Kender History

In 3050 PC a twist of fate sent the fabled Graystone falling from the sky. This artifact, lost by the Gods, traversed the width and breadth of Krynn spreading Wild Magic, creating new races, and leaving behind a trail of magic that reshaped the people and face of the world. One year later the "Smiths" (also known as gnomes) found the Graystone trapped by a ruler named Gargath that claimed the stone was now his and hired ogres to defend it. But the Smith's had been ordered by the God Reorx to bring the stone back to him. So the Smith's, and the elves who were fascinated by this new Wild Magic, laid siege to the Gargath's keep in an attempt to retrieve the artifact. During the battle the Graystone escaped showering the combatants with a pure white light that transformed some of those present into their true nature. Thus came about the races of the Goblins, Minotaurs, Kender, and Dwarves.

Some people argue that the term kender civilization is an oxymoron. Despite this opinion there are two major kender civilizations on the continent of Ansalon. The oldest was established by Balif. The kender settled the land just east of Silvanesti in 3043 P.C. (pre- Cataclysm). They called their nation and their city Bailfor. Three other small kender cities also sprang up from this time until the Cataclysm but the names were lost in the passage of time, much like the cities.

Around the year 2600 P.C. The second kender nation called Hylo was founded in the Sentinel Mountains north of Ergoth. This settlement arose when an entire clan of kender explored and "borrowed" the first floating citadel, which had been created by a band of mages as a prototype for the Towers of High Sorcery. The floating castle was carried by prevailing winds to the northwest until it crashed into the ridge of the Sentinels. The kender named their new land Hylo after its citadel, which was high then low, after it's high mountains and low plains

By 2500 P.C., when the citadel was engulfed in vines and new forest, enough kender had precipitated nearby to create a city. In 2450 P.C., Ergoth "conquered" Hylo; human armies surrounded the land and claimed it a subjugated province of Ergoth. The kender nation of Hylo exhibited none of Ergoth's concern for conquest and destiny. As such the kender shrugged and went about there business. When Ergoth instated a stiff tax of 20% of all transactions, the confused kender complied. After 50 years of collecting smooth stones and bits of phosphorescent moss from the kender, the empire abandoned taxation of its northern province. In 1799 P.C. the Rose Rebellion began as nations of eastern Ergoth rebelled against the exploitation of the Ergothean king, and in 1791 P.C. the fall of Ergoth liberated Hylo. The kender hardly noticed the change.

From 1100 - 800 P.C. the nation of Istar became a dominant force in trade. Istarian trade standards spread through out the world. It became the major supplier of tools and arts, and acting as brokers for grain, woods, and spices for the rest of the nations. In 850 P.C., in an attempt to better control international trade, Istar imposed trade standards and fair price standards. These regulations were poorly received by the kender of Bailfor to their south. The kender protested the end of bartering and haggling and refused to obey the strictly trade tariffs. In retaliation, they began to manipulate various trade markets, buying up all supplies to raise demand (and prices), then dumping their excesses onto the market to drop prices disastrously. The Kender Trade Wars nearly brought Istar to its financial knees, and it drove many merchant houses to bankruptcy.

In a desperate effort to save their economy, Istar agreed to the creation of a free market, with a special tariff exemption for kender (the so-called "Kender Tax"). In return, kender agreed to cease their market manipulations. This pact became known as the Kendermeld.

The Cataclysm struck Hylo hard. All the kender settlements along the bay were swept under by tidal waves and the city itself became a port town. The eastern half of the nation disappeared and the western half clung to the newly formed isle of Northern Ergoth.

The Cataclysm also decimated the land of Bailfor, turning it into a deserted waste. The kender left their homeland to barbaric desert nomads and migrated north. They founded the small forest city of Kendermore on the edge of a human ruin (now called simply "the Ruins" by the kender who explore it). Some kender believe the Ruins are the remains of one of the missing Towers of High Sorcery.

After the Cataclysm, many kender refused to return to settled life, preferring to wander. In the year 352 A.C. the kender Kronin Thistleknot killed a Dragon Highlord while trying to escape from him. This hunter-turned-warrior organized the resistance to the dragon army threat.

The next 30 years past uneventfully for the kender civilzations, until the Summer of Chaos. Tahksis created a new order of knights, led by Arikan son of Arakis, and tried once again to take over Ansalon. During the second War of The Lance Kendermore did not fall without a fight, due mainly to the kender's cunning war leader, Paxina, the daughter of Kronin Thistleknot, a hero of the First DragonLance Wars. Paxina "Stinging" Thistleknot had heard that Lord Ariakan had deemed the kender "Worthless nuisances" and planned to have all kender rounded up and put to death. Paxina announced this to her people, hoping to rally them to battle. She recieved shrugs, yawns, and "So what else is new?" in return.

Something else was needed to stir the kender's blood. Paxina thought the matter over, then started a rumor that the dark knights were coming to loot Kendermore, steal all the kender's most prized possesions.

This did the trick.

Appalled, the kender put up such a stiff resistance that even though he crushed them, they managed to win Ariakan's admiration. He determined that the kender might prove useful after all, if they could be convinced to serve the Dark Queen. Thus Kendermore survived, much to the disgruntalment of those knight's forced to serve there.

On the other hand, Hylo, not being on the mainland managed to stay out of the war.

Tasslehoff Burrfoot, hero of the first War of the Lance, dies saving the world from certain desruction by wounding Chaos, the father of all the gods. But it was at a price, the gods were given a choice to leave Krynn or watch it be destroyed. The gods chose to leave, and Krynn was left with out clerics or magic. This was known as the second Cataclysm. Tasslehoff Burrfoot is buried in the Last Heroes' Tomb in Solace. A structure created to honor the people who had died in the Second Cataclsym.

In the year 3 S.C. About three years after what was now being called the "Chaos War", a massive red dragon utterly destroys Kendermore. For the first time in their lives the kender learn of true fear. These kender are known as "afflicted kender" and the kender of Hylo are the "true kender". Riverwind a hero of the first War of the Lance, and his two daughters try to help the kender by leading the kender into attacks on the dragon, but it cannot be defeated. After Riverwind and his daughter Brightdawn are slain in one of the attacks, his other daughter Moonsong leads the kender on a mass flight from Kendermore and Bailfor.

The following year refugees of the Choas war and the afflicted kender of kendermore began to fill the city with most of the refugees settling into small villages around the main city. The kender of Hylo didn't mind of course, but they were a little upset when Bille Juniper, an afflicted kender, took over as the ruler of Hylo, replacing Fallana Windseed. Afterall the Windseed family had been ruling for about seventeen years, a personal best as far as kender history goes.