Elder God Wars
The Elder God Wars was an ongoing main storyline, which started in February 2021, told through a range of content, from quests and miniquests to combat encounters released as a part of the Elder God Wars Dungeon. While the dungeon is the centrepiece of the narrative, the storyline concluded in April 2022.
While the storyline officially started with the release of Azzanadra's Quest, it is a direct continuation of the World Out of Time narrative arc, which culminated with Desperate Measures, and part of the overarching story of the Elder Gods and the threat of the Great Revision, which was established as a main narrative focus with Sliske's Endgame, although specific story elements were introduced as far back as The World Wakes. While many instalments of the narrative have none or limited requirements, the players interested in the story are recommended to play them in the order of release and to complete the preceding narrative content.
| “ | The Elder God Wars is something we've been looking forward to telling the story of since last RuneFest, and the last RuneFest is a long time ago now. There was a revelation last year, we started focussing in on the word 'Wars' of 'Elder God Wars'. And really, wars don't only last a day, they're not bang and done, they're not an individual dungeon, or anything like that. Things build up to wars, wars take months and months, there are ramifications, there are stories from the ground and stories from up high. There's so much that goes on in wars, and we really wanted to deliver that experience. | ” |
| — Mod Osborne; 12 January 2021[1] | ||
Background[edit | edit source]
It is recommended to complete the following content in order for full comprehension of the narrative. Some prerequisites, including the Fifth Age quests are omitted, but may still be required or recommended to complete.
| Content | Type | Related topics |
|---|---|---|
| The Elder Kiln | Quest | Elder Kiln, TokHaar |
| The Brink of Extinction | Quest | Elder Kiln, TokHaar |
| Wandering Ga'al (miniquest) | Miniquest | Elder Gods, Elder Kiln, TokHaar |
| The World Wakes | Quest | Guthix, Sliske, The World Guardian |
| One of a Kind | Quest | Dragonkin (Kerapac), Elder Gods |
| Fate of the Gods | Quest | Elder Gods (Mah, Elder Halls, The Great Revision), Zaros, Seren, dragonkin |
| Heart of Stone | Quest | Elder Gods (The Great Revision) |
| Hero's Welcome | Quest | Dragonkin (Kerapac) |
| The Light Within | Quest | Seren, Zaros, Elder Gods (Mah) |
| Kindred Spirits | Quest | Sliske, Stone of Jas |
| Children of Mah | Quest | Zaros, Seren, Elder Gods (Mah) |
| Sliske's Endgame | Quest | Zaros, Seren, Stone of Jas, Elder Gods (Jas) |
| The Needle Skips | Quest | The Needle |
| Curse of the Black Stone | Quest | Dragonkin (Kerapac) |
| Desperate Times | Quest | Elder Gods, Seren, dragonkin (Kerapac), the Needle |
| Archaeology/Pre-release | Temporary | The Codex, Zaros |
| Desperate Measures | Quest | Elder Gods (Jas, Ful), Seren, dragonkin (Kerapac, Nodon), the Needle, shadow anima |
| Desperate Creatures | Quest (formerly lore activity) | Shadow anima, Zaros |
| Orthen Dig Site | Skilling | Dragonkin (Kerapac, Nodon), Elder Gods, shadow anima |
| Raksha, the Shadow Colossus (quest) | Miniquest | Shadow anima, Zaros, the Codex |
The Elder Gods have been referenced in a number of quests over the years, however the current main narrative began with The World Wakes quest which began the Sixth Age. The quest Fate of the Gods was the first to introduce much of the Elder Gods' lore and narrative elements leading to the Elder God Wars storyline, as well as introducing the characters of Zaros and Seren, playing an important part in the story. The Light Within and Children of Mah expanded on those elements, while Heart of Stone focused on the aspect of Elder Gods waking on Gielinor and the first attempts to stop them. One of a Kind and Hero's Welcome introduce the dragonkin scientist Kerapac and his attempts to break the curse put on them by the Elder God Jas, binding them to the Stone of Jas. Sliske's Endgame, culminating much of the Sixth Age narrative, including the conflict between the young gods and the story of the Stone of Jas, introduced a new main storyline with its ending. The Elder God Jas confronts the World Guardian and burdens them with a task of proving to the Creators that mortal life deserves to exist.
The Needle Skips and Curse of the Black Stone introduce The Needle, an Elder artefact controlling time, and Kerapac's vengeance against the Elders, respectively. The storyline of the Elder Gods begins formally with Desperate Times, in which Seren forms the Council of Burthorpe, a gathering of the leaders of the peoples of Gielinor, wishing to work with them to show the Elder Gods the value of life. She wishes to appease them by creating an impressive garden, yet it becomes obvious that the various groups cannot easily overcome their old grudges. The impasse is resolved when Kerapac offers an alternative solution - using the Needle to keep the Elder Gods asleep. With the help of the World Guardian and the enchanter Charos he claims control of the Needle, but is revealed to have a more nefarious plan - the destruction of Gielinor and the Elder Gods with it, in exchange for the rest of the universe being able to survive. The storyline continued with the release of Anachronia, an ancient dragonkin domain brought back from the past by Kerapac, as well as in the Archaeology skill, including its pre-release teasers, introducing the mysterious monolith, an artefact activated by Zaros in the Archaeology Campus. The Desperate Measures quest follows the attempts to stop Kerapac's plan, revealed to involve the release of toxic shadow anima upon the world to poison and kill the Elder Gods, but also destroying all other life in the process. To this end, he uses a device generating the substance from the sleeping caste of Nodon dragonkin. While Jas is aware of the threat, she decides not to interfere, as Kerapac shielded himself in shadow anima, which would require the Elder Gods to cause massive destruction in order to stop him. Willing to give mortals a chance to prove themselves, she offers an aid. Revealed by Charos to hold the shadow anima inside them due to Guthix's machinations, the World Guardian is able to confront Kerapac and unknowingly allows Jas to bind him, and the Nodon, to herself once more. Soon after the Elder God Ful appears in the volcano and destroys the device. As revealed in Desperate Creatures, the outpouring of shadow anima, while stopped, caused lasting consequences to the life on Gielinor. Additionally the lore of the dragonkin, including Kerapac, the Nodon caste, as well as shadow anima is explored in the Orthen Dig Site. One of the consequences of Kerapac's actions was revealed in Raksha, the Shadow Colossus. Raksha, an ancient beast infused with anathema from the mysterious monolith (in reality The Codex) is awoken once more, after Zaros leaves with a container of the shadow anima, prompting the World Guardian to fight and contain the creature again.
Updates[edit | edit source]
| Content | Type | Release date |
|---|---|---|
| Azzanadra's Quest | Quest | 22 February 2021 |
| Battle of the Monolith | Quest (formerly miniquest) | 24 May 2021 |
| City of Senntisten | Quest | 21 June 2021 |
| Nodon Front | Dungeon | 26 July 2021 |
| Glacor Front | Dungeon | 31 August 2021 |
| Croesus Front | Dungeon | 27 September 2021 |
| TzekHaar Front | Dungeon | 25 October 2021 |
| Eye of Het I | Quest (formerly miniquest) | 4 January 2022 |
| Eye of Het II | Quest (formerly miniquest) | 10 January 2022 |
| Extinction | Quest | 4 April 2022 |
Azzanadra's Quest[edit | edit source]
The quest builds on the events from Desperate Times and Desperate Measures. Disappointed with the ineffectiveness of the Council of Burthorpe, which has been affected by Seren's aura, as well as the crystal goddess' focus on appeasing the current generation of the Elder Gods, Azzanadra sets out to fulfil a task given to him upon the return of Zaros - finding the Elder Halls on Gielinor. With the help of the World Guardian and Ariane, a seer, they investigate the Elder Halls on Freneskae, where the current universe began. They discover that the Elder Gods must touch their eggs to hatch them correctly, by imprinting their memories and identities, and that if the eggs were to hatch, they would instantly destroy all life. Azzanadra requests the World Guardian to meet with Trindine, a recently freed Mahjarrat, and find a way to convince the White Knights to summon Saradomin, whose crown, an Elder artefact, could possibly locate the eggs. Before leaving the Halls, the adventurer discovers two voices in their head, providing a regular commentary of the subsequent events. Later, with the help of Sir Owen and against the obstructive bureaucracy, they summon Saradomin to Falador to request his help. While willing to give aid and regretting his absence, he informs that the Locator cannot be used to find the eggs.
The group meets in Kharid-et and splits to investigate different leads: Azzanadra and Ariane wish to confront the Kras of the Elder Gods, previously encountered during Xenia's plot; Sir Owen decides to find the elusive Sir Vey Lance, leader of the Temple Knights; while the World Guardian and Trindine search for clues in the Wizards' Tower, Guthix's Hall of Memories, and the TzHaar City, where the creations of the Elder Kiln live. While the latter search proves ineffective, the World Guardian learns that Guthix had imbued them with the same enchantment he had used to create the Edicts, combining the anima from the Heart of Gielinor and the shadow anima from the Codex. He had also orchestrated his death at the hands of Sliske knowing that the Mahjarrat with a penchant for shadows would help that part of the World Guardian's enchantment grow. They also learn that the TokHaar tried to convince the TzHaar to return to the Kiln to serve the Creators once more. While TokHaar-Hok admits they created the Halls, he refuses to disclose their location.
When the group reconvenes in Kharid-et, they learn that Ariane managed to divine the location of the Halls following the destruction of Kras, and that they can be found in the Heart itself. Azzanadra, Ariane, and the World Guardian head to the Heart, while Trindine looks for Sir Owen. In the Heart, now controlled by the elves following the defeat of Sliske and the withdrawal of the Zarosian and Zamorakian forces, they are confronted by Helwyr. As the hostilities grow, Gregorovic, Sliske's general, is drawn to the World Guardian and prompts a furious Helwyr to chase after him. Ariane uses a lava rune to imitate the TokHaar signature and the trio enters the Halls. Inside, they examine the eggs, finding them stable, but agitated by the release of anathema by Kerapac and likely to hatch in case of another dangerous outburst of energy.
Azzanadra leaves in a hurry, prompting the World Guardian and the voices in their head to become suspicious and investigate the locations previously visited with Trindine. They learn she looked for information about Saradomins' crown and that she was enacting an ancient heist conceived thousands of years earlier. With the help of Ariane, the World Guardian is able to witness Owen and Trindine finding Sir Vey Lance only to learn that the leader of Temple Knights is actually a Chthonian demon named Veilinius who infiltrated the Saradominist forces back in the Third Age in order to steal the crown. While undercover, he turned the Order of the Temple of Zaros into the Temple Knights and orchestrated much of subsequent history while waiting for further orders, while also making the inner circle of the order aware they serve another master. Trindine informs him that the heist is about to be pulled off after five thousand years and Veilinius suggests a ceremony which would create a perfect opportunity. They try to recruit Sir Owen, who refuses and is knocked out.
Ariane and the World Guardian hurry to the White Knights' Castle, where Saradomin conducts an ancient ceremony to strengthen the bond with his followers. The Zarosians blow the Frostenhorn, turning the initiated Temple Knights to their side, and Azzanadra attempts to seize the crown. When he fails, Zaros himself intervenes and claims the artefact with ease, telling Saradomin that he may keep his kingdoms and that he should not seek retribution. The Zarosians and the knights reconvene in Kharid-et, where Zaros informs them his plan is about to be set in motion and that they should prepare for a conflict with Seren when they come for the monolith. Azzanadra expresses regret about having to betray the World Guardian, but warns them the next time they meet, it will be as enemies. After the Zarosians leave, Ariane decides to research the eggs further and the World Guardian suggests she seeks the help of Reldo, who is secretly the enchanter Charos.
Battle of the Monolith[edit | edit source]
The next chapter of the storyline released on 24 May 2021.
On 20 May 2021, at 17:00 UTC, the official RuneScape twitter account tweeted an animation of the Codex with the caption: "You have your responsibilities and I have mine. I will see you at the Monolith. When next we meet, it will be as enemies."; a quote from Azzanadra to the World Guardian at the end of Azzanadra's Quest.[2]
On 21 May 2021, at 09:00 UTC, RuneScape went live on Twitch and YouTube with the aforementioned animation of the Codex in loop and a 7-hour timer. Once the time was up, the trailer for the Battle of the Monolith premiered, and a livestream with Mods Hooli, Raven and Shrike announced the event.
Initially, the World Guardian and their allies fought back against the Zarosian army, who sought to breach the Codex. The attack failed to make any headway, resulting in Zaros directly intervening by opening the Codex to enter Erebus itself. This act resulted in numerous shadow cacklers and behemoths emerging from the rift, subsequently resulting in the Zarosians working with their former enemies to stop the shadow creatures from invading the rest of Gielinor. Eventually, the creatures were pushed back with the help of the TokHaar, who were convinced to assist by the World Guardian. However, the damage done was irreversible, and the TokHaar turned on their allies. At the same time, Azzanadra managed to close the breach, though not before Char was sucked in. The backlash of energy resulted in Azzanadra ascending into a god.
City of Senntisten[edit | edit source]
Following the Battle of the Monolith and the subsequent betrayal of the TokHaar, the World Guardian, Ariane and Charos became unsure as to how to deal with the eggs before they would hatch. Azzanadra suddenly appeared, expressing remorse for his actions at the Battle of the Monolith and offered a solution to the problem. Though this would rile the Elder Gods, the three accepted, seeing that there was no other choice in the matter. They teleported the eggs to the buried ruins of Senntisten, which had somehow survived the ravages of war during the Third Age.
While Azzanadra and the others gathered allies, the World Guardian found several warding agents and handed them to Azzanadra, allowing him to fortify the cathedral with a pseudo shadow anima-like barrier. Saradomin, Zamorak, Seren and Armadyl came to assist Azzanadra in his task, since there was no other choice and apart from the latter, the need to protect their followers. Once the last ward was established, Kerapac, having been enslaved by Jas, appeared, warning them that the Elders were angered at the theft and were mustering their forces to attack the pitiful alliance, taunting them for not recognising the need to stop the Elder Gods before it was too late.
As the alliances' forces began pouring in, so did the Elder Gods' own forces, starting with Kerapac and his army of Nodon dragonkin. Wen soon brought in numerous glacors, glacytes and an Arch-Glacor to add pressure on a second front. Bik then discovered Croesus and reawakened it, adding a third front to the mix. Finally, Ful sent her own forces, the TzekHaar, reforged TokHaar, along with TzKal-Zuk, a demigod warrior from the Second Age who she had freed from Bandos' chains that had been placed on him during the God Wars. The emergence of the final front severely disrupted the alliance's supply chain.
Eye of Het[edit | edit source]
The Elders' forces were endless in their numbers and onslaught, causing the alliance's forces to begin taking increased casualties. With the war seeming endless and the eggs barely changing in power, Icthlarin soon arrived and proposed an alternative to Zamorak's necromancy; the Eye of Het, an amulet once owned by Het that could bring the dead back to life. Seren accepted the offer, but Zamorak, growing impatient and angry by the endless war, secretly tasked his son, General Khazard, to try and steal it. Khazard's first attempt failed, destroying the Duel Arena in the process, but he was able to do so on the second attempt. The World Guardian deduced that Zamorak was responsible for the theft, and he did not deny the accusation, stating that Seren was intending to put them in an endless war just to protect her siblings. He destroyed the amulet and subsequently left.
Extinction[edit | edit source]
With Zamorak's departure, the rest of his followers soon departed, leaving the alliance in an even more difficult position as the Elders' forces took advantage of the chaos to slowly push towards the cathedral. Moia volunteered to asist the alliance, though the gods were quick to distrust her. The World Guardian ultimately stabilised the situation at three of the four fronts, just as Zuk emerged from his own front to charge at the cathedral. Armadyl and Saradomin, realising they could not handle a demigod with all the distractions at hand, soon elected to destroy the eggs, resulting in Seren teleporting away with them. The World Guardian pursued Seren, with Kerapac pursuing them, but they convinced him to turn against Jas. Eventually the World Guardian and their companions discovered Seren along with the eggs at Freneskae, where a shadow breach opened after their arrival.
Once Jas arrived at Erebus, Kerapac used the Needle to rewind time and stall her while the World Guardian explored Erebus, alerting a shadow leviathan to their location. Just as Jas broke through the Needle's effects, the leviathan emerged from the breach. Kerapac assisted the leviathan by attacking Jas, distracting her long enough for it to drag her back into Erebus; the effort shattered the Needle, however, leaving Kerapac defenseless as he was also dragged in. Hannibus then suggested to let the eggs die in peace like his people on Iaia, causing Seren to head there to begin hatching the eggs. Seren alerted the remaining Elder Gods to Iaia, forcing the World Guardian to delay their hatching as their companions evacuated the planet. Once the ELder Gods arrived to Iaia they hatched the eggs on the spot, draining the entire planet of anima. Moia trapped the World Guardian by closing the World Gate to ensure that Zamorak's invasion would go unopposed, but the World Guardian survived due to the powers acquired from Erebus, resulting in the newborn Elders refusing to eat them. Seren elected to stay on Iaia to care for the newborns, as they were far too weak to go out on their own, but warned the World Guardian to stay away or she would kill them.
The World Guardian then informed the other gods of their victory, and the battleground had been cleared in their absence, as without any distractions and increased power from the eggs, the gods annihilated the opposing forces: Azzanadra was able to return the glacors back to their planet, Saradomin forced TzKal-Zuk to retreat, and Armadyl incinerated Croesus until there wasn't a trace of it left.
Elder God Wars Dungeon[edit | edit source]
The Elder God Wars Dungeon takes place in the buried city of Senntisten, with four "fronts", each led by a "general" of that Elder God. The first front is the Nodon Front in the west of Senntisten, consisting of Kerapac, the bound and the Nodon dragonkin enslaved by Jas. The second front is the Glacor Front in the south of Senntisten, consisting of the Arch-Glacor and glacors sent by Wen. The third front is the Croesus Front in the east of Senntisten, consisting of skilling nodes as well as the first skilling boss Croesus. The fourth front is the TzekHaar Front, consisting of TzKal-Zuk and the TzekHaar, who were TokHaar that underwent changes for battle by Ful.
Development history[edit | edit source]
The Elder God Wars Dungeon was announced and discussed at RuneFest 2019.[3] The announcement occurred via an animation of Ful, in which a voiced narrator stated:
| “ | "The creators. You know them as the Elder Gods. You may think them united, but they are not. You may think they speak with one voice, but they do not. At the dawn of this universe there was no life save for them, but there was still conflict. That conflict will come again." | ” |
Mod Osborne stated in a press release that the Elder God Wars Dungeon will take place in a 'buried city'[4] and have skilling content.[5] Unable to confirm or deny whether the Elder God Wars Dungeon takes place in a buried city, Mod Jack stated that 'if' it did, they would want to include Archaeology in the exploration of the city in some way. [6]
Gallery[edit | edit source]
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An animation of the Codex posted to tease Elder God Wars content
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Elder God Wars promotional logo, released with Azzanadra's Quest
