(1289/4) Keslyn was the site of horrific, bloody battle between an alliance of Orel, Eldara, Melinarë, and Alveron against a fanatical army of Rhodara and its mercenary allies.
On the marshy fields of Keslyn, Rhodara was defeated, its armies routed, and the War of Annexation ended. Rhodara’s "Mad-King" Gayorg Gwynnett was slain by the Elf-King Alzeraf in this battle, and Stormbringer; his Elanthir sword, was captured. Keslyn was the final bloody climax in the War of Annexation.
The conflict had been going on for years, and all of the Mad-King's allies and hired mercenaries had long ago deserted him. Thûle had quickly abandoned the war and made peace once the elves of Highforest and the Rynnish kingdom of Alveron joined the war on the side of Eldara.
The battle was especially savage because the retreating Rhodarans had left a bloody trail of pillage, torture, and murder in their wake, and the vengeful Orellians were in no mood to give any quarter. When finally cornered near the Keslyn marshlands by a converging army of 50,000 Eldarans, 25,000 Orellians, 25,000 Rynnish, and 30,000 elves from Melinarë; Gayorg's army of 15,000 orcish mercenaries and 40,000 brutal Rhodaran fanatics fought to the last man.
Unfortunately, King Dareon Arellani of Eldara was killed in this battle after being struck by an arrow leading his mounted troops.
The site of the battle is considered by many local folks to be haunted. Strange lights and sounds are heard there constantly, especially at night. It is said that the dark spirit of King Gayorg prowls the battlefield in search of his lost Elanthir, ever eager to avenge his defeat. The grounds nearby the battlefield are quite marshy and more than 60,000 fallen soldiers were buried there. Even today, their corpses rise visibly to the surface of the murky shallow pools of the Keslyn Marsh.
The battle is considered the bloodiest conflict ever fought on the soil of Gwynne.
