Roughly 300 years ago, at the entrance to the Great Fey Forests centered in the Southern Continent, the very material realm broke apart as the fabric between the Nine Hells and this plane tore asunder. Some claim the source of this was Asmodius seeking to assert his power upon the realm. Others believe it was caused by an occult that was active back in this time. Some claim it is nothing more than the random magics at will that exist within the Fey Wilds. No explanation was ever found for this tear between realms. All that was known was that with the portal to the Nine Hells open, it gave free reign to the Demons and Devils of that landscape to move through and start destroying the land and torturing any inhabitants as they saw fit.
Word of this shattered opening spread through the realm reaching the king of Camorr, Robert Thorne grandson of Thaddeus Thorne, who quickly sent raven to Anarya to seek aid from their local militia. They comprised a plan to use the two cities defenses and meet at the convergence, flanking the creatures and making quick work of them. Plans were made and the armies of the South were sent east toward the desecrated ground while the militias of Anarya moved west. The plan quickly went array as the militia men were attacked before they could make it to the scene.
As the militia fought these vile beasts of the nether realms, their flanks were separated. They were then driven into the forest and quickly picked apart. No survivors were found from the regiment, only ghost stories remain to mark the legacy of their bravery to face such odds.
The soldiers of Camorr stood ready outside a young Vorrick’s castle waiting for word of the other side taking position. When word didn’t come, the leading commander, Arrelius Martinus knew what must have come of them and sent word back to Camorr. Before the message had reached the castle walls, the visage of these horrid creatures were showing their presence on the horizon. Martinus led his men into combat. As he left Vorrick’s domain it is said that he swore upon his honor to protect this kingdom and his homeland from whatever wicked that may come. He swore to lord Vorrick that he would come back with his shield or being carried on it. Either way, he didn’t plan to leave before the fight was finished. He and his men fought bravely for two weeks as reinforcements from Camorr continued to come in.
It became apparent to King Robert that his reinforcements would not be enough to sway the tide of battle in his favor as these creatures were steadily coming from the hell gate faster than they could be dispatched and he was getting closer and closer to only being able to call on the aid of civilians. He sent a summons to the Atoka of Fyr’s Shadow begging for any aid they could offer that could put an end to this raging onslaught. When word returned, upon the parchment was one line. They have already been sent.
The annuls of history do not speak of the men who came from Fyr’s Shadow. They seemed to appear in the midst of battle as if they had been there all along. Men spoke of them in letters and journals saying that they appeared as if out of the shadows hurling lighting and fire with the flick of their fingers. It seemed that reality itself bent to their whim, their every minor urging quickly made real with simply a thought. Even through the heat of the battle they were calm and collected, never speaking but seemingly knowing what the rest were thinking, acting as one person. However, even with the great power that came with their addition, it barely put a dent in the forces they stood against.
Over a period of three days, the fight raged with both sides refusing to submit to the will of the other but it was growing clearer that the fight would soon draw to a close and the beasts crawling from the maw of hell would be victorious. It was known that there was no way to out fight these creatures as their might and numbers far outmatched the men in the fields so Arrelius approached one of the Nine and begged them to instead seal the creatures away in a realm between the two realms. Arrelius’s men watched in terror as the wizard drained the life force from their commander. The wizard then melded his essence with their own magic creating a barrier to separate the two fighting sides. In the confusion of the battle it seemed the very earth rose up to swallow these creatures. The Nine then pooled their powers together filling the entrance to this pit they had just created with the essence of their commander. With that the battle that raged for a period of two weeks and four days ended.
Many men were afraid to approach the Nine after what they had seen. Their fears were alleviated as they then vanished just as mysteriously as they had appeared. While some reviled what measures had to be taken to drive these creatures away from this realm, all agreed that it had to be done and praised the Nine as heroes of the people. A statue was erected at the spot where Arrelius gave his life and the soldiers returned home.
Over time a trading house sprung up near the statue as people came to pay their respects and it was also a good place to rest before entering the forests to head to Anarya and beyond. This small post became prosperous and many other buildings and businesses grew around it. As the town grew, so did the legend of the creatures that were trapped away between dimensions for all time. This caught the attention of all sorts of adventures. Over the last 173 years, a pot was established to be given to any who could vanquish the demons ridding the land of any potential chance that they could ever return. To this day no warrior has returned from what has now become known as Devil’s Den and fewer and fewer are willing to try.