The Slaughter of the Circle

The death of Janos Audron, while a short-term victory for the Sarafan, would rapidly spell doom for their entire order. Before the Ancients had been turned upon and brought to near-extinction, they had taken steps to insure the continuation of their blood and thus the preservation of the Pillars. The first human to be transfused with Ancient blood, the first vampire, was a blacksmith called Vorador. Even before the Hylden curse had brought sterility upon the Ancients, Vorador had been offered the Ancient blood. In return for forging a powerful weapon to be used by a prophesied Ancient champion, Vorador was given the blood of Janos Audron and became the world's first vampire.

A reclusive and cynical individual, Vorador lived out his immortal days in a swamp nestled deep within the black forest, surrounded by hazards deadly to human and vampire alike. But when the Sarafan killed Janos, Vorador could not simply sit and watch any longer. Storming the Sarafan Stronghold, Vorador singlehandedly murdered six of the Guardians while leaving their protector, the paladin Malek, disgraced and defeated upon the cobblestones. Simultaneously, in another area of the Stronghold, the six Sarafan warriors who had personally hunted Janos were slaughtered by another of his vengeful pupils. Though three Guardians escaped death and the Circle would replace its fallen Guardians in time, the Sarafan Brotherhood never recovered. In dealing a death blow to the last of the Ancients, they had inadvertently sealed their own bloody demise.