New means of travelling, discovered by the Gibberling fisherman Swen, set the scene for the first Astral War. The League had a score to settle with the Empire over several contested allods. With a new way to attack their enemies without relying on the Great Mages, a new era of opportunity arose. It was soon discovered that the secret of Astral protection lay in an iron meteor that came from the depths of the Astral. Unfortunately for the Imperial Allod of Kirah, it was completely filled with this particular type of metal and became a target.
In the year 909, a League army landed on Kirah and occupied most of it with troops and miners. In response to the attack, the Empire sent an army of Orc, Xadaganian and Arisen troops to take it back. Years of simmering distrust erupted; the conflict between the League and the Empire for the control of Kirah began. Unfortunately for both, on a fateful night in 910, portals opened on allods across the Astral and an assault by legions of unknown demons commenced. Many of the Great Mages were lost that night as their allods were swallowed by the Astral, and many of the remaining allods fragmented, becoming much smaller than they had been.
The first victim in the Battle of Kirah was the Xadaganian Great Mage Vlad, who did not even participate in the battle. Half way through the fighting, and with the League breaking through his lines, it was obvious to him that something was amiss. The sky above lit up with Astral flames and a massive earthquake rocked the land. Yasker and Eniel, leaders of the Empire and the League both realised that the cause of the destruction was the death of Vlad.
They began the complex ritual which allowed them to sustain life on the allod, but at the precise moment they began, both armies were attacked by the demons. Both leaders ordered their armies to evacuate Kirah. Yasker opened a portal to Igsh allowing his army to flee, but it was hard to maintain for long and only a fraction of his army was able to get through. The remainder were left behind and died where they stood. The majority of the League troops were able to make it to their Astral ships, but only a lone ship survived the attack that followed from the Astral Demons.
By the end of the invasion of the Astral Demons, many allods had been completely lost, and millions of people and creatures had perished. Smaller invasions continued for some time after, but never again on the same scale. With a common enemy hell bent on destroying them both, the League and the Empire put aside their differences and formed an uneasy alliance. For fifteen years, both sides sat and waited for a fresh invasion, but it never came.
During this uneasy peace, Skrakan arrived on Kvatoh and settled in the Tensess tower.