The city of Shadan, so named after the great river that divides Tartu into East and West, was founded in the same year the Second Great War ended. Inspired by the victory over the dark hordes of Shaab, races of Tartu swore to forget past quarrels and live in peace. Humans, Ikarims, Kynos, Fenris, Dedaires, Moon and Fiery Elves built a city together and proclaimed the United Republic of Tartu, ruled by a Senate. The city founded by the seven races was to become the greatest city in the world.

While best Human, Elven and Dedaires artisans constructed bridges and towers, palaces and libraries, inns and estates, Fenris and Kynos shamans and Ikarim Wind Chanters built magical barriers that protected the city from the whims of nature. Moon Elf hanging gardens and Fiery Elf therms, Dedaire workshops and Ikarim courier posts, Human taverns, Fenris fighting pits, Kynos gambling halls - there was a place for everyone in Shadan. And above this city of miracle soared the levitating towers of the Inner Magi, stood the Temple of the Great Dragons and the great ziggurat of the Order of Zealots, with the Vigilant Eye overseeing Shadan from a high spire. But the most beautiful of them all was the Senate's building, a magnificent symbol of equality and friendship.

The United Republic of Tartu existed for centuries, and no one, be it Torlings, or Eastern Sea pirates, or steppe Taurs were able to match it in military power. Trouble began when a senator named Zak Kadmos came to rule. Kadmos wanted to concentrate all power in the hands of Humans. His agents rekindled the animosity between Kynos and Fenris, leading to new military conflicts. In order to deal with that problem, Kadmos was granted special authority by the Senate, becoming the sole commander of the Guardians of the Republic and the Golden Guard legions. This so-called peacekeeping mission ended in Kynos and Fenris being driven away from their lands. Soon thereafter, they were branded security threats for the Republic and deprived of their citizenship. Ikarims, who refused to take part in the punitive operation, were soon banished from the Senate, too.

Menahwile, Minotons, whose lands were once conquered by the Republic, proclaimed independence. While Kadmos was preparing a campaign to pacify the bull-headed insurgents, he also ordered the foundation of two fortresses, named Sadar and Vaalor, that were to become a foothold for invasions into the lands of the Moon and Fiery Elves. Zak Kadmos died by the hands of an Elven assassin before his plans came to fruition. The Senate was reinstated but it was already too late. The flames of civil war burned all across the once united country. As a desperate attempt to save the Republic, Senate delegated all power to the Order of Zealots, an organization founded after the Second Great War to seek out and protect the world from the dark legacy of Shaab and the Tangors.

For centuries, the Order gathered Tangor artifacts and sought knowledge of the nature of Shaab's Abyss. Its leaders, the twelve Archons, delved deeper and deeper into forbidden knowledge. As they stared into the heart of the Abyss, it stared back through thousands of eyes that belonged to Kamorrus, the titan steward and a traitor who released the Dark Gods out of their prison at the dawn of our world. Through the lips of its envoys, cultists and dark magi trapped by the order, Abyss whispered promises of eternal life and unlimited power to the Archons. It called, offered, coaxed. Alien to this world, it sparked inexplicable, insatiable curiosity in the inquisitive minds of the Archons. It remains unknown who succumbed first. But whoever he was, forever cursed be his name, for the doom he unleashed on this world was a dreadful one indeed.

Monsters that poured into Adan from the Ark of Shaab destroyed the ancient capital. Those citizens of Shadan who failed to flee from the city before that were turned into Defilers, servants of evil devoid of free thought or compassion, whose only purpose was to sow sorrow and death. Corrupted Zealots became Crimson Legion, servants of the damned Ark. Bodies of their twelve Archons became vessels for Crimson Stewards, Shaab's demons of unimaginable power who commanded the invasion. It took the intervention of the Elder Dragons to save Tartu from certain destruction. Shaab's hordes were banished to Abyss; but alas, Shadan was no more. It was dangerous even to step into the ruins of the city were Blight could drive a person insane in a matter of days, subduing them to the twisted will of the dark gods.

Shadan became a forbidden place, and even the most powerful warriors and magi kept their distance. But years passed, and so did the memories of the terror. Remnants of Shadan's hordes that dwelled in the desolate ruins were destroyed. Blight was eradicated. Even though you can still stumble into cadavers or ghosts of Shadan's defenders in the ruins, treasure hunters and opportunists come to the city, venturing deeper into the ruins every day in search of the powerful artifacts left behind by the war against Shaab. The most daring and confident warriors even organize fights on the bridges of Shadan to demonstrate their courage and combat skills. But there are also some who only come here to see with their own eyes the last glimpse of the era of prosperity, the ruins of the great city that was once home to the seven races of Tartu.