Orcbreaker War

While the Riverlands and other southern cities were concerned about the Drow, and the Elves of the Greenlands were laying the seeds of the Council of the Woods, far to the north a conflict of a very different nature began.

The Orcs of the Iron Mountains had never been very aggressive, at least as far as Orcs go, but they had occasionally attacked Fallcrest. However, when Ghrom'dol made his war against the Greenlands, many Orcs who did not follow him were driven north into the Iron Mountains, and things got very crowded. Fallcrest had proven itself too tough a nut to crack, but there were other lands to expand into.

The Forest of the Moon was sparsely inhabited, and the Orcs saw the chance to expand northwards. A large army of Orcs, some three dozen clans, poured out of the mountains and into the woods, where they discovered their mistake.

Ever seen the end of the Wolf War, some Lycari have hidden away in the Forest of the Moon, content to be alone. When the Orcs invaded, they were ill-prepared for battle, and quickly escaped to the deepest reaches. The Orcs began cutting down the trees and building villages and fortifications and held the land for a few weeks.

Then came the full moon. Unbeknownst to the Orcs, these Lycari were afflicted with the Moonlight Curse and were werewolves. But over the centuries, many Lycari who suffered the Curse learned to channel their beastly rage, and these Lycari took their rage out on the Orcs.

So began the Orcbreaker War, which lasted for well over a year. Most of the time, the Orcs slowly made their way deeper and deeper into the woods, pushing the Lycari out. But for a few nights every month, the Orcs lived in fear and terror of the night. The Lycari in their shape-shifted forms tore apart any Orc that got in their way.

Eventually, the Orcs realized they could not hold onto the forest and the few survivors headed back to the mountains, telling horror stories of the Forest of the Moon.