Editing Age Of Dragons: Alliance of Light

[[Age Of Dragons: Main Page]] -> [[Age Of Dragons: Mythology and History]] -> [[Age Of Dragons: Alliance of Light]]
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When ''Ghost Dragon'' refugees, hounded by the ''Ascendancy'', arrived in the Southern lands they found the twin domains of ''Arrantis'' and ''Kalarn'', both riven with internal conflict and disunity.

The ''Ghost Dragons'' brought with them tales of the growing dominion of ''Endless Night'' in the North, and to their credit the dragons of the South listened. It had, after all, been two thousand years since the ''Ascendancy'' began its conquest of the North, but till now the stories of war in distant skies had seemed far removed and irrelevant to those so far south. However, with the arrival of an entire breed of Dragons (or at least what remained of it) Dragonkind had to sit up and take notice.

The ''Solar Dragons'' saw this as an opportunity to restore unity amongst the ''Dragons of Order'', and brokered a treaty named the ''Alliance of Light'' that would guarantee cessation of hostilities between ''Pure, Argent and Solar'' draconic factions, and ensure mutual defence in case of aggression. The ''Ghost Dragons'' were included as well, but as refugees with no domains and little military might, there was an unspoken agreement that they would be second-class citizens in this ''Alliance'', with no place on the ruling council and little influence. A small domain of little value or beauty was gifted to them as a "refuge", and they were instructed not to think to expand their territories beyond this domain if they wanted the ''Alliance's'' friendship. Weary from fleeing and fighting, the ''Ghost Dragons'' humbly accepted.
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===Seeking Allies===

The ''Ascendancy'' had effortlessly claimed the loyalty of every Dragon in the ''Sable, Blood and Velvet'' breeds, and somehow also convinced a small number of ''Forest Dragons'' (namely the mountain dwelling ''Jade Dragons'' of the North) to join them. 

The ''Ashen Dragons'' had of course declared neutrality, the ''Ghost Dragons'' had fled to their enemies, and the remaining majority of the ''Forest Dragons'' remained deep within the ''Heartswood'' to the west, beyond the reach or interest of draconic society as a whole.

The ''Alliance'', in contrast, had equal strength in theory, with ''Pure, Argent'' and ''Solar'' united, with the ''Ghost'' refugees in tow. However in practice, the ''Alliance'' was far weaker, with less unified leadership, a multitude of independent mortal armies rather than one overwhelming one, and internal division still causing great difficulties. Ironically, many so-called ''Dragons of Order'' refused to do any more than pay lip service to the ''Alliance'', and few were willing to risk personal resources to pursue a war that was still distant to them.

The ''Alliance of Light'' knew it needed to draw in more strength to stand a chance of surviving, and so ''Solar'' emissaries were dispatched as ambassadors to the remaining breeds...

They first approached the ''Storm Dragons'' that ruled over the oceans to their South, and also the ''Chimerical Dragons'' of the Archipelago of Dreams in the coastal region. Both these dragonbreeds refused to be drawn in. The blue-scaled ''Storm Dragons'' declared that the affairs of land and sky were not their domain, and that they had a greater and older war to fight against their ancestral foes - the ''Krakens'' of the ''Drowned Abyss''. A few of their number - mostly young dragons who were already enamoured with the world above the horizon - chose to join the ''Alliance'', but for the most part the breed remained apart. 

The ''Chimerical Dragons'' refused to sign up to the ''Alliance'', citing that they had no talent for war and that their numbers were too low to take casualties. However they agreed to present ambassadors and emissaries to the ''Alliance's'' court, who would observe, engage in further diplomacy and offer sage advice. Unknown to the ''Alliance'' the ''Chimericals'' also took it on themselves to dispatch ambassadors to the ''Ascendancy'' as well, with every intention of playing the war to the advantage of the Dragons of Dream.

Finally the Alliance approached the ''Sky Tribes'' of the ''Hunter Dragons'' and found to their surprise that the ''Hunters'' were more than ready to fight the ''Ascendancy'', who they had already recognised as a greater evil than even the "civilised fops" of the ''Alliance''. 

However, their help would be conditional, and offered solely on the grounds that the ''Alliance'' would declare themselves enemies of the sorcerous ''Ashen Dragons''. The ''Alliance'' decided that for all their physical might, the ''Hunters'' were simply not worth this price - the ''Ashen Kingdom's'' neutrality was the fulcrum around which the war moved, and the ''Alliance'' could not afford to drive such potent Dragons to the ''Ascendancy''. Diplomacy continued, and eventually a single ''Sky Tribe'' agreed to join the ''Alliance'' without condition. This Tribe, named the ''Talons of Open Sky'', had already clashed with ''Ascendancy'' forces that strayed into their skies, and in the battles that followed lost two-thirds of their number and been driven south. Now a mere eight dragons they had lost any standing amongst the ''Hunters'' as a whole, but were welcomed to the ''Alliance'' as equals, with the ''Solar Ambassadors'' of the ''Alliance'' hoping that they could be used as a diplomatic bridgehead to eventually bring the rest of the Breed into the war.
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===Building Strength===

With the ''Ashen Lands'' lying between the ''Alliance'' and the ''Ascendancy'' it became impossible for either side to advance any further. Though the ''Ashen Dragons'' could not compare to the might of either major faction, they had enough strength to tip a full-scale war one way or the other. The ''Ashen'' forbade any incursions of army or war-flight into their domain, and so no major battle was joined. Neither was it possible to flank around the ''Ashen Lands''. To the west was the ''Heart Forest'', impenetrable and dangerous, and to the East the ''Unending Sand'', a desert too arid, barren and lifeless for any army to cross or for any Dragon to fly across. Small aerial feints round the flanks might be possible, but certainly no major ground assault would be possible.

The ''Ascendancy'' and ''Alliance'' thus set about building strength, and though both raised mortal armies also set about building aerial strength in their own way. 

The ''Ascendancy'' set to empowering their dragons, by sharing secrets of the demonic ''Lore of Night'', and sought to increase numbers by setting up mandatory breeding programs to birth new hatchlings in massive communal ''Hives''. They also sought to summon demonic allies, and to unearth ancient monsters from deep beneath the ground to serve their will. The ''Ascendancy'' strategy was based on the fact that should their strength be great enough, they would be able to continue their sweep south, crushing the ''Ashen Kingdoms'' first if they resisted.

The ''Alliance'' approach was somewhat more haphazard and varied according to the styles of the different Breeds: 

The ''Solars'' continued their diplomacy, aiming to tempt dragons of different breeds away one by one rather than en masse. They managed to reform the ruling Council a little so that it was clear that Councillors represented the ''Alliance'' as a whole rather than their respective breeds, and even opened their gates to Dragons of breeds associated with the ''Ascendancy''. So long as an individual ''Sable, Blood'' or ''Velvet'' was ready to renounce ''Endless Night'' they would be welcome. Despite discontent in the ''Ascendancy'' faction (resulting in no small part from the breeding programs in the ''Hives''), this remained an unattractive option to most, as they knew they would face hatred and prejudice for the colour of their scales. 

The ''Pure'' were less interested in expanding the ''Alliance'' and more interested in influencing it with their own culture. Over the course of time they made the ''Orthodoxy of the Mother Goddess'' something of a "state religion" for the ''Alliance'', even going so far at one stage as to purge "heretics" with an Inquisition that lasted just under a century before sanity was restored. Over time their strategies became more subtle, with proselytsing taking the place of forced conversion, and a shift in emphasis to targeting the mortal populations of their allies' lands. For them, cultural and religious unity was a vital goal, as it would hopefully ensure that the ''Alliance'' would grow strong, unified and with coherent goals when the Ascendancy finally attacked.

The ''Argents'' played as Hawks to the ''Solar'' doves. While the ''Solars'' advised caution and building of strength, the ''Argents'' determined that the war was already in full swing. If they could not march armies across the ''Ashen Lands'' they had to find other ways to push forward. They began several intiatives, the most famous of which was the founding of a brave band of ''Alliance'' dragons named the ''Farsky Rangers'', who would work in small groups deep in enemy territory sowing disruption with guerilla warfare, spying for vital information and sabotaging the ''Ascendancy's'' power build up. Other initiatives included the building of the ''Ironforge'' (an arms factory of blacksmiths and craftsmen dedicated to creating the tools of war), and the establishment of garrisoned ''Way Forts'' in ''Heart Forest'' and ''Thirsting Sands'' that would serve as resupply points for a flanking march.

The other breeds in the ''Alliance'' had too small numbers to lead such projects, and tended to fall in with the policies of one of the three ''Dragonbreeds of Order''. The ''Ghost Dragons'' were an exception, with a good number of the breed dedicated to creating a new home for themselves in the wasteland gifted to them as a refugee reservation, which they dubbed ''Ghosthome'', but which other ''Allies'' often unkindly referred to as ''the Graveyard'' or ''the Shanty''.

This build-up has continued to the present day, and all in all has lasted almost fifteen hundred years, thanks to continuing strengthening of the ''Ashen Kingdom'' and an inability by either side to find an advantage.

However, things are soon to change...
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[[Category:Age_of_Dragons]]