| Category | Wars | |||
| Period | 215 GE - 230 GE | |||
| Theater | Aerie of Dragons | |||
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| Map | Hiznaar Goz |
The Hoof Front was a sub-conflict of the Demon Spawn War between the demon lord Orcus and the Quara'tun Covenant, then under the leadership of Asmodeus. Asmodeus's premier general for the Hoof Front campaign was the platinum dragon Bahamut.
In the Crab Advance, a battle to reclaim sector Hiznaar Goz, Asmodeus and Bahamut confronted the demon legions of Drurn-Adruk, one of Orcus's generals. This offensive spanned hundreds of miles and employed a pincer maneuver, with Bahamut's aerial army assaulting southward from the Sands of Hell towards Krent Talaav while Asmodeus pushed eastward through Emberfall Vale.
In one of the great one-on-one battles of the Demon Spawn War, where a leader of one side fought the leader of the other, Tiamat squared off against an ancient demon. Legend has it that the battle was fought for ten hours and spanned the length of Krent Talaav. When Bahamut's army reached the last southern fortifications of the valley, Tiamat invoked the Rite of Challenge. This allowed her and her alone the task of taking on the enemy's leader if it accepted the challenge. Drurn-Adruk, a demon lord spawned from the Step of Foundation, gladly accepted, for he knew that even if he died, Tiamat would still suffer badly from his mortal undoing talons.
The battle between Tiamat and Drurn-Adruk culminated in a pyrrhic victory for Tiamat. Her grievous wounds were chaos-infused from the demon's venomous talons. Bahamut managed to heal many of her wounds, including the chaotic taint upon her soul, yet was unable to reverse the warping of her physique. Tiamat's body had transformed due to the chaotic energies, resembling a primordial hydra with five dragon heads. Regrettably, both Bahamut and Tiamat remained unaware of a demonic seed planted within her by Drurn-Adruk's dreadful beak. This malevolent seed gradually corrupted her, ultimately leading to her abandonment of Bahamut and the angelic cause of banishing the demons back to the Abyss.
The Crab Advance proved successful in severing the head of Orcus's armies, trapping them between the forces of Bahamut and Asmodeus. Those demons unable to retreat underground or infiltrate through the lines were vanquished by the angelic legions. The winged demons faced an even graver fate, becoming easy prey for dragon teams that patrolled the skies or stood vigilant on mountain peaks, scanning the horizon for the enemy.
In the final engagement on the Hoof Front, Orcus and an elite cadre of maralith captured one of the three preeminent generals serving Asmodeus. When the gates of Ghak were breached, Orcus himself severed the head of General Ellumâ Orrasar and transported it back to Naratyr. This trophy skull now crowns the ominous Wand of Orcus.