Lydian (1st AC - 118) was a superhero warrior, considered to be the most consequential and destructive in the history of Continent, having single-handedly ended the Western Dantrian Civilization. His armies have devastated whole countries and reduced the population of Continent by an estimated 40-60%. His conquests are also responsible for wiping out most of the cultural artifacts of Dantria and neighboring regions, including the Great Dantrian Libraries.

He had the ability to effortlessly animate and control the dead, creating hordes of warriors that would overrun any army. His abilities are thought to have eventually evolved into an even more powerful variant, with undead becoming truly resurrected and no longer dependent on Lydian, to the point that he effectively lost control over the majority of his own army and was in hiding.

Having defeated all superhero warriors in his path, Lydian was eventually killed by Kornad Dvon Trimian in 118. It took many more years to completely destroy the undead armies he spawned.

The ratio of what we actually know about Lydian to the amount of research done on him is very poor. This is due to several factors.

First of all, it is suspected that the true extent of his powers is insufficiently understood. Specifically, a number of historians believe that he was much older and that his abilities provided him with extraordinary longevity. This makes it difficult to place his birth in a narrow range and scientists are forced to consider a very wide time period to search for data.

Second, Lydian's conquests have wiped out such an enormous amount of people and destroyed so many artifacts and historical records that any information about the Western Dantrian Civilization is scarce, let alone information about this one person. Most records come from Zamborana Zambonia, which was mostly untouched by Lydian's conquest due to pure luck and geography.

Third, one of the mysteries about Lydian is that he emerged as a superhero late in his life - definitely when he was an adult - and pretty much out of nowhere. Which meant that his whereabouts before that would have been of little significance to the public. And when he did become known, as he appeared in the middle of Western Dantria with his armies, the only thing that was left of the country he allegedly came from were charred lands, which meant that any traces of his early life had probably been erased.

Finally, due to the nature of his abilities, Lydian required no help. For the majority of his conquests he operated alone. The only time when he seemed to have had a team was at the end of his Western Dantria conquest, when several generals known as the Death Bunch helped him command his undead armies, but none of them survived. Thus, we have little to no insight into Lydian's motivations, thought processes or daily routine.

It is currently a consensus that Lydian was born in the beginning of the 1st century, with estimates placing his date of birth between 10-30. He lived in a province which was referred to as either Wunnah or Duntilla, located in modern-day Narindal.

There are several possible candidates whose names were Lydian and who seemed to match his general description, provided his appearance did not drastically change over the course of his life, although each one of them presents a unique challenge, making all of them equally likely (or equally unlikely) to actually be Lydian, the superhero warrior.

A record of a “boy called Lydian” who had been born to a family of a city mayor, but was then declared as having died from an illness and with no funeral held, seems to hint at the existing and relatively common practice of families deciding to conceal the fact that a superhero warrior is born. This is done for various reasons, including the personal safety of the family and child. However, as child mortality was quite high at the time, the parents might have also been telling the truth.

Information on the conquests is limited and mostly based on the recovered scout messages, official paperwork and scarce survivor accounts of Western Dantria. As the latter is wiped out, most information begins to come from records of Zamborana Zambonia, modern-day Zombon, and Gantolia.

Continent, end of 1st century

Continent, post-Lydian

Lydian's armies appear in Western Dantria in the fall of 114. First attacks are documented by December. By mid-December, several cities have fallen. Matel Tvardn, a superhero warrior of the region, is sent against Lydian, but the news quickly comes back that he has perished. Surviving messages show that Matel's defeat is completely unexpected and this seems to signal alarm for the whole of Western Dantria.

By about March 115 undead armies reach major cities. Scout messages are still not mentioning Lydian, and the invasion is dubbed “Hordes of the Dead”. As the battle for the city of Walneer begins, several messages mention a “King of the Dead” for the first time. The name “Lydian” begins to come up as well.

The Council of Dantria makes a decision to not assume a defense-only strategy, but mount an attack as early as possible. They hope to squash the invasion, which rapidly grows by enlisting the population it kills.

Several superhero warriors gather their troops and march towards Walneer in January. Same month Walneer falls.

In February both armies collide under the walls of the fortified city of Kalchinge. Dantrian army suffers heavy casualties and retreats from the ever growing hordes of the undead into the city. The siege of Kalchinge lasts two weeks, only thanks to the strong abilities of the superhero warriors. The city falls, with all the known superhero warriors of Western Dantria dead.

Lydian's conquest suddenly stops and the undead stay in the ruins of Kalchinge for four months.

The extent of Lydian's abilities is poorly understood.

He definitely had the ability to effortlessly animate and control the dead. His abilities are thought to have eventually evolved into an even more powerful variant, with the undead getting a mind of their own and no longer dependent on Lydian for direction, to the point that he effectively lost control over the majority of his own army and was in hiding for the last several weeks of his life.

Additionally, he seemed to constantly and involuntarily provide additional support to all the undead in the radius of several kilometers, so that once killed, they would get reanimated again, as well as increasing their speed and excitability.

Finally, it is suspected that he was very old and that his abilities somehow provided him with longevity.

One of the greatest mysteries surrounding Lydian's conquests was that all of them were always accompanied by blazing fires. Nothing in our current understanding of Lydian's abilities hints at why that would be the case, and none of the documented descriptions of battles, massacres and marches contain any indication as to what would be producing them. Lydian's posture was always passive and his abilities seemed to be either involuntary or completely mind-based, in which case setting fire was, perhaps, part of the package.

That Lydian is the key to this mystery is evident in the fact that as the undead began ravaging Dantria on their own, the fires stopped. The Last Stand, for instance, featured no fires.