Era following Blood Omen

The era following Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain is considered the time period between the collapse of the Pillars of Nosgoth and Kain's resurrection of the six Sarafan warrior inquisitors. This time period is visited in both Soul Reaver 2 and Legacy of Kain: Defiance, and is the chronological setting for all of Blood Omen 2. Its events were monumentally altered by the third paradox, which permitted the Hylden Lord to enter Nosgoth's Material Realm.

Overview
As a result of the Pillars' destruction, the barriers between Nosgoth's Material, Spectral and Demon Realms waned during this period, forcing the Human population to adapt and advance technologically. The rulership and influence of nobles and monarchs such as King Ottmar appeared to have gradually died out, replaced by tyrannies in the populace's hope for survival.

In latter timelines, it was considered that the "age of the vampires was coming to an end"; despite his status as the only survivor of the Circle of Nine, Kain could not yet create new Vampires to consolidate his power, and it would be several centuries before his reign as Nosgoth's uncontested emperor could begin.

Initial known events and information (second timeline)

 * (~0) The collapse of the Pillars: Embracing his vampirism, Kain refuses the sacrifice and rejoices, establishing a throne at the ruined Pillar of Balance.


 * (~500) The raising of the lieutenants: Kain infiltrates the Tomb of the Sarafan, raising the six Sarafan warrior inquisitors to act as his vampire lieutenants.

Third timeline information and alterations

 * (~0) The collapse of the Pillars: Embracing his vampirism, Kain refuses the sacrifice and rejoices, establishing a throne at the ruined Pillar of Balance.


 * Demons become more commonplace in the Material Realm. Mutants begin to evolve in the swamp.


 * The Sarafan Stronghold is assaulted by demons. Moebius's mercenary army evolves into the demon hunters.


 * (~100) Raziel emerges from the pre-Blood Omen era, arriving in the Sarafan Stronghold. He discovers a statue commemorating Moebius, holding aloft the severed head of Vorador.
 * After discovering Moebius' statue, Raziel encounters an illusion posing as the spirit of Moebius, intended to influence him into destroying Kain.
 * Raziel encounters Ariel at the Pillars of Nosgoth, who laments Kain's decision and her own fate.
 * The elder Kain of the pre-Blood Omen era, spared by Raziel in this timeline, emerges in the past and pursues Raziel.
 * After speaking with Ariel, Raziel encounters the elder Kain outside the ruined aerie, who discusses the nature of paradoxes and the malevolent forces subverting their destinies before departing.
 * Raziel obtains the Air Reaver from the Air Forge, adjacent to the ruined aerie of Janos Audron's Retreat.
 * Using the time-streaming chamber in the swamp, Raziel time-travels back to Nosgoth's early history.


 * (~500) The raising of the lieutenants: Kain infiltrates the Tomb of the Sarafan, raising the six Sarafan warrior inquisitors to act as his vampire lieutenants.

Fourth timeline information and alterations

 * (~0) The collapse of the Pillars: Kain refuses the sacrifice, establishing a throne at the ruined Pillar of Balance.
 * Janos Audron, possessed by the Hylden Lord, destroys Raziel at the Vampire Citadel and departs to opens the Hylden Gate. Raziel materializes within the Spirit Forge, trapped in the Spectral Realm.
 * The Elder God resurrects Moebius.
 * The elder Kain of the Blood Omen era awakens in the Demon Realm, and battles the native Demons to escape.
 * The Purification of Kain: Kain slays Moebius in the Vampire Citadel's Spirit Forge, whose soul is then finally consumed by Raziel in the Spectral Realm. Using Moebius's corpse, Raziel enters the Material Realm and tricks Kain into impaling him on the Reaver blade. Raziel enters the Reaver and uses the Wraith Blade to heal Kain's soul of Nupraptor's corruption, ending the cycle of his destiny. Now cognizant of the Elder God, Kain battles it. The Elder God topples the Spirit Forge in an attempt to destroy Kain, but fails.
 * The Hylden Lord enters the Material Realm. Janos is imprisoned in the Device.


 * Demons become more commonplace in the Material Realm. Mutants begin to evolve in the swamp.


 * The Sarafan Stronghold is assaulted by demons. Moebius's mercenary army evolves into the demon hunters.


 * (~100) Raziel emerges from the pre-Blood Omen era, arriving in the Sarafan Stronghold. He discovers a statue commemorating Moebius, holding aloft the severed head of Vorador.
 * After discovering Moebius' statue, Raziel encounters an illusion posing as the spirit of Moebius, intended to influence him into destroying Kain.
 * Raziel encounters Ariel at the Pillars of Nosgoth, who laments Kain's decision and her own fate.
 * The elder Kain of the pre-Blood Omen era, spared by Raziel in this timeline, emerges in the past and pursues Raziel.
 * After speaking with Ariel, Raziel encounters the elder Kain outside the ruined aerie, who discusses the nature of paradoxes and the malevolent forces subverting their destinies before departing.
 * Raziel obtains the Air Reaver from the Air Forge, adjacent to the ruined aerie of Janos Audron's Retreat.
 * Using the time-streaming chamber in the swamp, Raziel time-travels back to Nosgoth's early history.


 * Vorador's resurrection: Vorador is resurrected by an unknown party.


 * ("Decades" prior to ~200) The vampire-Sarafan war: Vorador and the younger Kain create the Vampire Army, bent on conquering Nosgoth. The Hylden Lord forms the Sarafan in response, seizing the city of Meridian.


 * Faustus, Magnus, Marcus and Sebastian are sired by Vorador or his direct descendants.


 * (~200) The Vampire-Sarafan war: The Vampire Army is routed at Meridian. The Hylden Lord defeats Kain, throwing him off a cliff, claiming the Soul Reaver and leaving him for dead.


 * Faustus, Marcus and Sebastian join the Sarafan Order.


 * Vorador forms the Cabal. Kain's body is found by the Cabal and taken to Meridian.


 * (~400) Kain awakens in the Slums of Meridian.
 * Kain kills Faustus and meets with Vorador. In the Upper City, Kain kills Marcus and rescues Umah.
 * Kain infiltrates the Industrial Quarter and obtains the Nexus Stone, killing Sebastian.
 * After meeting with the Seer, Kain journeys to the Eternal Prison and slays the Builder and Magnus. Using the Builder's blood, Kain destroys the Mass. Janos Audron is freed from the Device.
 * The Death of the Hylden Lord: Kain kills Umah and infiltrates the Hylden City. Kain and Janos battle the Hylden Lord. Janos is cast into the Demon Realm. Kain destroys the Hylden Gate and kills the Hylden Lord.


 * (~500) The raising of the lieutenants: Kain infiltrates the Tomb of the Sarafan, raising the six Sarafan warrior inquisitors to act as his vampire lieutenants.

Progression
The post-Blood Omen era is easily the most heavily-reshuffled period witnessed in Nosgoth's history thus far, having undergone massive alterations with the introduction of the third paradox and the Hylden Lord's release from the Demon Realm.

Given that Blood Omen 2 is the only game which has explored a version of Kain's history during this period in any detail, it is entirely uncertain how similarly or differently his destiny played out here in previous timelines, without the influence of the Hylden, Vorador and Janos Audron. Vorador's original exclusion suggests that the entire generation of Vampires he sired could not have existed before the paradox which revived him took place - thereby preventing Kain's Vampire Army from being created and coming to power - whereas the Hylden Lord's absence equally implies that the Sarafan Order was never revived and glyph magic never propagated in Nosgoth.

Blood Omen 2's developers intended for glyph magic to explain the origin of the fantastical technologies witnessed in the Necropolis, the Ruined City and the City of Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver, but later interviews asserted that both of these games take place in independent timelines. Therefore, the Human machinery and advancements seen in Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver, which takes place in the second timeline, apparently evolved independently of glyph magic during that iteration of history's post-Blood Omen era.

As the Demon Hunters were directly descended from Moebius's mercenary army, which did not exist in the first timeline, it is unlikely they were extant - at least in their Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 2 portrayal - until Kain altered history and the second timeline began.

Appearances

 * Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain
 * Soul Reaver 2
 * Blood Omen 2
 * Legacy of Kain: Defiance

Annotations
