2/2275 – 2/2277 ER. Details the emergence of the Yrūn as a capable race and contender for land in Lyrast.
Prelude
Expansion into the Lyràsti interior brought the primitive Yrūn in contact with the voracious Ikítikírittìk. Some have suggested that a fourth Yrūn branch was lost during the initial contact.
Campaign
The insectoid Ikítikírittìk streamed south from the steppes, swarming Yrūni villages as they followed the trail of Yrūni settlements. It is assumed that the Dwürden and Eylfāe witnessed this slaughter, but chose not to intervene. Urzàri historians mentioned two great battles from this period, the tales of which had been handed down to them through the tradition of oral record. The first was the Battle of Ikibri. The second was the First Battle of Urzar. In both of these conflicts, the Yrūn were able to fight back using weapons fashioned from Da Çar crystal. It is assumed that there were other less-successful conflicts in present-day Dirínjik and Shūlū, but no record of these remain.
The March of the Ikítikírittìk is sometimes referred to as the “First War” or the “War of Rising”. In truth, the event was not so much a war as it was a large-scale massacre. It appears that once Yrūn expansion reached the Lyràsti interior, they came into contact with the inhuman Ikítikírittìk. The insectoid Ikítikírittìk viewed the migrating Yrūn as food and proceeded to hunt them, tracing their paths back to southern Lyrast. The Stone Age Yrūn had little chance against the carapaced creatures, and were harvested like cattle. The further south the hunting moved, the more the Ikítikírittìk encountered defended villages and towns. Despite palisades, trenches, moats, and walls the creatures swarmed, captured, and fed without impediment. It was not until the Ikítikírittìk reached the Ravines of Ikìbri that the monsters met the first real resistance. It would not be until they reached the City of Urvar that the Yrūn were able to hold their ground.
The Ikìbri Massacre
The Ravines of Ikìbri are a series of deep fissures formed by ancient earthquakes, prompted by volcanic activity. It was here that early Yrūn staged their first true defense against the Ikítikírittìk. The natives of the Burning Crescent received word of the impending invasion from messengers fleeing the Lyrasti interior. News from beyond the mountains told of thousands of captured Yrūnyr being walked northward into the mantidae homelands. Reports of Yrūnyr being eaten by the invading Ikítikírittìk were enough to deduce the fate of the captured. Rather than letting the monsters reach their farmland and coastal villages, the Yrūn planned to make a stand at the Ravines of Ikìbri. If the Ikítikírittìk could be directed through the crevices, they could be trapped, ambushed, and killed. The Yrūn set about building false villages at the ravine bottoms and stockpiling boulders and spears along the rims.
The Ikítikírittìk invaders arrived in the Summer of 2/2276 ER. As planned, the giant mantidae wound down the ravine paths toward the waiting villages. Those that had kept the chimneys smoking for many months fled into small caves and hiding places as the monsters approached. The Yrūn were horrified to see that the Ikítikírittìk had arrived by the hundreds, larger numbers than had been seen in the central plains. As the mantidae tore apart the empty huts, boulders and spears rained down upon them. Realizing the ruse, the Ikítikírittìk rushed toward the walls and began climbing with great alacrity. This was unexpected. It was assumed that the Ikítikírittìk would be trapped within the sheer cliffs of the Ikìbri ravines. As the Ikítikírittìk climbed to the top, a horrible massacre ensued.
The resulting bloodbath was not unexpected. The men that made a stand at the Ravines of Ikìbri knew well that they’re chances were not good. There were two surprises at the Battle of Ikìbri. The first surprise was the speed with which the Ikítikírittìk were able to adapt to the Yrūni trap, and turn the tide of battle against their ambushers. The second surprise was what happened afterward. The topside battle was not as lopsided as the Yrūn or invaders expected. Many of the Yrūn of the Burning Crescent had crafted their weapons from a local crystal that kept a sharp edge and was strong as iron, a material that would remain elusive to the Yrūn for another 4,400 years. While most of the defenders were killed at the Ikìbri Ravines, enough survived to carry word to the City of Urvar that the Ikítikírittìk were not invulnerable.
First Battle of Urzar
Sometime after the Ikìbri Massacre, the Yrūn forces regrouped at the City of Urzar. The first true records of the Ikítikírittìk conflict refer to this battle. Following the Yrūni defense at the Ravines of Ikìbri, the Dwürden took an interest in the unfolding events. By the time the first Dwürden emissaries arrived at the city, the Yrūn had established a supply route between the volcanic craters of Da Çar and the City of Urzar. Crystal shards were being mined, transported to the city, and crafted into axes, swords, and spear points. Every man, woman, and child was utilized in the war-effort. Those not busy making weapons helped to dig trenches around the city, filled with stakes and pits to slow the swarming invaders. There is no record of how the Dwürden observers were received or whether they offered assistance.
By late Summer, the preparations were complete and the Yrūn withdrew to the City of Urzar. The people of Urzar were ready for their final test, a test that would prove the mettle and resourcefulness of all Yrūn. The outcome would determine if this Mortal race would survive or fail upon the World of Teréth End. The Dwürden were present to bear witness to this most savage of trials. Ancient carvings hint to a number of other Mortal races that had risen and disappeared over the years. The Dwürden wanted to know if the Yrūn would do the same.
In the first week of Autumn, reports arrived of villages being overrun by the insect swarms. It soon became clear that the Ikítikírittìk were moving as multiple arms, encircling the city so that they could attack from more than one direction. The Dwürden record mentions that the Yrūn were not unaccustomed to warfare. Based on their sword-craft and other defenses, it was apparent that the Yrūn had engaged other enemies (possibly their own kind) in the past.
In the third week of Autumn, the fields surrounding Urzar droned with the wings of giant predators. Soon the fields were covered with the buzzing wings of giant mantidae, charging across the barren hillsides. The Dwürden observers claimed that hundreds of Ikítikírittìk charged the city defenses from three sides. The Yrūn defenders were divided by tribe, each speaking variations of the common language. Commanders and warriors emerged from each group though no names of these heroes have survived to the present-day. When the Ikítikírittìk crashed into the tranches, awful shrieks filled the air as the first ranks were skewered on crystal points, and impaled deeper by the ranks that followed. Next, thousands of javelins were thrown from behind the city palisades. The observers noted that these caused some injury, but did not slow the Ikítikírittìk. Following the volley, small groups of shield-men with spears moved forward in cohesive units, four or five to an invader. This tactic proved far more successful than the Yrūn suspected. A handful of men working in concert could match an Ikítikírittìk’s attacks blow for blow. The soldiers’ crystal spearpoints insured that the occasional lucky thrust could fell one of the monsters. Once the shield units were exhausted, the swordsmen rushed out to take their places. Once the swordsmen were exhausted, the shield units returned, again and again.
The Battle of Urzar ended with the Ikítikírittìk retreating into the countryside. Within watches, the Yrūn sent scouts to locate where they were resting, for the monsters seemed more clumsy and lethargic as the day waned. When groups were found, shield patrols were sent to the location to slaughter them where they lay. In this manner, the Ikítikírittìk were eventually driven from the Burning Crescent and eventually from southern Lyrast.