“It was Aeris’s idea initially.  A thousand years before the time of Thar, a dark and twisted evil from the Elder Days came down from the Darkstar and formed the Shadowgrim.  The Dark Ones following the ancient evil named it the Shadow Lord, though I knew it by other names.  After a century and a half, the Shadowgrim spread to cover an area stretching southeast from the Briarwood Forest.  Aeris had no great desire to leave Pel Aesylle, but the growing shadow in the east worried him.  More than most, he knew the evil that grew in the murky fens of the Shadowgrim.  He and Ilnaya founded the Elvenhome Dol Melerith deep in the heart of the Briarwood, which my people called the Dael Shaelyn.  From there, they stood vigilant against the shadow to the east, warding Mankind for centuries against its nameless evil.  Maelryn and Emerre they left behind, in my care, much to their later regret.  The Balance warps all within its reach.”  Kandol Elf Lord