About
The First Blight began in -395 Ancient (800 TE) and lasted nearly two centuries, the longest Blight in history. Many thought it to be the end of days, and entire generations lived and died warring with the darkspawn.
Causes
In -395 Ancient (800 TE), seven Tevinter magisters, each the High Priest to one of the Old Gods, opened a gate into the Golden City with blood magic and entered it physically. According to the Orlesian Chantry, the result was catastrophic; the City turned black, and the mages came back twisted and corrupted, devolving into monsters—the first darkspawn. The taint they carried infected others, turning them into darkspawn as well.