The Great Glacier of the North
Sages predict that eventually (some say in just a few more years), the ice will reach the middle seas, such as Port Balcoth at the southern end of the Arthurian kingdom of Regnum Sapientium.
At the same time, the southern pole is melting. The entire planet apparently experiencing a huge change.
Those sages of lore, that understand such things, claim the world is slowly rolling on it's side.
They say, whether it something so incredulous can be believed, this started because a large comet crashed into the planet centuries ago, beginning to slowly move the planet off it's axis. It has increased momentum.
If these predictions come true, this is going to cause chaos and war across the entire planet as all the climates change, supply sources and routes change, creatures undergo massive migrations, and foliage perish under the radically changing climate.
Elven clerics claim this is the work of the Drow and their deity queen Lolth.
The comet was summoned by servitors of Lolth, the Drow and others. They have been slowly building their forces under the Great Glacier and elsewhere, in their massive underground labyrinths.
They are waiting for the lands to fall to complete chaos. The elves that forced them into living underground to avoid being hunted to extinction.
They have been plotting for many hundreds (thousands?) of years their revenge, and the time is nigh.
In a few more years, the world will be in such chaos, that all the kingdoms will be so weakened from fighting each other, and shortage of resources.
The Drow have been preparing for many years. Saving up resources, and building their forces across the globe (underground).
When everyone has fallen into weakness and chaos, they, and their many allies of darkness, will rise, and attempt to rule all the lands.
The Drow are not just waiting for this however. They are patient. Centuries ago they wiped out the Sea Elves mighty underwater kingdoms. Then they began assaults on the separate wood elf lands. They overreached however, when they attempted to take on one of the High Elf kingdoms.
After decades of the Drow growing their power unchallenged, the growth came quickly to a halt. The high elves and the others turned the tide quickly. Steadily the Drow were forced from land after land, though they went the way of the Romans, salting the lands and destroying all they left behind.
The worst of the battle happened in the northern lands. The Drow had their backs to the great ice (much smaller then), they unleashed most of their dragons to fight the other dragons. Volcanoes erupted, the lands were torn asunder.
During the chaos, the Drow used special portals to escape deep underground, and to the far north, deep under the ice. Under all of the dust, and smoke, and chaos, everyone believed most of the Drow were slain during the battles.
Only in the past decade have rumors of the Drow transformed from just “old wives tales” to frighten children into compliance, and into actual sightings of individual Drow here and there. But no more than that.
Some powerful leaders have had secret meetings with Drow emissaries, and been brought into the greater plan.
One of these leaders is Mordred, son of Morgana Le Fay and Arthur Pendragon.
Mordred has been building forces, and in the last 2 years, has taken many port cities.
His part of the plan is to take over the central ports that will be so critical as the north ices over.
This will cut off escape and trade that will become increasing vital to survival in the northern lands, and give him control of the seas over a vast area.
He has been “ordered” by the Drow and his mother to only take the port cities, but his personal thirst to for blood, to confront his father on the field, and take the crown with his own hands by force of arms has led him to take the invasion north to Camelot and the surrounding lands. The Drow were fairly certain he would do this despite their “suggestions” he wait. So, when it became clear he was going to spread his forces north, they infected his troops with the plague.
