the newly divine “Zagyg” to serve in the court of Boccob, Archmage of the Gods.

None of this was well known until perhaps 30 years ago when the wizard Mordenkainen and his adventuring companions (primarily Riggby the cleric, Mordenkainen's apprentice Bigby and the fearless warrior Robilar, though other companions came and went as well), after years of exploring the ruins of Castle Greyhawk, found Zagig's Prison and the imprisoned demigods. Eventually, in 570 CY, realizing that sooner or later the binding magic would fail, Mordenkainen devised a plan to slay the worst of the imprisoned gods: Iuz. At his behest, Riggby, Robilar, and one of Robilar's henchmen made their way to the Prison and dispelled the magic barrier keeping Iuz bound, intending to slay him.

Unfortunately, just a moment too late, Tenser, Bigby and the warrior Neb Retnar teleported in, planning to stop Iuz from being freed, fearing that the whole plan was too risky. The two groups, after some momentary confusion, realized that the die was cast and they must band together to kill Iuz, but even that moment of hesitation was too much, and Iuz regained enough of his power to escape certain death in the clutches of Bigby’s notorious crushing hand by plane shifting to the Abyss. That magical warp freed the additional gods (as far as anyone knows) and caved in many of Castle Greyhawk’s deepest dungeon complexes. After it was all over, Iuz swore vengeance upon the adventurers who had attempted to kill him, dedicating a portion of his eternal rage to plotting their destruction.

Twenty-seven years have passed. To the west, in the not-so distant city of Verbobonc, Riggby has escaped Iuz’s vengeance by dying of natural causes in his twilight years. His body now travels by sacred procession along the Western Road toward Greyhawk.

=== Additional History ===

After the gambit of freeing, and attempting to slay, Iuz failed, word of Lord Robilar’s role in the demongod’s release spread quickly, and he took the brunt of the blame. Local magistrates sacked his castle west of Greyhawk, scattering his dragons and exiling him from the city.  Feeling remorse over his role in what happened, Mordenkainen formed the Circle of Eight, an organization of wizards dedicated to "preserving the balance", though some members (like Tenser) argued for a more active role in combating evil.  Meanwhile, Iuz wasted no time in re-establishing his rule in Dorakaa, and in 582 CY, a series of small, regional conflicts erupted into continent-wide war, thanks to Iuz's machinations.  This war, known as the ''Greyhawk War'', or the ''Great War'', would rage for two years, from 582 to 584 CY.  Eventually a peace treaty was negotiated and was due to be signed in the Great Hall of the City of Greyhawk, but treachery almost overturned it and threatened to destroy the Circle of Eight in one fell swoop.  

When the wizards Bigby, Tenser, and Otiluke inspected the building that would house the treaty event, they discovered an elaborate magical trap meant to destroy the assembled ambassadors and dignitaries. The archmage Rary, the only member of the Circle whose magical prowess matched that of Mordenkainen, then emerged from the shadows to congratulate his allies on their foresight. His schemes thwarted, Rary lashed out at his friends, slaying Tenser and Otiluke and gravely wounding Bigby. Worse, Mordenkainen soon received word that his greatest friend, the fighter Lord Robilar, had sacked the slain wizards’ strongholds and destroyed their clones and soul objects, preventing their return to life. Then Robilar departed to the Bright Desert to serve Rary and his quixotic empire of the sands. However, Rary and Robilar had failed to discover a clone Tenser had hidden away on Celene, one of Oerth's moons, and in the month Goodmonth of 585 CY, Tenser was restored to life.