Many of us have become reliant on quest spoilers when we decide to complete one of Tibia's programmed adventures. These spoilers usually tell us where to go and what to say, but they don't tell us why. Unfortunately a lot of the times you're being clobbered by enemies and in a rush to get your reward that you simply don't have time to get the full story. I hope enough of you are interested to read the full story if it's presented to you in an organized and chronological way, all at one place. If even this does not attract your attention, I've added a short version of the story, written in my own words, at the end. This short version gives all of the main details and storyline, but you'll miss out in the incredible story telling!
I'll begin with the history of Darama, and how the Djinn civil war came to pass. I've taken all the content from in-game books and simply compiled them in an organized manner. I do not own, and did not write the story that is to follow.
The Kha'labal Chronicles
Every child knows the sad fate of the Kha'labal. Once it was brimming with life, a verdant paradise filled with lush forests and countless freshwater springs. The gods created this paradise and gave it to their newly-made race, the humans, as a present. Protected on all sides by the sea or by insurpassable mountains, the Kha'labal was the perfect environment for the young, vulnerable race to flourish. And flourish and thrive it did. Guided by their leader Banor and endowed with amazing technical skills and knowledge by their creators, the humans managed to settle the whole Kha'labal within few generations, and beautiful buildings rose to the sky, the mightiest of which were to be found in the majestic city of Ankrahmun. These early humans, who today are called the Founders, were a friendly race who lived in peace and harmony with each other, ignorant of the horrors lurking in the outside world. And the gods, who watched them from their thrones in the Kha'zeel, smiled on them.
Sadly, the bliss that marked the humans' early hours was not bound to last. The shadows which in those days held the rest of the world in their cold grip became aware of the humans and of their riches, and soon enough they began to plot the young race's destruction. Ferocious orcs built fleets and started raiding the south-western coastline, while the north was threatened by eerie undead who began to spread their insidious poison among the terrified humans. Worse, the corruption slowly found its way into many of the humans's hearts, and strife and armed conflict erupted within the community. Some humans even fell for the morbid attraction of undeath. They formed an evil cult of necromancers and went to the north to found a city of their own. This city was called Drefia, and it soon became a source of the foulest corruption.
The humans, who were not used to such challenges, were full of sadness and despair, and many cursed the gods who apparently watched their plight in apathy. Little did they understand that all this was part of the gods' plan. It would take the humans a long time to understand that the very purpose of their race was to fight evil, and that their fate was not eternal bliss but endless struggle.
When no prayer was answered anymore and no sacrifice rewarded it became evident that the gods had indeed left the human race so that it would find a destiny of its own. But they did not leave the humans without guidance. There was Daraman, the gods' chosen prophet, who carefully prepared them for the spiritual and ethical challenges that awaited them in a world full of treachery and evil. And there was Banor, the very first human, a champion of superhuman might and life span, who taught his people how to fight on the battlefield. On his advice the pharaoh of Ankrahmun built a strong army, and it was Banor who designed the plans for Ankrahmun's famous fortifications. And soon enough the new human armies proved themselves in fierce battles against their undead and orcish enemies. Their kind paid heavy prices in these costly battles, but they learnt to accept sacrifices, and it soon become apparent that the human race was here to stay. Eventually only the fearsome djinns posed a real threat to the human race. They defeated the humans in several important battles using their fearsome magic and their skill with the scimitar. However, just when the situation appeared to be most dire Daraman, the revered human prophet, entered the scene and helped to neutralise the djinn threat in a way nobody had foreseen.
The Chronicles of Daraman
That was the time when Daraman was captured by the djinns while he was fasting and meditating in the desert. They put him in heavy chains and brought him before Gabel's throne. There the old man stood, all haggard and torn, amidst the splendour of the djnns' court. And the djinns started teasing and tormenting the human with a thousand malicious tricks, trying to strike terror in his heart. But frail and crippled though he was, Daraman never so much as flinched under the pain, and his will could not be broken. Finally Malor, who was the most vicious and godless of the djinn, lost his patience and raised his hand to strike the final blow. But lo!, just when his deadly scimitar was about to strike the prisoner down Gabel's voice thundered through the hall, ordering Malor to stop. And though mighty Malor trembled with anger and spite, he did not dare challenge his king's authority.
Gabel was curious about the strange human who did not seem to know pain or fear. He approached him and asked him if he did not feel any pain. Daraman answered that the pain of the body was nothing compared to the pain of the soul. So Gabel asked Daraman if he was not afraid. And the prophet said the famous words: "The fear of death is but a trifle compared to the fear of life." So Gabel, who was more and more intrigued by the human, asked him whether he did not care at all about his life? Daraman just looked into the mighty djinn king's eyes, and a brief smile shone on his lips. And after a long pause he spoke thus: "I am an old man and I have but little to lose, mylord. But your race has much to gain, for it lives in darkness." When he said those words many djinns were outraged by the human's apparent lack of respect. And if Gabel had not stopped them the prophet would have been killed on spot.
And so it came to pass that Gabel, the mighty king of the djinns, took interest in Daraman. Here was something that he, who had seen so many things, could simply not understand, and he was determined to find out more about it. In the beginning he was still convinced that the prophet, like all other humans, was driven by a secret weakness, and he tried to use many other temptations to test the prophet. He clad the old man in silk and offered him a thousand gifts. But Daraman was as unimpressed by the djinns' fabulous wealth as he had been unimpressed by their tortures, and he politely rejected all gifts. And when Gabel finally asked him if he did not appreciate his gifts Daraman answered "Mylord, I am an old man who has little use for pretty baubles. And truly I have never valued a thing that could be bought for gold." It was then that Gabel realised that Daraman was indeed a holy man.
So it came to pass that Daraman, who had come to the djinns' court, became the king's guest and confidant. And even though many djinns disdained their king's new favourite Gabel increasingly sought Daraman's company. Every day they went to the Gabel's personal garden and talked for many hours. It turned out that Gabel, the mighty djinn king who had been the terror of the world for such a long time, was plagued by a terrible feeling inner void, and Daraman's infinite spiritual strength became a source of joy and of redemption for him. And so, day by day and week by week, their relationship slowly changed from one between prisoner and a king to one between a master and his disciple.
Gabel told Daraman of the visions and dreams that haunted him and asked Daraman for advice. So Daraman asked him to open up his soul for him to see. And Gabel opened his heart and soul to him. When Daraman had seen deep into Gabel's soul he understood the pain and the confusion that lay hidden deep inside it, and he wept bitter tears of pity for Gabel and for the whole of his race, for he saw that the djinn were a forlorn race that had been cast away by its creator. So full of divine compassion were his tears that they froze into immaculate gemstones of pure blue crystal as soon as they left his eyes. It is said that that springs of clear freshwater sprang forth from the earth wherever one of them hit the ground.
And finally he spoke to Gabel: "Alas! Truly thy race hath suffered! But there is hope, mylord, hope even for your race that has been deserted by its reckless creator!" And he went on to teach him the ways of abjuration and of enlightenment. And Gabel listened and learned, and when he saw the wisdom in Daraman's words he decided to renounce the old ways. And soon many others of his race embraced the holy words and became proselytes of Daraman's creed.
Djinn Wars
For a long time Malor had plotted and schemed in secrecy, using promises and threats to recruit followers and to form alliances. Many djinn refused to betray Gabel, but the majority of the strongest djinn warriors rallied to his cause, and since Malor had been plotting his insurrection for a long time the rebels were well-prepared. When Malor finally gave the signal his minions attacked the palace in full force, planning to kill Gabel swiftly. Their attack was deadly effective, and the palace guards were quickly overwhelmed. However, Gabel, who had received warning about the conspiracy was saved in time by his trusted aide and friend Fa'hradin. He managed to flee in the darkness, and that very night he started to gather his troops in order to take revenge on the usurper. Malor, on the other hand, had to acknowledge that his plan to get rid of Gabel quickly had failed. And he ordered his followers to prepare for a long-term military engagement. Neither he nor Gabel realised then that this was the starting point for a war that would last for eons.
The war took a long time to unfold. Both Malor and Gabel tried to win over as many followers as they could, and the need to take a choice war weighed heavily on many a djinn's conscience. Still, few of them managed to remain neutral in this terrible war, and so a deep rift opened within the djnn race. Families were torn apart as children turned against their parents and brother fought brother. Worst of all, it soon turned out that both sides were roughly equal in strength, so that even though a number of vicious battles ensued it become more and more apparent that victory could not be won easily in this war. In fact, it appeared more and more likely that even if one of the sides could win it, it would so be crippled by the endeavour that the very existence of the djinn race would be threatened. Still the war raged on relentlessly. And the mutual hatred between the two fractions, who began to call themselves by the distinct names of Marid and Efreet, increased with every battle that was fought.
At last, Malor prepared for a decisive strike. He sent a messenger to Gabel and challenged him to a personal duel. Gabel, who was prepared to do anything to stop the fratricidal war, accepted the challenge. The enemies agreed to meet in the fertile plains of Kha'labal. There they stood, face to face, the old king and the usurper, and so did their armies, because neither of two was gullible or foolish enough to come on his own. It was the greatest gathering of djinns in recorded history.
Eventually Gabel stepped forwarded to meet his opponent. This was the moment Malor, who had never intended to fight honourably, had been waiting for. All of a sudden the earth opened in a thousand places, and hordes of vicious undead attacked the Gabel and his army. For Malor had secretly formed an alliance with the dreaded necromancers of Drefia and it was them who controlled the undead hordes that fought for him. Faced with an overwhelming enemy, Gabel and his army turned to flee.
A number of Marid was caught and slaughtered on the spot, but much to Malor's disappointment the majority of Gabel's troops managed to escape southwards in what appeared to be a well-planned strategic withdrawal. And how much greater was his surprise to find that the Marid fled to the city of Ankrahmun where they apparently were expected! It was then that he realised that Gabel had suspected a ruse all along, and that he had prepared a counterstrategy. Malor immediately ordered his troops to abandon pursuit, but it was too late. The undead marched against Ankrahmun with all the determination of a mindless killing machine, and the Efreet, blinded by rage, did not lag behind, only to be met by ceaseless barrages of arrows and catapult stones. A cataclysmic battle ensued.
Wave after wave of undead and Efreet stormed against Ankrahmun, and wave after wave broke at the huge fortifications of the ancient city. Both the Marid and the humans were well-prepared for this battle, and even though Malor's army wreaked havoc they never yielded.
At last even Baa'leal, who led the Efreet in battle, had to admit that the Marid and their despised human allies fought valiantly. However, despite the heavy losses he was determined to decide the war there and now. He summoned the most powerful Efreet wizards and ordered them to unleash a huge column of magic fire onto Ankrahmun in order to render the city and all those in it to cinders. The Efreet wizards' followed his orders and soon a wall of devastating fire rose up to the sky. However, when they tried to move it onto Ankrahmun they soon realised that it did not move into the desired direction. The Marid had soon seen through Baa'leals plan, and Fa'hradin and his fellow Marid mages used their own magic to turn the devastating flames against their creators. A fierce battle of wills ensued between the mages from both sides, and the whole battle came to a halt when the two armies watched in horrified fascination as the terrible pile of flames wandered seemingly undecided to and fro. But then, all of a sudden, the pile made a sudden leap to the north, and within seconds those who had summoned it from the sky were reduced to smouldering ashes. That was the turning point of the great battle.
The fire, now entirely out of control, turned northwards, driven by a gently breeze coming from the south. Its devastating flames fed on plants and animals alike, and as the inferno slowly spread to the north the Kha'labal was scorched and marred forever by the magical flame.
Thus, the great battle was won by the allied armies of the Marid and the humans. However, for the winners there was little left to feel triumphant about. The losses had been great on both sides, and the Kha'labal, that beautiful garden given to the humans by the gods, had been turned into a barren, hostile desert. Also, the destruction cause the fire had allowed many Efreet to escape, so it seemed unlikely that the war would end now. However, for the time being Malor and his troops were much too weak to pose a serious military threat, so Gabel decided to abandon pursue. Instead he ordered that his army should move northwards towards Drefia. It seemed time to settle old scores.
After the disastrous battle of Ankrahmun Drefia's necromancers knew the end was near. The Marid would never forgive them their treachery, and this would be a battle the necromancers could not win - after all, many of them had already perished in the battle of Ankrahmun, and their Efreet allies could provide no assistance. So the necromancers prepared for the inevitable with the defiant cynicism of those who have been familiar with death all their lives, performing evil rituals and indulging in morbid orgies.
Finally, the end came swifter than they expected. Unwilling to take any risks in the unpredictable halls and passageways of Drefia's dungeons, the Marid performed a fearsome ritual. The tortured earth underneath Drefia started moving like a giant whirlpool, and slowly the unholy city was pulled inside the maelstrom. Within half an hour it was gone completely, and all but the highest buildings were completely covered by sand and by rubble. None of its inhabitants have ever been seen again, but rumour has it that deep beneath the surface the unholy city is still intact, brooding like a vengeful animal in its prison.
Even though many djinns had lost their lives during the fateful battle of Ankrahmun, the war was still undecided. Malor had lost many of his bravest warriors, but so had Gabel, and they both knew that another epic battle like that would bring the whole djinn race to the brink of destruction. In his desperation, Gabel turned to his trusted friend Fa'Hradin for advice. The old djinn suggested using a trick to eliminate Malor. Without their leader, he reasoned, the Efreet would end the rebellion. Gabel, who wanted to avoid further bloodshed, agreed. And so it came to pass that the magic lamp was created and, by means that are unknown to this very day, secretly placed in Malor's private chamber. The mighty Efreet never had a chance. When he went to sleep in what he thought was his private lamp he was trapped inside the lamp, which was soon enough smuggled out of Mal'Ouquah, the Efreets' fortress, and brought back to the Marid. Fa'hradin's trick had worked - Malor was Gabel's prisoner.
With Malor imprisoned, many Marid hoped that peace would finally come. Gabel immediately contacted the Efreet to let them know their leader was his prisoner, but his hopes that the rebellion would collapse without Malor were disappointed. The Efreet hated their Marid cousins too much to yield, and so the war continued. Nonetheless, both sides tried to avoid open conflicts, so there was next to no combat action for a long, long time. In fact, both the Marid and the Efreet planned to wait until their ranks would be replenished. But the losses they had suffered were great, and the djinns are not a fertile race. Century upon century passed and still their numbers had increased little. And while elsewhere the human race rose to power, building beautiful cities and establishing powerful empires, the djnn lived quiet in their remote fortresses. Malor, however, remained imprisoned in Fa'hradin's lamp, oblivious to the strange land his guardians had taken him.
Gabel had decided to hide Fa'hradin's lamp and its powerful prisoner in a forlorn place far to the north because he thought it would be safer there than in Ashta'daramai, his own fortress. Little did he know that these were very the lands where many centuries later a race of goblinoid barbarians called the orcs chose to erect a mighty fortress. One fateful day the lamp was found and brought to the orc king. It did not take the king's shamans long to work out that a mighty spirit was caught in the lamp, and soon enough the reckless king released the mighty djinn that had lain dormant for so many centuries. Little is known about what happened next, but even though to this day the orcs claim their king is still alive there are no credible witnesses who confirm that they have seen the orc king ever since. Malor, however, freely roams the world again, and many scholars agree that he will try every trick in the book to rekindle the fire of the djinn war.
TLDR; The Story So Far
The Gods create Kha'labal, known now as the continent of Darama, and gift it to the recently made-humans. The first settlers, named the Founders, lived in peace and harmony for several years. Soon after however, the humans are confronted with several problems such as orcs and undead. Some humans fell prey to the shadows and even began practicing with undead magic and formed a city of necromancers towards the north, known as Drefia.
When the Gods departed the world however, they did not leave humans completely alone. Banor, the first human, was an excellent leader with superhuman power and tactical master. He gave humans strength to defend themselves, and even fortified the city of Ankrahmun. On the other hand Daraman, considered by many as the gods' prophet, gave his fellow humans spiritual and ethical virtues. Humans managed to overcome many challenges and defeated the orcs that threatened them. They had become effective survivors, and eventually only the Djinn were a real threat. The Djinn who would have annihilated the humans had nothing happened, but luckily for the humans something did.
Daraman was captured during one of his trips in the desert. He was taken before the Djinn leader, Gabel. The Djinn tormented Daraman, but he never so much as flinched. This angered Malor, one of the cruelest Djinn, and he was just about to kill Daraman when Gabel ordered him to stop. Gabel asked Daraman if he felt any pain, and Daraman answered that the pain of the body was nothing compared to the pain of the soul. This caught Gabel's attention and they continued to talk for a long time, until eventually Daraman was no longer actually Gabel's prisoner but his mentor.
Malor, unhappy with Gabel's leadership, began to plot a coup. Eventually he managed to gather enough supporters and elaborated a plan to get rid of Gabel quickly. The plan failed however, for Gabel had caught word of it and managed to escape before he was killed. This was the beginning of the Djinn War between the Marid, lead by Gabel, and the Efreet, lead by Malor.
Many years later, one of the greatest battles between the two factions took place. They met in the fields of Kha'labal for a battle and just as it was about to begin, hoards of undead emerged from underneath the ground. It was a trap set by the Efreet, who had made a pact with the necromancers of Drefia. The necromancers had also set a massive fire spell and were directing it towards the Marid, but they caught on early and their wizards and mages began counter directing it. After hours of focused magic, both side's casters began to weaken and eventually they lost all control over the raging fire in the sky. The fire crashed in to Kha'labal, and set everything ablaze, turning the beautiful and lush continent into a dry hot desert that we know today.
The Marid won the battle, a sour victory. With the Efreet weakened they decided to crush the necromancers first, destroying Drefia and forcing the survivors underground. Shortly after, the Marid managed to trap Malor in a lamp. Gabel took the land and hit it in a distant land, so it could never be found. Little did Gabel know that orcs would soon conquer that land and build a kingdom there. The orc king found the lamp and released Malor. In rage, Malor cast a spell on the king, changing his appearance.
Malor returned to lead the Efreet, and the war still continues today. No matter what side you chose to support, your goal is still the same; eliminate the other's leader.
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