Black Horde

The Black Horde was an orc horde that assaulted the Sword Coast in the Year of the Black Horde, 1235 DR. It was the largest orc horde in the history of Faerûn by the late 14 century DR. The Black Horde besieged countless settlements in the North and threatened kingdoms far south of it as well.

History
The Black Horde erupted out of the North in 1235 DR and marched south along the Sword Coast and through Amn, Tethyr, and Calimshan. It brought war and laid siege to numerous settlements in these lands. Many thousands of them surged over the plains and hills of the south. Having rarely been seen south of the Far Hills and Reaching Wood, and even then only alone or in pairs, the appearance of an orc horde came as a shock to the nations of the Shining Sea. The armies and adventurers there used to combating goblins could barely withstand the orcs' numbers and basic ferocity. Moreover, the orcs came in the middle of summer, when many leaders were away at their summer villas in the Marching Mountains.

In the North, while Silverymoon was under siege by the Black Horde orcs, Warlord Khallos Shieldsunder seized control of the city. Khallos underestimated the orc threat, and was killed in battle with them and the city walls were breached for the first time in six centuries. But the new Spellguard held the city under siege for three months. During this, almost unnoticed, rule of the city was usurped in turn by the mage Shallos Ethenfrost. Finally, in the Battle of Tumbleskulls, a Harper army commanded by Alustriel and Storm Silverhand, aided unexpectedly by the archmage Tulrun of the Tent, defeated the besieging orcs and liberated the city.

In Amn, King Belhinn II was killed by the Black Horde orcs. Amnian forces took many orc prisoners of war, brought them to Purskul, and put them to work as slaves in agriculture and stoneworking. Eventually, many gained their freedom and settled in the area, giving rise to Purskul's sizeable half-orc population.

In Tethyr, four orc armies arrived on the Plains of Clovis by Midsummer and local villagers panicked. The armies of King Haedrak II routed the orcs and drove them out of western Tethyr; the surviving orcs escaped into the Kuldin Peaks, Shilmista, the Forest of Mir and other places, and into the ruins of Shoonach and Mamlukkar, where they remained as undead.

In Calimshan, orcs of the Black Horde killed the Syl-Pasha of Calimport and at least 43 key influential and underworld figures of the realm. This would mark the end of the Eighth Age of Calimshan.

The Horde also laid siege to Waterdeep, in a battle called the Siege of Waterdeep. During it, orcs infiltrated the city and possibly stole the ettin axe of Uruth, an emblem of orc power. Ultimately, the city escaped devastation, thanks to Ahghairon and his generals providing griffons as flying mounts for the army.

The Lords' Alliance sent the Company of the Crescent Blade, the militia of Baldur's Gate, led by Eldrith the Betrayer. Despite being outnumbered, Eldrith and her group attacked and scattered the horde. However, looking to deal a fateful blow on the horde to ensure it never threatened Baldur's Gate again, as it would have attacked Baldur's Gate after Waterdeep, she defied the Grand Duke's orders and fought the horde for a second time. The horde, however, fought viciously and dealt Eldrith her first defeat, an action that would lead to the construction of the Onyx Tower.

The Knights of the Shield mercantile consortium aided in the defeat of the Black Horde.