Umladrathos

Umladrathos, whose name means utter despair in Seonian, was the Archaeid responsible for bringing about the Archaeids' war against Humanity. He strove to unite his kind to rival the Greater Pantheon, and to bring Denoadus entirely under their control. He is said to have been defeated at the end of the Third Age by the Wizard Elandrochus.

Many sources, such as the First Book, suggest that Umladrathos was not an Archaeid, but something older. Ancient texts often associated him with Eleven, a little-understood force mentioned in the First Book as originating outside of existence. It is unclear if this is the case, or if Umladrathos's position in history as an enemy of mankind has simply led historians to speculate beyond evidence.

Umladrathos's influence among the Archaeids
At the beginning of the Second Age, when the Archaeids came to Denoadus, they were at first curious and eager to interact with its inhabitants. It is believed by some that it was the influence of Umladrathos, along with their possible latent madness, which drove many of them, such as the Gods of Light and the Gods of Herat, to tyranny and oppression. Early on, Umladrathos was one of the few Archaeids to speak out openly against not only humans and their right to exist, but against the Greater Pantheon itself.

Unanswered Questions
In addition to the mysteries surrounding the nature of Umladrathos, there has been much debate among scholars concerning the events which culminated in the defeat of the Archaeids and the return of the Greater Pantheon. Contemporary accounts tell of a great battle between Elandrochus and Umladrathos within the ruins of Seonamun, during which the Wizard called upon the forces of the Greater Pantheon to banish the Archaeid from existence. Elandrochus himself, however, did not survive to explain exactly how the battle was won; though he appeared victorious, neither he nor Umladrathos was ever seen or heard from again.

The exact timing and nature of the Greater Pantheon's return to Denoadus has also been challenging to pin down. The Heralds of the Pantheon, who commenced the Scouring thereafter, did not stay on the planet to bring the words of their Gods to Mankind as they had during the First Age, and as such the Pantheon's arrival was never explained. This has led some historians to surmise that either Elandrochus had discovered a means to contact the Greater Pantheon and somehow summon them back to Denoadus, or that they were aware of the war and returned to end it of their own accord.

Many have concluded, from these suppositions, that Umladrathos was somehow in league some outside influence, indeed such as the previously mentioned Eleven. They would argue that the Greater Pantheon, in their omniscience, would never have allowed the Archaeids to come to Denoadus, only to discover that their presence was somehow undesirable and subsequently remove them.