As the [[Coalescence]] came to an end, the world that the people of Runera had once known was gone, forever transformed into a new, far more dangerous place that harbored little mercy for them. Countless [[monsters]] from other worlds now infested the land, which itself had been tormented and scarred by the destruction of Ildir, and the [[Gods|gods]], which had once eternally protected and watched over them, were as silent as the grave. Great nations and empires collapsed over night. Thousands were claimed by disease, famine, and war. Those that survived became refugees, flocking to whatever bastions of civilization remained. For many, life became short, brutal, and full of fear and uncertainty. Yet this unending chaos also served as a catalyst for great change. Once vassals of the Ildirian Empire, the kingdoms of the [[Northlands]] rose from the ashes of desolation as beacons of order and strength in this new, brutal world, and began to gain considerable power and influence. Chief among these upstarts was the country of [[Andar]], named for the great hero himself, which became the preeminent sanctuary for those whose homes had been ravaged by the [[Coalescence]]. Sanctuary, however, is perhaps too kind a word for what those misbegotten souls found in [[Andar]], and in sooth all the [[Northlands]]. In place of war and famine, they were met with pogroms and witch hunts; for in place of the Ildirian Empire, violence, superstition, and prejudice had come to rule the day. Despite such tragedy, slivers of hope yet remained. One of these faint flickers of possibility was the resurgence of the Vigilant Brotherhood, who in the time of [[Old Ildir]] served as infamous hunters of necromancers, warlocks, and other black magicians. The Vigilants quickly rose to prominence for their efforts to hunt and kill the [[monsters]] that now plagued the land, while continuing to track down any who still practiced foul magics, the same dark sorcery that had been used by Balcorion to bring about this new dark age. Other groups too saw the promise of the ensuing chaos, among them the ancient enemy of the Vigilant Brotherhood: the elusive First Conclave of Magi. During the time of [[Old Ildir]], this secret organization of wizards rejected all Imperial laws of magic and conducted vile experiments in their endless pursuit of arcane power. Yet by using the strength of their wizards to fight back against the many monstrosities, such as the Vigilants had done, and by healing the land with their magics, they began to curry a great deal of favor amongst the commonfolk of the [[Northlands]]. The Vigilants and the Conclave waged paltry wars against each other, all while desperately fighting to hold together the fabric of civilization in the face of unrelenting bedlam. For despite the many powers vying for control, none had truly managed to fill the void left by the Ildirian Empire. That was, until the [[Rise of the Hand|Hand]].