History

**A Brief Chronology of the Vigart and Airth and Underdark, known collectively as the World:**

**Age of Creation** (AC)

Approximately 20,000 years ago - 16910 years ago

(3 thousand years)

This is the earliest period to which any diviner or cleric has been able to look back. Either the World was created by the Gods, or the World was created and the Gods appeared. Many religions claim that their individual patron god was the prime mover and creator. The accuracy of any of these accounts is in dispute, as the accounts vary and contradict each other. What is known for sure is that the world has multiple levels, and from the beginning has been connected to the four elemental planes. Magic has always been part of the universe, with the negative and positive planes lying beyond the reach of mortals.

A number of races and creatures were created by different patron Gods.

The Elves created different cultures and communities in the different islands on which they found themselves, and while they all worshiped the moon god Thalasian they had many differences in culture. They grew strong, learned music, art, magic and attempted to survive against their main rivals in the sky, the early dragons.

The Dwarven God Vatorg created the dwarves, and allowed them to mine and create under the ground for generations, completely unaware of the surface. For the first thousand years no dwarf had seen the sun, and expected the world to be dirt, earth, ore and gems all the way through.

The Dragons were created by the god Thaurus, and the DracoLords dominated every domain they were in. Within a few hundred years the Dracolords were killed by their spawn, who in turn spawned their own subraces; drakes, lizardmen and lowly kobolds.

Underwater ancient races existed, or so they claim, and clashed with the dragons and their ilk. The aboleths claim to predate all of the races and the gods, but there is no way to substantiate those claims. Their initial conflicts with the dragons lead to the creation of many water monsters and sea creatures which have died off or retreated to the depths.

**Age of Empires** (AE) Approximately 16909 years ago to 13014 years ago

(4 thousand years)

This is the term most humans scribes refer to the ancient civilizations and the times in which they ruled, and expanded.

The Astartes were the humans who were all created by the God Ausbaldis, or alternatively who were brought up to the Airth from smaller tribes that were created by Vatolis. They weaved structures out of mana, minerals and elemental energies to create enormous cities and wonders. They prospered and expanded to take nearby islands. They traded and left their mark on other human colonies or settlements, sharing knowledge of magic and power. Every human culture has some Astartes blood, and groups traded both members and goods to the hub of human civilization.

There are teleportation hubs that still remain on many corners of the surface of the world, with forgotten word and arcane keys.

The rise of the Astartes Empire of Humans, and subsequent colonies, and their rivals the Ushabti, left a permanent mark on the world. Both expanded and created immense innovation and cities, leaving lasting effects on later societies in terms of aspiration, architecture, philosophy,

ecology, and crypto-zoology. Ushabti and Astartes innovated and expanded so rapidly that they rivaled each other for control over the planet, which started an arms race and eventually lead to the spread of hybridized monsters as weapons of war. In the ensuing conflict both civilizations were utterly destroyed.

Dwarves began small trading interests with small human communities, until the war escalated. Taighaglyp ascended to Godhood, by tricking Tragos into sponsoring him and took the goblins into a war with the dwarves, after he twisted them.

The elves traded and engaged positively with the Astartes as peers, but counselled them against war, until the elves began to be caught in the crossfire. They were genuinely shocked by the fall of the Astartes.

In the land that would become Urkfeld, a lone monk named Tse Rori, with no divine heritage sought to enlighten himself, and through self discovery gathered a following of like-minded enlightenment seekers who would form the cultural base of what would become the Urkfeld common culture. He then ascended to godhood.

**Age of Monsters (**AM) Approximately 13,000 years ago - (4 thousand years)

The age of monsters followed the fall of the Ushabti and the more literal fall of the Astartes Islands. Ausbaldris fell, preventing the destruction of the world, and Lady Solarion ascended in his place. Lamia Shandu ascended with the destruction of her people, and Ragnadron was released into the world. Giants and monsters emerged and terrorized surface dwellers, survivors and colonists. The gnolls appeared as a species on record. Urkfeld was founded as was the Kalandar protectorate, each using different means to protect themselves from the unleashed horrors.

The elves isolated themselves, and engaged in civil wars, trying to determine which conception of elven culture was the most honoring to their gods and their purpose. What started as dozens of tribes and communities coalesced into two broad categories: the Gold and Silver elves, each of whom had minor cultural differences. During this time, Mistress Kisadi ascended to godhood.

The dwarves referred to this as the great collapse, and the Age of War. The collapse of massive tunnels and the release of goblins into their tunnels turned the industry-oriented dwarves into a militaristic culture. As they tried to hold back the tide they became more traditional and stifling.

During this age the orcs emerged near urkfeld and, unbeknownst to the other races of man, the massive continent that would become the mongrel nation.

**The Age of Heroes (AH)**

Approximately 9000 years ago (4000 years)

In year AM 4021, Grumsh, the giant king, was destroyed at the hands of Thalius Dragonbourne, Helios Lightbringer, Challus the Hammer, and their compatriots. The age of heroes was the time when humans and their allies pushed back, expanded or created many of the modern kingdoms that exist now. Braydon The Bold ascended to Godhood, through drunken luck.

The Stori nation was founded and grew into an empire, conquering nearby communities. Their ruling sister and brother; Vesura and Zur-Kythos ascended to Godhood albeit in different directions on the moral scale.

Every culture had its time of exploration, heroes and legends that emerged during this era. Dwarves broke through the crust and built keeps and castles kilometres high from their bases underground. Elves grew in power and wisdom creating powerful magicks and eternal art on their floating palaces.

**Age of Strife (AS)**

Approximately 5000 years ago (2000 years)

As human kingdoms expanded and with diminishing monstrous enemies, the human empires and nations warred with each other. Many nations were conquered or obliterated as the expanding human empires lusted for more control over their surrounding regions. The elves expanded as well, colonizing New Aeserit in the Mongrel Nation, and clashing with the orc tribes therein. They also grew into continents that were barely inhabited by tribal humans like the Hinterland. Dwarves likewise traded with humans and sought to expand to areas not inhabited by humans. Warlords, sorcerers and emperors toyed with lives of every variety of people.

An especially powerful series of spells all but destroyed the Kalandar nation, broke the hold of the Stori over that region, and physically shattered the continent. At that point the dwarves and elves knew they had seen enough and sought to influence humanity more forcefully.

**Age of Enlightenment/Age of Oppression (AEl/AO)**

Started about 3000 years ago and lasted until the Final Battle of the "Final War" (53 years ago)

After the elven colony of New Aeserit revoked rulership of the silver elves, both the silver and the gold elves sought to influence humanity away from violence and strife via every means at their disposal including subterfuge, magical control and force if need be.

The dwarven kingdom likewise expanded and took control of disparate and conflicted human kingdoms, slowly placing their own militaristic control over the humans.

The mongrel nation separated itself from the other countries and formed its own confederacy, though not without contention. The slaver war 500 years ago granted a permanent place of residence to the orcish minority left during the expansion of the other colonies. It disallowed the continuation of slavery or feudal serfdom as perpetuated by other kingdoms, and finally usurped the necromancer that held power in Augsdale, disallowing the ownership of souls via necromancy.

The arms race and the differing philosophies of the dwarves and elves meant that escalating tension between the two races were bound to get worse. Each saw the human kingdoms they controlled in a sense of benevolent protection and ownership. But those human kingdoms had hostilities all their own, and after everything was contained or “protected” by one side or another, the cauldron was set to bubble over.

When Stori-Reunion extremists set fireballs loose on the “neutral” city of Thracia, killing an elven prince in dwarven territory, escalation and sabre rattling led to full out war between the two sides and their proxy nations. The goblins saw an opportunity to get one over on their rivals and attacked the dwarves. The war lasted 104 years, and destroyed ⅔ of the dwarven empire, and ¾ of the elven population. As the magical and combative effects spiraled out of control, every nation was brought into the conflict, until something caused the dwarven command and structures to collapse. Some claim it was betrayal by the other peoples living in the underground dwarven communities. Others claim that the goblins or the elves unleashed evil magicks on them. But a half century after the 100-years war, the world remains in ruins -- rivalries, and racial enmities and ambitions destroyed a generation of men, elves, dwarves, orcs and their kin, and most peoples still view each other with mistrust. Ancient artifacts and wisdom and civilization was lost, seemingly forever. The most devastated were the goblins and orcs (but they live in squalor anyway), the silver elves and the dwarves.

The Silver elves (the most arrogant of their species-now at a quarter of their previous population) extracted massive ransom from the devastated dwarves (who had to leave 3 quarters of their previously vast underground kingdom). The least hit were the golden elves kingdom (more trade oriented, and more willing to take in immigrants) and the mongrel nation (a nation made up of men, half orcs, half elves and others who wish to live on the frontier away from any cruel aristocracy).

Now empires lie desolate, shadows of their former selves. Many are still trying to drag themselves up from the devastation of the war, meanwhile two nations have come up. The mongrel nation, having brought back wealth, magical innovation and governance techniques from the empires has started to centralize its formerly freedom loving culture. As well, a mageocracy (The Aes Magisterium) has emerged on a floating island, entirely governed by the most magically powerful, and claiming to be inheritors of the Astartes.