Helgedad

Helgedad was the capital city of the Darklands, created by Naar's power. It was one of the most evil places ever to have existed on Magnamund, and is an expression of Evil itself, in all its terrible glory. It was home to the Darklords, one of the greatest threats to the forces of Light ever created, as well as countless foul creatures, beasts and magic. The land itself was deadly to any non-evil creature, and more often that not, dangerous even to evil too.

Helgedad was surrounded by the Nengud-kor-Adez, a chasm of undead fire powered by the suffering of those within. Both it and Helgedad were living extensions of Naar, and allow him to channel his power into Magnamund, even if he was not able to appear. This taint prevented the God Kai and Ishir from intervening within the Darklands.

Helgedad was a vast city, one of the largest cities on Magnamund. It was populated by the Darklords, their servants (including Xaghash, Nadziranim, Liganim, Giaks, Drakkarim, and many more), as well as many slaves, who toiled away and are disposed of on short notice. Humanoids could not survive in Helgedad without magical protection, such as Platinum Amulets or Kai possessing Nexus. Several Darklords had their domains within Helgedad, and none were as important as the Archlord himself, the leader of the Darklords.

Helgedad was levelled in MS 5070, when Lone Wolf infiltrated Helgedad, slew Archlord Gnaag, and used a Crystal Explosive to destroy the Transfusor. The resulting explosion destroyed much of Helgedad, but perversely, allowed the Nengud-kor-Adez to run riot, consuming the countless souls within, gaining even more power and possibly giving it a sense of sentience. The Nengud-kor-Adez then transported itself deep underground to the Maakengorge, where its powers could be harnessed for further evil.

Appearance

Helgedad sits in the middle of the fiery chasm that is the Nengud-kor-Adez. The city is surrounded by tall walls of black steel, with many tall turrets. The skyline is dominated by towers of black steel, covering the streets billowing with fiery winds. Buildings are aglow with red flames from gothic windows of impressive grandeur. Irregularly, fireballs appear above the city, sometimes exploding, but sometimes fading away in a rain of sparks. It serves to light the city, which is permanently covered in a black smoke from the fumes of the Naogizaga and the foul discharges of the Nadziranim laboratories, furnaces and breeding pits deep beneath the city.

History

Helgedad was created around the same time as the Darklords, in MS 3072, by Naar. This is where the Darklords drew their power from, but were bound to, unable to leave the Darklands, for the air outside was poisonous to them. Naar, recognising that this was insufficient to conquer Magnamund, granted them many powers, such as immortality, but most importantly, the ability to create life. The Darklords began to corrupt living creatures and create even more terrible ones, and unleashed them on Magnamund. They were further bolstered by the Drakkarim, who swore allegiance to the Darklords in MS 3150, giving them the sheer manpower able to wage lasting war on the rest of the world.

The Darklords, due to their nature, regularly feuded with each other, blunting their effectiveness. This was stopped to a large extent in MS 3192, when Darklord Vashna, the greatest of all the Darklords, rose the ranks of the Darklords and seized control of the Darklands, becoming the first Archlord of the Darkness. This title granted him further power from Naar, forcing his fellow Darklords to fall into line, allowing Vashna to command the Darklords to work as one. Under Vashna, many wars were fought against the rest of Northern Magnamund, such as the Helghast Wars.

The Darklands' loss at the Battles of Moytura Pass and Maakengorge dealt a severe blow to the Darklords, who feuded for centuries until Darklord Zagarna seized control, but new political faultlines were drawn amongst the Darklords. Political intrigue dominated the upper echelons of the Darklands, with each Darklord jostling for the Archlord's favour or plotting their own way to the throne, and their servants openly at war with each other within Helgedad. Many Darklords who had their own domain outside of Helgedad nevertheless spent much of their time in Helgedad for this purpose.

During the Darklands War, the Nadziranim of Archlord Gnaag created the Tanoz-tukor, which allowed the Darklords to survive outside of the Darklands. It was powered by the Transfusor, guarded by himself and Darklord Taktaal in the Tower of the Damned in Helgedad. With the Tanoz-tukor, the Darklords were now able to lead their armies outside of it, escalating the Darklands War dramatically. All the Darklords, save Taktaal, Gnaag and Kraagenskûl (running the naval city of Argazad) ventured forth, even those whose domain was in Helgedad itself.

In MS 5070, during the events of The Masters of Darkness, Lone Wolf, returned from the Daziarn against all the odds, and was given a monumental task: Destroy Archlord Gnaag and the Transfusor, which powered the Tanoz-tukor; in doing so, all the Darklords would be destroyed, and the Freelands, with only days left before they fell due to the armies of the Darklords, would be saved. This daunting task was made simpler by the fact that most of the Darklords were no longer within the Darklands, but Helgedad had never been breached. Lone Wolf managed to reach Argazad (slaying Darklord Kraagenskûl and stealing his Zlanbeast), then Aarnak to meet the Slavemaster, an agent of the Elder Magi. The Slavemaster gave Lone Wolf passage on a Lajakeka to Helgedad, where he managed to reach the Tower of the Damned. There, Lone Wolf slew Darklord Taktaal, then Archlord Gnaag after a titanic battle. Lone Wolf then planted the Crystal Explosive next to the Transfusor, and escaped on Gnaag's Zlanbeast. The resulting explosion destroyed the Transfusor and the city, ending the threat of the Darklords for decades to come.

However, this destruction was incomplete. The Nengud-kor-Adez, which surrounded Helgedad, was left to run riot, consuming the remnants of Helgedad, becoming even stronger and possibly even gaining a sense of sentience. In MS 5100, the Nengud-kor-Adez self-extinguished, and migrated to the Maakengorge. During the events of Dead in the Deep, the Acolytes of Vashna and their allies constructed the fortress of Zekgazad at Emolyria, at the edge of the Maakengorge, and used the power of the Nengud-kor-Adez to power its furnaces, the spawning pools, and conduct further research, in other to create a new army to conquer Magnamund, but also to revive their master, Archlord Vashna. They were eventually successful, as an avatar of Vashna was reborn, fused with the Nengud-kor-Adez itself.

Geography

Helgedad is located in the middle of the Darklands, surrounded by the Nengud-kor-Adez. Beyond, it is surrounded by the Naogizaga wastelands, and the provinces of Dajaraa and Dajdorza, associated with Helgedad. The Dajdokriitzaga Mountains lie further beyond to the north, which constitute the realm of Iznogdazokim.

Administration

This section was written using The Darklands as a source, set during the rule of Archlord Zagarna. There were subtle changes during the reigns of Archlords Haakon and Gnaag, although most of the changes are only known during the latter's reign, during the events of The Masters of Darkness.

Although the Archlord's word was supreme, the other Darklords possessed political power within the capital as well, and the Archlord recognised that too many unhappy Darklords was not a good idea.

During the reign of Archlord Zagarna, eight Darklords resided in Helgedad: Zagarna himself, Ghanesh, Taktaal, Kraagenskûl, Xog, Shebnar, Mrugor and Khatellu. The others ruled realms outside of Helgedad, although many of them spent much time in Helgedad to take part in political intrigue. Archlords Haakon and Gnaag later resided in Helgedad, and Darklord Kraagenskûl moved to Argazad once its port was upgraded, to take charge of naval assaults on Sommerlund, around MS 5065.

Sectors of the Darklords

Main article: Sectors of Helgedad

Helgedad was divided into multiple sectors: One ruled by the Archlord (the Imperial Sector), one ruled by the Nadziranim (Fangyre Tornoth), and each Darklord residing in Helgedad also had their own sector to rule over.

Multiple sets of walls delineated the city:

• The first inner wall was half the height of the Tower of the Damned. On this inner wall, six Helmutagaz (Black Towers) conducted lightning from the permanent storm that blankets Helgedad, but also housed Giak Nanenrakim (snipers), who were able to see even through the fog that pervades Helgedad.
• Between the first and second inner walls lay Fangyre Tornoth, the Nadziranim Sector.
• A third inner wall protected the immediate outside of the Imperial Sector.

Compounds of the Darklords

Main article: Compounds of Helgedad

Each Darklord had their own compound in Helgedad. Within each compound, the Darklord had full authority, with not even the Archlord able to intervene. These compounds were originally created by Archlord Vashna, ordering the Lords of Helgedad to construct compounds for those Darklords not residing within Helgedad, as none of the Darklords got along well in close proximity with each other. Despite the autonomy within these compounds granted to each Darklord, it did not stop Archlord Vashna from destroying Darklord Xog's compound in a fit of anger, with Xog inside it, casting it and him into the Nengud-kor-Adez for a decade.

Politics

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In Lone Wolf media

Helgedad is visited in The Masters of Darkness. The player, as Lone Wolf, must infiltrate Helgedad, slay Archlord Gnaag, and destroy the Transfusor using the Crystal Explosive. Doing so completes the Magnakai series, and elevates the player to Kai Grand Master.

The Darklands is written from the perspective of a captured Kai Lord, who is to be taken to Archlord Zagarna. The reader is escorted through all the realms of the Darklands, and each sector of Helgedad.