The History of the
May the Moon Shine Forever, and the Dragon Never Die!!!
"When the weak are suppressed, they will always unite
and return"
THE EXILED ARE BACK!!
LSD's history begins in a game
called NeverWinter Nights (NWN), an AD&D online game by SSI on AOL. As of
April 19th 1997, NWN was terminated and LSD was drawn with a little problem.
We no longer had a home or game to play in. We did not fall apart like other
guilds much larger and powerful than us, but instead stuck it out to find another
home. The first game we found was The Realm. We were unsuccessful in creating
a guild there since it was not too welcoming to guilds. This history of our
guild is an ongoing testiment to the persistance and strength of our guild's
members to seek out lands that we may enjoy and thrive in.
Parts I and II of this story were written while we were playing NWN, in present
tense form. For the sake of historical preservation, they have not been edited
or revised.
Part I:
A hundred years ago, Lord Nasher's ancestor beat
back a great horde of men, in a titanic battle, the Lord Avatar slew Nasher's
ancestor, but was driven back by his Army. The dark army fought valiantly, but
was defeated. Many were killed, but none of them deserted. Using every last
ounce of magic he had left, Nasher's ancestor cast the Lord Avatar and his army
into the abyss. Then, before Nasher's ancestor could finish Sealing the portal,
and finishing his curse, he died.
Until a couple of Moons ago, a hurt, but Mighty
Dragon stumbled onto a Tablet. On it was scribed:
"The Strong, Made Weak,
But Will Return;
By Fault of A Dying King,
For His Curse Was Deterred,"
In the background of the tablet, was an insignia
of a Dragon flying in the air with the Moon behind him. The Dragon, seeing no
harm, flew up to the reflection of the full moon, and assumed the pose in the
tablet. Then, the tablet grew, and locked itself into a wall. It slowly grew
into a portal, and out stepped the Lord Avatar. The Dragon Flew Down, and instantly,
felt healed, just being in the presence of this man. The Lord Avatar looked
at the Dragon, and claimed "DeathWing, Our Savior!" as he raised a
sword into the air. The Dragon Roared out its approval.
The Lord Avatar then said. "100 years have
passed since our exile into the abyss. Freed by the power of the Moon and the
Dark Dragon ... we are finally back. Now we have made our way back to NeverWinter.
Now we wait for the day where we can reclaim our lost positions as rulers of
NeverWinter and spread our power. Then the throne of Lord Nasher will once again
be in the hands of the Lord Avatar!!" The Soldiers who stepped out of the
portal yelled out their encouragement.
1 year later...
Part II:
(During the next year LSD grew and prospered,
but the Lord Avatar did not look as strong as he once looked. It seemed that
the Lord Avatar had grown ill and could no longer support his own guild. It
was said when the Ancestor of Nasher cast the Lord Avatar into the Abyss; he
also put a curse on him that would one-day kill him. Because the Lord Avatar
was sick there was not a true leader to look to, The High Council Members had
all been putting in their best to deal with the responsibilities of GM. No ordinary
person could run this job, though the Lord Avatar was no person, he himself
was a Deity. LSD started to lose spirit. A war started, but it was not with
another guild; it was us).
The Remaining Soldiers Sauntered into the new
found Guild Hall. There was destruction everywhere. The only thing that remained
unscathed was the Dragon Insignia painted on the floor of the High Council room
where many members knelt while they asked questions and thanked them for their
promotions. Many of their fellow soldiers now lay dead on the ground. Slowly,
they moved around and tried to figure out what went wrong. The memories came
back to them, as a nightmare always reoccurs. The enemies of LSD Poured into
the Courtyard, and Many Brave soldiers rushed head on, to slow their advance.
Many a Brave soldier died that hour. They made their advance into the Base of
LSD, and into the Grand Hall. There, the weakened Lord Avatar, and his most
trusted companions waited for the enemy. A great battle raged, but in the end,
the weakened Lord Avatar was slain, and so were most of his members. This man
may have not won if the Lord Avatar was at his full strength. Then someone spoke,
" It was all the Lord Avatar's Fault!" yelled one rebellious soldier.
" It was..."
A Bolt of Lightning stole his next Word. He looked
down Stupidly, and saw the Hole in his chest. He fell onto his knees, and dropped
dead. All eyes went to the door. Standing there, was a man, Dressed in all black,
with the Dragon Insignia on his PlateMail. His Gauntlet glowed Blue from the
Lightning Bolt. All was silent when he walked to the center of the room. "
Our Lord Avatar, is Dead, and we, the remaining faithful, have come back, to
fulfill his Dying Wish. We Lost that War, not because of our Lord Avatar, But
because of our Own Weakness. We were once the Lost Soldiers, but we are no more.
We have found a place in NeverWinter. We have found a purpose in our meager
lives. We will avenge our Lord Avatar, and fulfill his Wish. We will become
the guild, which all will fear. The simple mentioning of our name, will strike
fear into people's hearts."
The Lord Avatar's powers left his body and took
the form of DeathWing, it then spoke, "Though my body is dead my power
remains, and I can carry it in one of you, though this may not be anybody, it
must be one of leadership and commitment. You, you are the one." As the
Lord Avatar pointed to a man dripped in blood from the fight in the back of
the crowd. Bent over taking huge breathes the man stepped forward to reveal
his face. It was Lothar, Holy Knight of the First Knights and High Council member.
Lothar walked towards the Dragon. He then got down on one knee and bowed his
head to the mighty beast. "Lothar, you have shown yourself worthy of Being
a true leader and spent hours on end to satisfy the needs of our members weather
they be Dragon Knight or Squire. That is what a real leader is about, suiting
the needs of thy members. You shall now behold the powers of the Dragon and
the Moon; you shall decide weather the Darkness reigns over the sun covered
by the Moon. Though your powers may be weakened at first, you'll soon be at
full power in no time. If you are to venture outside this Plane, you shall experience
the same thing, though your powers will come back slower, you are no longer
a man, you are now a God, a Deity, an Avatar!
Many Months Later...
Part III:
As the New Lord Avatar stepped in as the new Guild
Master, and sat in the royal throne, he thought how the old Lord Avatar left
him with much work to be done. He said, "I cannot take this sitting down."
He stood up and quickly ran to his quarters. For days and nights he sat at his
desk writing new ideas for the guild. He only hoped the guild could support
itself while he tried to turn it around. After weeks of work at his table, Lothar
noticed change in the guild. Though many did not see the improvements because
things were not good, they were just better. Lothar chose a new Ranking
system which many objected to, but was harder for members to attain the positions
sitting below High Council. Instead, members had less quests to do and more
leadership skills to show. After two weeks Lothar had worked at his new job
well but there wasn't enough time, and members were getting impatient. One night
he went walking through the halls of the Head Quarters and glanced at the Bulletin
Board and noticed a new post. It read, "NeverWinter has been attack by
a powerful wizard." Lothar thought it was a joke, he though how one human
could conquer all of the NWs and all the guilds including the Soldiers of Darkness
be destroyed. Although if it was true, not even he could stop it because his
powers were not at full power yet. He woke the next day walking down the same
hall and noticed it was covered with new posts from every single member in LSD.
Lothar's heart started to beat faster. As he read the unbelievable letters he
thought to himself, "Why now?" He started to pace back and forth in
his quarters. He then sat back at his table and began to write his own letter.
Actually, it was not a letter. It was more like a speech. Finally ready to present
his speech, he told a private to gather a meeting in the Guild Hall.
As he stepped to the stand, many members were
puzzled what this was about. He then spoke, "Loyal Members of LSD, we have
faced everything imaginable that could go wrong in a guild and have overcome
them. If we joined with our allies and enemies we can easily destroy any Wizard
weather he be Elminster himself! The time has come where every single guild
in NeverWinter has a common enemy and we shall lead this fight to victory."
Although the Lord Avatar had no idea how powerful this man was, his members
took it well, as they all charged at the assault. The Wizard barely moved as
he cast wishes apon wishes of death and decay. This war of NeverWinter versus
one Man went on for almost 2 months. Finally someone fell, though it was not
the Wizard, the walls of NeverWinter collapsed and soon the Lost Soldiers of
Darkness no longer had a Head Quarters to go back to.
Lothar motioned his men to retreat to LongSaddle,
which still stood. There, LSD made camp and Lothar said, "I need Scouts
on the Double……who shall volunteer?" Every single member rose
their hands, "good then, lets get to work!" For the next few weeks
members were cast into other realms through the teleporters to other planes
in LongSaddle Under. The first Realm to be discovered was the land of Britannia.
Although this land was new, and huge, it was also blocked from getting to as
of yet. Only through the pools of guidance, could you see the land that showed
much to stare about, though it would have to wait, and LSD kept looking.
The next place to be found was plainly called
The Realm. A name used by a lot of people for the city of NeverWinter and its
surroundings. Dough, the new AGM of LSD and Ace, the Captain of the Darkness
Elite both journeyed there and had settled down. They sent word that weather
or not LSD went here, this is where they would be. This put the Guild in a problem….
We later moved to The Realm, but our stay there
wasn't too long, the mist soon rose and the world was mostly destroyed as well
as our strengths. The mists made us weaker, and we quickly retreated
to the land we had been waiting on, Britannia. This world was much larger, a
most powerful goal to try and accomplish. The Soldiers were up to the job. It
shall be our home, now and forever, and if anything ever comes to attack it
again, we will be ready for it, because…
"We are Soldiers, and we do what is expected of us."
Another year later...
Part IV:
After the Lost Soldiers of Darkness members settled
into their new land of Britannia, some members lost interest in their current
homes. They wished to seek new lands and hopefully find some of their friends
and members that had disappeared after the destruction of NeverWinter. While
this was happening, the Lord Avatar encountered some internal problems. He felt
weary from the overwork he was doing for the guild. His solution was to step
down as Lord Avatar and hand the powers over to Taran, the current Baron of
LSD. Taran was disappointed that Lothar was joining the Elder Council and leaving
Britannia, although honored to be crowned Lord Avatar and sit on the royal throne
in the Head Quarters of the Lost Soldiers of Darkness Camp. Many members were
feeling down for Lothar leaving, but Lothar told them even though he would no
longer be Lord Avatar, he would be there for anybody needing aid. The members
took note of his words and continued to work at our goal and not give up faith
that one day, the destiny of the Lost Soldiers of Darkness would come true and
they would be the strongest and largest guild the realms had ever seen. Both
good and evil would fear them, for they show the dedication to achieve immortality
and supremeness!
Unfortunately, things did not turn out the way
everyone wanted it to go. Members spent little time going out of their homes
and continuing the legacy that is and was LSD. Lothar remained Dormant himself
while Taran worked hard to keeps things alive. He himself, regretfully, did
not have much time to do his duties. The guild suffered terribly, but there
was nothing he could do for LSD. LSD still had not reached its golden age once
again, and members wondered if it would ever get to the size it once was. Lothar
reappeared once in awhile to see how things were going, he felt sad that things
weren't in the best of shape, but it was no longer his duties. He was now just
another elder, there to watch and give guidance to those who needed it. Members
started to get upset with what was happening, and a little power struggle arose
which was quickly extinguished by the Lord Avatar and the Elders. People started
talking about wanting to change the whole system of things because they weren't
working for the guild in its current size. The High Council agreed as well.
One day Taran met up with Lothar and Dough, who
was once the other Baron and now another Elder, in Britannia and sat down to
discuss the fate of LSD. They spoke of how and what would be done to restructure
the charter and then the guild. Taran said if he had some work lifted off his
back, he would be able to do what he's been trying to do for a year, and that
was to summon forth the power of the "web" to create a "Lost
Soldiers of Darkness Home Page." This would surely aid us in making new
recruits join the guild. The only problem is that he wouldn't be able to do
this while being Lord Avatar for the other problems he has to deal with. Lothar
knew what Taran was getting at, but he wasn't at leisure to take up the responsibility
with that power again. Taran just came out with the question asking if Lothar
would return as Lord Avatar and lead them to their Golden Age again. Lothar
agreed and once again, the powers of the Deity, the Lord Avatar were passed
back to Lothar. His elderly age regressed back to an immortal with the power
of DeathWing, and the Essence of the Moon. Thus the renewing of the Lost Soldiers
of Darkness begins....
Two years later...
Part V:
The first step the Lord Avatar took once he came back was from the advice and knowledge of a new land. Norrath, a place that had been discovered by several people. Many old members who had left Britannia, and ones who have been waiting patiently for a place they could call home, were to move here. The Lord Avatar took up the opportunity to gain a foothold in these new lands with many other members. Over the next few months, our numbers grew rapidly there. While Lothar maintained both the rank of Abyssal Lord and Lord Avatar for the infancy of this Division, he finally thought it time for his second in command, Ace, now known to all as Azrael to be given the powers to command the legions of the division.
Lothar returned to Britannia to find it doing quite well under the command of Abyssal Lord Belzadar and Baron Gorath. Numbers had risen to new highs here, and we had hit a short Golden Age. Anywhere you would go, you’d see a Soldier of Darkness. Unfortunately, history repeated itself once more for LSD. Just like the great influx in Neverwinter, where in a few months, we went from the 5 founding members, to 100 strong, LSD shook at its peak, and the numbers came crumbling down. Things went bad for awhile. Belzadar and Gorath were having less time to share with the guildmates, as was the Lord Avatar. This caused a drop in activity.
Meanwhile, in Norrath, Azrael had worked his magic in raising LSD’s numbers in the now over-populated lands. Azrael would soon command a size larger than LSD had ever had, in Britannia or Neverwinter.< Lothar was extremely happy to see this.< He then started turning his attention to the expansion of the Lost Soldiers of Darkness into farther lands. He searched the waters and lands. To his great surprise more than a handful of lands were found. Unfortunately, only one of these lands could be reached. It seemed no one wanted to move to these lands though, so Lothar looked towards other lands. He saw something in the corner of his eye…
Neverwinter!?! Impossible! He rubbed his eyes, to see if he was seeing some sort of magical illusion. NO! It was true, it was there. A sudden emotion came over the Lord Avatar. Lothar’s birthplace, the birthplace of the Lost Soldiers of Darkness, and the lands the Lord Avatar had once controlled was once again there, and not in Ruins, it was almost like when he had left. Something was different though. He wanted to check further, but he could not, it was not reachable yet. Lothar pushed the awesome powers he had gained while in the abyssal plain, but to no avail, the barrier would not budge. He was shocked, and furious with this, but he decided to sit and wait and watch. He spread the word to all of the 12 members that had come with Lothar out of Neverwinter of the reappearance, and they too felt a great longing to return, weather or not it may be a different reality of the original, it was home, their home.
Belzadar’s division in Britannia had grown once more, and regained its foothold, only to have it fall apart after the betrayal and deception of several members. The Shadow Guard went into full action once more, after being dormant for so long, and learned of some interesting things. We had been scarred, but all was better; or was it? No, we didn’t regain our numbers, we continued to drop, we had hit an all time low in Britannia. Why was this? Perhaps the very aging of the lands, and the appearance of all these other new lands had taken the good people from Britannia. The Lord Avatar noticed this to be partially true. But LSD was at fault also; it had lacked a full High Council for a long time. It is something he realized needed to be fixed.
Azrael’s Division in Norrath had hit a peak of 160 members, almost the combined numbers of the peak of Neverwinter and Britannia combined. New things were happening though, the numbers went down a bit, but nothing to even fear, and we had become one of the strongest in the lands. We had also gained great allies. One that we would soon absorb into our own, nearly doubling our size. A guild known as Age of Wisdom would soon be known as Lost Soldiers of Darkness, we would welcome these friends and family now, and fortify our numbers, and become the largest and most powerful guild in Norrath!
Unfortunately, Azrael’s time in Norrath was decreasing fast. He was rarely seen in the lands. The High Council pleaded for him to do something. He did not respond. Finally, one member of the High Council, Wistie took a stand, started pushing to keep Guild Activity going, she had stabilized a crumbling Division, she also contacted the Lord Avatar for his advice. Azrael finally returned and saw the wonders Wistie had done. When Azrael finally stepped down, Lothar had to choose a New Abyssal Lord, and it came no supprise that Wistie was the one. She had become our first female Abyssal Lord and helped push the guild back up on its feet. Finally a sadness came over the Division held in Norrath. A plague swept over the Soldiers of Darkness. Several started leaving for new lands, like they were starting to do in Britannia. Nothing seems to have replaced Neverwinter as a good home to its most loyal of citizens, the Lost Soldiers of Darkness. Again the Search was on…
The lands Lothar had found, were finally almost ready to open their portals to us, and let up their barriers so that we could traverse to them. Neverwinter as well as a newer land called Hibernia awaited to be populated. This new world, one of great fame, where a king known as Arthur had pulled a mighty sword called Excalibur out of a stone once lived in this world. He had passed, and the world was in a Dark Age, the Neighbors of Albion’s border, the home from which King Arthur had lived in had declared war on their lands, and. The Lost Soldiers of Darkness Settled into the mystic lands of Hibernia, lands of the Celts and Elves to fight in this ongoing war. It seemed fit for us to be in these lands, as it was our fighting nature as Soldiers.
Gorath who had recently been appointed to Abyssal Lord in Britania, after Belzadar had finally left the lands, expressed great interest with several older member from our days in Neverwinter. He, with many members who had left Britannia and Norrath, all met in this new land. We had easily 30 current members living there within a Moon’s cycle. We hadn’t even started to recruit, and already had an excellent number to start a new Division; The best chance yet for LSD. Gorath took charge in Hibernia and worked hard to put things together. Lothar, the Lord Avatar came to see these new lands as well, but not liking them, quickly went back to his house in Britannia. He left the Division up to Gorath, whom with he knew it would be in great hands. Gorath was appointed the new Abyssal Lord of Hibernia.< As the next days came, The Lost Soldiers were proving they were already one of the greatest guilds in the lands.
There was yet one last land to be discovered though. It had
been spotted very early on, but the powers that blocked its entrance were very
strong, and would not let us in. It was a world in total devistation. This new
Realm, although the looks of it at first, with its Black Sun, and blood soaked
soil may not look like somewhere LSD might want to Settle, it has shown great
potential.< Unlike the three lands of Hibernia, Albion and Midgard, the land
of Aerynth is but one large world in total anarchy. Guilds fighting against
each other, trying to keep a foothold on their cities, and trying to gain control
of the lands in their name. Lothar thought this would be yet another excellent
chance for the Soldiers to prove themselves in battle and he saw they were eager
to do so.< Kael, who had gone by other such names in the past as Kwargh in Norrath,
and Famine in Neverwinter had taken up the task of running the Division. He
worked hard to assemble the men, and get things set up early on, which Lothar
was very pleased to see. Chaos, now known as Zilis also was following his long
time friend to these lands with many other older members. It seems the Lost
Soldiers are only getting bigger and better.
As more time passed...
Part VI:
The responsibilities on the Lord Avatar began to weigh on him. Lothar knew that
should he continue at this pace, he himself would be at risk of breaking the
most sacred rule of membership in, much less leadership of, the Lost Soldiers
of Darkness... "Real Life Comes First." He considered the fact
that he did not have an active Elder Lord, but quickly realized that even with
the aid of one, he would still be taking on too much. The time had come for
the Lost Soldiers of Darkness to be guided by another. After considering his
options, and the availability of those he considered qualified to fill the position,
he chose Gorath to be the recipiant of his powers as the new Lord Avatar. Lothar
himself intended to once again step down from the capacity and responsibility
of leading the guild.
Gorath was greatly honored to be chosen as the new Lord Avatar. His reputation
with members of the guild from all divisions earned him a warm reception to
the title. However, his promotion left a void in the High Council of Britania,
and put stress on his role as Abyssal Lord in Hibernia. He had to choose to
lead one or the other, and appoint someone to take his place in the realm he
would leave. Since the division in Britania seemed to be doing well, and the
division in Hibernia still needed constant attention, he chose to appoint a
new Abyssal Lord in Britannia, and remain as Lord Avatar and Abyssal Lord of
the guild's DAoC division. The problem was that there was not a single person
alone that remained in Britania, that the Grand Council, or Gorath could feel
comfortable in giving the title of Abyssal Lord. As a result, Lothar was asked
to remain in that realm and oversee things until such time that he himself could
choose someone with the required skills and dedication. In time, Gorath named
Lothar his assistant and granted him the title of Elder Lord.
While all this was happening, the guild was troubled with yet another episode
of absentee leadership in the realm of Norrath. This time, it was not due lack
of ability, but again, the current DGM and her trusted Council were weighed
with the lack of interest in remaining in the land that to them had become stagnant
and unappealing. This prompted Wistie to request a meeting of the Grand Council
to determine the fate of the division. After much deliberation, it was determined
that since Wistie would be leaving the realm to pursue interests elsewhere,
and that she could not comfortably hand leadership of the division to anyone,
with the confidence that the guild's name would be kept in honor, the Lost Soldiers
of Darkness would close their first division. Our members in Everquest were
given notice of this decision, and were offered continued membership in any
of our other divisions, present or future, should they wish to remain a part
of our guild.
Aerynth opens its portal...
Part VII:
When the time came for Aeyenth to open its portals to permitt our members to
enter, the intended leadership found themselves at a great disadvantage. Although
much preparation had been made to ensure that passage to this realm would be
successful and fruitful for our guild, it came at a time when the intended DGM
was no longer available to fill his role. A new DGM was quickly chosen, and
Gorath himself left the realm of Hibernia to aid him in his newly appointed
duties. This newly appointed DGM, Etheric, was only able to perform the duties
of DGM for less than 2 weeks after the portal was opened. This left Gorath with
a division that had little in the way of leadership, but much in the potential
of the guild acquiring a reputation in the lands as an equal member of one of
the largest Tri-guild alliances the realm would know. As time passed in this
realm, our guild became strong, and our reputation grew as an honorable guild,
even to our enemies.
Our mission in Aerynth was successful, dispite the fact that our city was temporarily
occupied by the enemy that nearly every guild on the server fought to destroy.
Even when our own city was threatened as a result, we showed honor in helping
to defend those that had either helped us, or coordinated their efforts with
those of the new alliance that Gorath had set out to build. That alliance, although
not led by Gorath in the end, continued and succeeded in removing those that
had intended on ruling the server.
It was soon realized, however, that the realm of Shadowbane would not be one
that the Lost Soldiers of Darkness would remain in. After taking the steps required
to ensure that the land that we occupied would be left in good hands, and that
the threat of anhialation of our neighbors was removed, Gorath decided to officially
close the division. Some members, faithful to the realm in which they lived
chose to remain on other planes of the realm after the one on which our first
true city was built was destroyed by the Gods of the Realm.
While Britannia’s Division may be weary, it still perseveres. Hibernia has proved its potential as did Aerynth and we still wait for NeverWinter to open its portals where we definitely know LSD will be rulers once more. We shall see the Lost Soldiers of Darkness become that of Legends. Are you ready Soldiers?
Our journey continues...
Part VII:
While our division in Britania continues to flourish once more with dedicated
members, loyal to the honor and service of their guild, we continue to seek
out new realms of opportunity. Currently, we have two new divisions in World of
Warcraft and Everquest II. These bright new horizons hold the
interest of many members of the guild, and the potential of providing our members
with a diverse offering of new experiences and environments. We have found yet
two more lands that we can call 'home'.
Guild History, parts III-V written by Lothar
History, parts VI-VII written by Gorath
last updated by: Gorath on: 1/22/05