Reaching infinitely into the sky and deep into the earth, the Pillars are a manifestation of the mysterious power that preserves and gives life to the land. The nine ancient Pillars represent the principles of Mind, Dimension, Conflict, Nature, Energy, Time, States, Death, and - at the center, binding them all together - Balance.

The Pillars have stood like silent sentinels over Nosgoth since before the dawn of recorded history, and have perpetually been represented by an oligarchy of sorcerer-guardians known as the Circle of Nine.

Each Guardian is marked from birth, chosen and summoned by the Pillar he is destined to serve for his lifetime. In return, the Guardians are granted longevity and extraordinary powers. The death of a Circle member is inevitably followed by the birth of a successor, whom it is the responsibility of the remaining Guardians to seek out and apprentice into the Circle.

In the decades leading up to Blood Omen, the Circle was infiltrated and Ariel - the Balance Guardian - cruelly murdered. Her assassination, orchestrated by dark forces at work within Nosgoth, sent shockwaves throughout the Circle.

Wracked with grief and tormented by suspicions of treachery, Ariel's beloved Nupraptor - the Guardian of the Mind - descended into madness. In his anguish, he unleashed a telepathic assault upon his fellow Guardians - symbiotically bound, the entire Circle was infected by his madness.