Vampire-Sarafan war

The vampire-Sarafan war was a conflict waged between two fledgling factions – Kain's vampire army, and the revived Sarafan order – in a latter iteration of the post-Blood Omen era. Precipitated by Vorador's resurrection and the rise of a new generation of vampires, it culminated in the battle of Meridian, where the Hylden Lord struck Kain down and routed the vampires. Both sides sought to rule Nosgoth for the benefit of their respective races.

Much of the war played out in the southern regions of Nosgoth, and its events saw Kain and the vampires hindered by repeated suspicions of betrayal, both accurate and perceived. Its outcome, decided roughly two centuries after the collapse of the Pillars, resulted in total Sarafan domination of Nosgoth for another two centuries, which motivated the creation of the Cabal. The events of the war were outlined and depicted within Blood Omen 2.

To Conquer and Rule


In the post-Blood Omen era, since the breaking of the Circle of Nine and the collapse of the Pillars of Nosgoth, Kain – the only surviving Pillar Guardian and vampire – asserted his fixation with ruling over the land, but was unable to raise new vampires.

A temporal paradox caused by Raziel and an older incarnation of Kain changed some aspects of Nosgoth's history, introducing the resurrection of the elder vampire, Vorador, in the resultant timeline. In addition, it enabled the Hylden Lord, a leader among the Hylden within the Demon Realm, to take advantage of the Pillars' collapse by possessing the ancient vampire, Janos Audron, whom he used to open the Hylden Gate. Though the Gate enabled them to shift into the Material Realm, the Hylden Lord and his followers "had not yet the power to begin a full invasion".

Vorador "created a new race" of vampires to replace those destroyed by Moebius's mercenary army, and "from that race", Kain recruited an army. Those who joined his ranks included his champion, Magnus, his close ally, Sebastian, and the legionnaire, Faustus. Though he asked Marcus to fight at his side, Marcus refused, and Kain responded by making a failed attempt on Marcus's life.

Meanwhile, the Hylden Lord, hoping to exact revenge upon the vampires for the historical banishment of his own kind, "learned of a legendary order whose purpose was to purge the world of vampires long ago. He revived this order, and the Sarafan were born again".

Traitors to Our Kind


Formed in response to Kain's ascension to power, the Sarafan were composed primarily of "militant humans", and operated from the Sarafan Keep at Meridian. Now styling himself the Sarafan Lord, the Hylden General commanded this faction; "determined to wipe out the vampire threat", they wielded the Glyph magic he bestowed to deadly effect.

The war between the vampires and the Sarafan endured for "decades", and involved much "blood-stained and internal conflict". Eventually, hostilities narrowed down to a direct confrontation between the bulk of both armies. Perusing maps of Nosgoth within Kain's headquarters, Kain and Vorador charted a path for the army, leading progressively south through the human settlements of Ziegsturhl, Provance, and Freeport.

Annexing each town, the vampires continued southeast to launch an assault on the Sarafan Keep. However, shortly prior to the final skirmish, Sebastian sold himself to the Sarafan, and "arranged the ambush that destroyed [Kain's] army". This betrayal resulted in a large toll of vampire deaths, crippling Kain's forces, and – by Sebastian's account – "cost [them] the war".

Before the battle of Meridian took place, Magnus secretly "went to kill the Sarafan Lord, alone", believing he could "strike a blow that would end the war" single-handedly. The assassination attempt failed, further depriving Kain's army; Magnus was defeated by the Hylden Lord, "helpless at his feet", then robbed of his sanity, and transported to the Eternal Prison.

Ignorant of the meaning behind Magnus's disappearance, Kain simply assumed that his champion had "left [his] camp in the night to join with [his] enemy, like all the others".

Those Destined to Die


Though the Sarafan were already considered "finally triumphant", the remnants of the vampire army persisted toward Meridian. The Hylden Lord unleashed his Glyph magic to "destroy [Kain's] army and kill most of the vampires". By the battle's end, "Kain and the Sarafan Lord [were] locked in mortal combat", fighting in melee with their swords. Unbeknownst to Kain, the Hylden Lord wore the Nexus Stone, an artifact capable of deflecting the power of Kain's blade, the Soul Reaver. Unable to harm his enemy, Kain was struck down, his body thrown off a cliff "to his apparent death".

In the aftermath, the Hylden Lord claimed the Soul Reaver for his own, and the few surviving loyal vampires – led by Vorador – quietly recovered Kain's near-lifeless body.

Now indomitable, the Sarafan proceeded to conquer Nosgoth. Alongside Sebastian, a few of the vampire survivors – Faustus and Marcus – were given a chance at survival, should they cooperate by helping to track down their renegade kindred. These traitor vampires would rise high in the Sarafan chain of command. The vampires who resisted their oppressors' rule covertly united in the form of the Cabal, and, two centuries after his defeat, Kain awoke in their care in Meridian's Slums.

Bent on taking revenge against the Hylden Lord and the Sarafan, Kain agreed to help the Cabal "for the time being". He suffered from "slight amnesia" during his quest, and was gradually reeducated on the details of the war in his encounters with Umah, Vorador, and the traitor vampires. He also encountered murals of the war in the main hall of the Sarafan Keep, being scornfully remarked upon by Artemis.

Outline


(The war was a consequence of an historical paradox which affected the events of the post-Blood Omen era, and occurred only in the timeline spawned by that paradox. Previously, it was not part of Nosgoth's history.)

Belligerents

 * Kain's vampire army
 * Sarafan (post-Blood Omen era)

Participants

 * Kain
 * Faustus
 * Magnus
 * Sebastian
 * Vorador
 * The Hylden Lord

Theaters

 * Kain's headquarters
 * Meridian
 * Freeport
 * Provance
 * Ziegsturhl

Appearances

 * Blood Omen 2