Blights

Blights are dark times when the Darkspawn rise up with an ArchDemon leading them and attempt to end the living world.

The First Blight
Lasting 192 years, the First Blight occurred in -395 Ancient (800 TE), when a plague was unleashed upon the world. The Deep Roads, underground highways built by dwarves, were swarmed with monstrous creatures that became known as the "darkspawn". These creatures seemed limitless in number, and spread a Taintthat infected other living creatures, mutating them into monsters, and corrupted and poisoned the very environment around them. The cult of the Maker claimed this was the result of Tevinter mages entering the Fade through a ritual and attempting to usurp the Golden City, although dwarves and others discounted this theory. Nevertheless, this invasion of darkspawn — named the Blight — soon destroyed most of the underground kingdoms of the dwarves and spread to the surface world. Thedas was in chaos and entered a dark age. The darkspawn were found to be led by an immensely powerful dragon tainted with the darkspawn corruption; this creature was named an Archdemon and believed to be one of the Old Gods worshiped by Tevinter.

In -305 Ancient (890 TE), after nearly a century of bitter war against the darkspawn hordes, a group of veteran warriors came together in Weisshaupt Fortress in the Anderfels, the western part of the Tevinter Imperium. Although Warden legends sing of their leader Carinus and his pre-founding travels to recruit allies, other stories do not acknowledge Carinus's existence. Instead, they talk about a band of Ander soldiers who came together to hunt the Archdemon and the sacrifice they made as they tried to save the world while their families perished. Regardless of whether Carinus existed or not, the different tales about the founders of the Grey Wardens imply that they were doing more than just getting allies. They were also researching for better ways to fight the darkspawn and to protect themselves from the Taint. Those discoveries led to the developing of the Joining ritual. The Joining symbolically cut their ties to all worldly concerns, in order to dedicate themselves to fighting the darkspawn.

Several notable dwarven warriors, led by Paragon Moroc the Maul, were also present at the Grey Wardens' founding. They shared all they had learned about the darkspawn with their Warden allies. A group of the Orth people from the Wandering Hills and the northern reaches of the Hunterhorn Mountains, who knew how to "tame" griffons, also joined the Grey Wardens ranks and teach them how to ride the beasts in battle. Although there are no written records about it, it is widely believed that the Grey Wardens took their name from the griffons' grey coloration. Calling themselves the Grey Wardens, they swore that they would accept anyone, no matter their race or background, without distinction if only deemed suitable to join the Order.

The first chronicled apparition of the Grey Wardens on the battlefield was during the attack on Nordbotten, when they arrived mounted on griffons, plunging into the darkspawn with each Warden taking on crowds of ten or twenty darkspawn at once. Incredibly, they broke the horde and won the battle, although this was done because the darkspawn were unable to tell the difference between the newly joined Grey Wardens from their own fellow darkspawn.

The Wardens then began an aggressive campaign against the darkspawn, reclaiming lands that most had given up for lost. Beholden to no temporal lords, they were free to sacrifice villages and fortresses that could not be won, preserving their might for the clashes that truly mattered. They proved to be a desperately needed spark of hope in the darkest of hours, and quickly gained renown since.

Their victories brought notice, and soon the Grey Wardens started receiving tithes, supplies, and recruits from all lands; they accepted all with skill, might, or tenacity into their ranks, slaves and noblemen alike, regardless of their race or temperament. They grew, building fortresses and functioning as elite shock troops making quick and devastating strikes wherever darkspawn appeared, as well as rallying the mundane armies to greater deeds.

During the next 100 years, humanity slowly managed to stand firm and push back the Blight. Finally, in -203 Ancient (992 TE), the Grey Wardens gathered an allied army composed of soldiers from the Tevinter Imperium, the tribes of the Ciraine (the lands that would become Orlais), and Rivain to confront the main darkspawn horde, led by the Archdemon now identified as Dumat. The massive battle was waged at the Silent Plains, in what is now southern Tevinter or northern Nevarra: the legion of darkspawn was defeated and Dumat was slain by the Grey Wardens; with the Archdemon's death, the horde's will to fight on was broken. It took several years to eradicate the remaining darkspawn from the surface, but the deed was done and the Grey Wardens had carved out their legend. After the Battle of the Silent Plains, they were much celebrated and most nations gave formal promises of support for further darkspawn invasions. Among the tithes that were given to them was also the Right of Conscription to guarantee sufficient recruits.

The Second Blight
In 1:5 Divine, approximately 200 years since the slaying of Dumat, the Archdemon Zazikelrose to lead the Second Blight. The entire city of Nordbotten — the very place where the Grey Wardens first appeared on the battlefield — was destroyed before a defense could be organized. The Tevinter Imperium withdrew from the Anderfels, abandoning it in an attempt to protect central Tevinter. The Anderfels area was in much trouble, and even the Grey Warden headquarters in Weisshaupt came under siege by the darkspawn.

Fortunately, the armies of the recently founded Orlesian Empire under the command of Emperor Kordillus Drakon I proved both motivated and capable of standing up to the Blight. After several victories against the darkspawn, Drakon's army lifted the siege of Weisshaupt in 1:33 Divine and proceeded to save the rest of the Anderfels together with the Wardens. The Anderfels joined with the Orlesian Empire and the Grey Wardens converted to the Chantry.

In the following decades, the Blight was again slowly pushed back and the Grey Wardens took command of the war. The Archdemon Zazikel was finally confronted and slain by the Grey Warden Corin in 1:95 Divine at Starkhaven in the Free Marches.

Glory Age to Towers Age
After the second Blight, the Grey Wardens actively remained vigilant for another Blight. Although there was no major incursion in the surface during this period of time, the Wardens fought with many small war bands of darkspawn that appeared in surface lands from time to time. They also sent small groups of Wardens to help Orzammar in its fight against the darkspawn in the Deep Roads. When the Chantry declared their Exalted March against the Dales, the Grey Wardens refused to get involved in that conflict.

Third Blight
The Third Blight began with the awakening of Toth in 3:10 Towers, roughly 115 years after the last Blight. The initial darkspawn attacks occurred in central Thedas in Tevinter and Orlais, but even though the hordes were larger than those previously encountered, a rapidly-organized defense led by the Grey Wardens managed to hold them back. The darkspawn attacks started to focus on the more lightly defended Free Marches while Tevinter and Orlais tried to remain neutral, but pressure from the Grey Wardens eventually brought them into the war. The darkspawn horde was crushed at Hunter Fell in the Free Marches in 3:25 Towers, and Toth was slain by the Grey Wardens. The Third Blight remained a relatively short event compared to previous Blights.

After the Third Blight, the Grey Wardens became more involved in the politics of the nations of Thedas, although they also remained ever vigilant against the darkspawn menace.

Fourth Blight
Not much is told about the Grey Wardens for another 200 years, when Andoral awakened and the Fourth Blight began in 5:12 Exalted. Most of the damage was to the east of traditional Grey Warden territory, in the Free Marches, Antiva, and Rivain, but the Anderfels was also attacked and Hossberg, not far from Weisshaupt, came under siege. This time, both Tevinter and Orlais were lightly attacked and refused to send aid. The hero of the Fourth Blight was an elven Grey Warden named Garahel, who first led the liberation of Hossberg in 5:20 Exalted and then managed to gather an army from the Free Marches to support the Grey Wardens. After a long and bloody war, Garahel's army marched north and faced the main horde in 5:24 Exalted at Ayesleigh, where Garahel perished after personally slaying Andoral.

The Grey Wardens' legendary griffons died out some time after the Fourth Blight.