The Cimmerian
The Cimmerian are relatives of the Tir who traded their nobility and splendor for the dark ways of the shadows. During the great war of the First Age, a Tir by the name of Au’Jaun Rashir was the commanding officer for Avalaria’s first battalion of mages. Desperate to find a solution to win the war she turned to the forbidden form of magic known as Shadow Magic.
Shadow magic had been forbidden primarily for its devastating effects on the wielder more than the fact that it is also dangerous in its use. Many believe that it would destroy the very soul and essence of the wielder eventually, and even the Elrathi refused to practice this form of magic.
At first she dabbled, then became seduced and eventually addicted to the magic. She led many in her battalion into the depths and darkness of the Shadow Magic with her.
Au’Juan was the first of the Tir to succumb to the effects of the Shadow Magic. The affects of the shadow magic began to warp Au’Jaun and soon those who followed her began to feel the same affects. Au’Jaun eventually led a failed attempt to overthrow the queen and her people were forced to flee Avalaria.
Some years later Au’Jaun was lured into a trap set by the Tir of the kingdom of Avalaria, where she was sealed with magic in a field of stasis to be forever locked into a tower. With their leader captured, Au’Jaun’s followers scattered and to this day have no society of their own. The art of Shadow Magic was lost over the years after Au’Juan’s imprisonment.
The Cimmerian have long since integrated into human society and culture, and are often found living in the shadows of the lower class. Many of the Cimmerian have forgotten their past, but have distrust for the Tir, others still dream of the day Au’Jaun will return and lead their people to victory over the Tir and establish her own throne. What few of them know is that Au’Juan was freed at the end of the second age when Simon Alexander was still searching for the remainder of the stones to the Elemental Wreath.
Over the years, the taint of the shadow magic began to physically alter the appearance of the Cimmerian, changing them into what is seen today.