The War of Opposition

The War of Opposition? Sure, I remember that. Fun times. A pity it was stopped so soon. I had a brilliant plan, just waiting for the right moment. But Eletha wants what Eletha wants. And what she wants, she gets. Always. 

The War of Opposition is a holy war between the church of Bahamut and the church of Bane, which lasted from 5779 to 5784.

To this day, it is still unclear, at least to those outside the two churches, what precipitated the war. Most sages think that it was something that happened elsewhere, in another part of the world, or perhaps in Heaven or Hell, that forced the hand of the churches. Contrary to popular opinion, it was actually Bahamut that officially instigated the war, declaring holy war against Bane.

For two years, the "war" was kept out of the cities and limited to fairly small skirmishes. Quite a few died, but only devout followers of the two churches. The situation in the Seven Army Nation was tense, but not untenable.

However that changed in 5781, and the first big - and perhaps the greatest - casualty of the war was the Temple of Bane in Ironville. For years, both gods had dominated the city life. Since the war had been announced, Ironville had been split down the middle, literally, until the church of Bahamut broke the deadlock. For months, they smuggled loyal soldiers and mercenaries into Ironville, in very small group so that no one would notice. When they had enough men, they attacked the temple of Bane. The temple, which had stood since before the Second Demon War, was sacked and all the Bane clerics were executed on the temple grounds.

From there, the war spread and swept through the Seven Army Nation. Old allies suddenly found themselves on opposite sides of the war, and the warlords were incapable of stopping the churches.

At some point, the war ceased to be about Bahamut and Bane, at least for the common man. It became an ideological fight of good vs evil, as more and more began to take sides.

Fast forwards to the end, in 5784. The Seven Army Nation was on the brink of complete and total war, the fragile alliance buckling beneath the pressure for the warlords to declare for one of the two churches.

Out of her wood came Eletha Moonray once again, this time to meet with the two high priests and a last attempt to stop the war. They met in Ironville, in the ruins of the Bane temple. Details of the meeting are sketchy, but the result is not. The war was stopped, documents were signed and sealed and a lot of gold changed hands between the churches. Also several temples were destroyed and consequently a lot of followers had to move their home. This is why no city or town in the Seven Army Nation holds both a church of Bane and Bahamut. Whether it was a demand of Eletha or some elaborate part of the deal struck, not many know for sure.