Long Night

The Long Night can be refered to as either the Long Night, the Age of Dawn, or After Dragon, all are acceptable and used during the Course Books.

The Long Night began with the Battle of the Last Stand in A.Y. 6960, the last official date of the Alliance Callender and the official fall of the Alliance. The Battle of the Last Stand is also often refered to as "the day hope died".

The Night

Historians who chronicled the Long Night would later break it down into five main periods:

Sunset

(A.D. 0 to A.D. 27) Samuel Fate's war of conquest was long and surprisingly bloody. The Alliance tried hard to resist but was unable to slow the advancing forces. The Gudersnipe Foundation chose instead to capitulate, laying down arms.

The Alliance's resistence would turn out to be a cruicial factor. Because of their earlier agreement to lay down arms, Samuel Fate ignored the Foundation while it pursued the Alliance. This gave the Foundation time to hide countless military assets that would eventually be used in the Battle of the New Day

Afterglow

(A.D. 27 to A.D. 152) The deconstruction of the old ways happened at this time, the Alliance was destroyed completely, the Crimson Blade was dismantled, and the Gudersnipe Foundation was officially subjigated.

The dismantling of the Foundation was peaceful, with some military vessels even being allowed to remain in service. Most of the Crimson Blade was not put to death as originally intended, and many older millitary commanders were even made govoners under the new government.

Twilight

(A.D. 152-250) The Transition from the old to the new was made with relative haste. All of the borders of the Alliance nations were erased and new provinces drawn up with no regard to long-standing state lines.

Many nations resisted the new borders, and resistence was put down violently in regions were Fate's forces administered matters directly. Where the Foundation was still charged with administration, matters were delt with much differently, using a level of diplomacy uncharacteristic of the Gudersnipe Foundation.

True Night

(A.D. 250 to A.D. 2500) This was the long decline. Night was fully upon the verse and Samuel Fate slowly absorbed the known worlds fully into his vast empire.

Wherever possible, technology was obliterated. Most people were forced to live simply, many cities were abandoned as people returned to subsitence farming. Wherever not absolutely neccessary, technology of any kind was made apocryphl.

The Gudersnipe Foundation was an acception. They continued to be allowed to operate the GATE network and with it the technologically-advanced support system that made it possible. In isolated regions, buisness even continued as usual, with no real change.

The Foundation neglected to report the existence of many worlds located in areas accessible only by GATE. This allowed some of there operations to go un-noticed. The School Proper was hidden entirely, as well as the Blind Counsel.

Pitch Black

(A.D. 2500 to A.D. 3115) The deepest part of the Long Night. The decline was over and nothing was as it had been, except in the remote regions were the Foundation was still the only authority. The Alliance was completely forgotten, and the old nations no longer existed.

The one constant: everyone could still look back and remember the day hope died.

The Dawn

In A.D. 3115, hope was resurected from the dead, the long night ended and the Dawn of the Dragon began. The Dawn of the Dragon would eventually become a part of the Age of the New Day.

Legacy

The Long Night is also sometimes reffered to as "The Second Age of Darkness" because of the massive loss of technological and social advancment during this era. Lower birth rates also lead to a drastic population decline over the course of the age, though not as bad as the sudden loss of life in the original Age of Darkness.

The Long Night lasted roughly 3,000 years. Durring it's passing, it was officially known by those who lived through it as the Age of Dawn, but the abreviation of A.D. was often told to have a more sinister meaning: After Dragon.

As the Age of Dawn moved into the Age of the New Day, the After Dragon definition became official. A great deal of rebuilding was still needed, and the distinction was a helpful unifying factor.