New Player Lore

## Description and Purpose

This document is to present a baseline knowledge for you and your character’s knowledge of the world in the campaign of the Elder Dragon Saga. It is assumed that you possess general knowledge of D&D and its fantasy world. Do note that some aspects (planes, characters, gods,  etc) of traditional D&D lore are portrayed in the campaign, but may have a homebrew twist on them. These notes will be provided to you before your first session’s play and more lore will be portrayed throughout each session. However, it’s up to you to note-keep any other lore outside of this document.

## Elder Dragons

Not much is known about the *Elder Dragons* except that they are the focal point of power for the magical arts. Each dragon governs a school of magic in their own practices and methodologies. The Elder Dragons are considered gods amongst the world’s population. Very few have ever seen an Elder Dragon in person, even fewer involved in the dealings of one. The origin of the Elder Dragons is generally unknown, but believed to be thousands of years old.

**Dragon Names, Titles and School of Magic**

* *Zinnath* the Fading (Divination)
* *Zurrath* the Cunning (Illusion)
* *Dulath* the Harbinger of Death (Necromancy)
* *Beledath* the Corrupted (Transmutation)
* *Vita* the Life Giver (Conjuration)
* *Venia* the Protector (Abjuration)
* *Kaylenith* the Abysmal (Enchantment)
* *Tharos* the Destroyer (Evocation)

## Other Worlds

***Material Plane*** The world your character lives in is called the Material Plane. All other worlds adopt the term “plane” versus “world” to intellectuals and those aware of the other worlds. The campaign has spanned primarily in the material plane, but the party has planar traveled to other planes at times. Most inhabitants of the material plane are not aware that there are other worlds. This has recently began to shift however as a portal to the Elemental Dominion has been conjured, causing much of the material plane to become aware of its existence.

***Elemental Dominion*** A plane dominated by a race called Genasi. Genasi are a race of elementals whose skin resembles that of the four elements: earth, fire, water and wind. Genasi recently began a massive immigration once the portal to the Material Plane opened as they believed the armageddon prophecy of their world’s god, *Gena*, was close to being fulfilled.

***The Fade*** A spiritual world where the souls of the dead linger until they’re beckoned to leave and travel to other worlds such as their god’s heaven or the Underworld. Many arcanists love to study the Fade and the influence it has over the Material Plane, but it is generally discerned to be a dangerous place to travel or study.

***Underworld*** The plane of the dead created by Dulath himself. Most dare not attempt to trek it’s ground as its devil and demon inhabitants terrify even the most courageous people. There’s a location in the world referred to as “Dulath’s Gate” that acts as a bridgeway between the material plane and the Underworld. This plane can be considered the D&D adaptation of christian hell.

## The Dark Age

Your character is birthed into a world era all refer to as the “*Dark Age*”. It has received its name due to a cataclysm by the hands of Tharos during an otherwise peaceful period. The events that sparked the Dark Age are depicted below. During this era, much information regarding the world has been lost such as world geography, artifacts, civilization prosperity and many other aspects. This era emphasizes on the aspect that the world has lost much knowledge and depicts it’s slope to recovering from the cataclysm. Your character’s entire life and likely the lives of many generations of their ancestors have been lived in this period.

**Elder Dragon Events**

**Zinnath** was the first dragon to disappear from the world for an order of mage knights managed to steal his heart thus granting themselves the highest power of Divination. Facing death, Zinnath faded. Destined to remain in the Fade for the rest of his days, forced to watch the world destroy itself and was helpless.

**Tharos** and Zinnath were believed to be aligned with the same ambitions to cultivate humanity to be a prosperous race. Thus after learning of Zinnath's death, Tharos went on a rampage destroying city after city. Kaylenith and Vita attempted to halt his fury, but failed. Theros went on to decimate entire cities and civilizations. The entirety of his rampage caused the cataclysmic destruction of ~25% of the world, leaving a giant scar in the middle of the pangea continent. After Tharos’ rage subsided, he went to slumber in distant mountains. Humanity desired vengeance against the Elder Dragons for wreaking such destruction against them and sought out the praise of the cultic groups that worshipped the various schools of magic to end the Elder Dragon's tyranny. The duration and aftermath of the cataclysm for each elder dragon continues below.

**Zurrath** was the most beloved elder dragon of all, for he brought happiness and entertainment to everyone he met with his illusions. He was the friendliest Elder Dragon that existed. He was so beloved that the populace of his homeland did not banish him when Tharos enacted his rage against the world. Instead, they insisted he transform and live amongst them to avoid Tharos' wrath. Taking the advice of the humans, Zurrath transformed himself into a human and resided amongst the citizens of the land, forever hiding from Tharos' unmatched strength.

**Beledath** quickly learned of the historical events that occurred during Tharos’ rage and soon after humanity had turned against him. He once was beloved by many races and kings until the day humanity looked at the dragons as a threat to their survival. After driving Beledath out from his home amongst the kings of the land, they banished him from the Material Plane to the Underworld. Soon after his banishment, the enchanted cities began to decay for Beledath wasn't around to upkeep the magical aura that transmuted the land into a wondrous place. Death and disease soon followed the blight, for which Dulath reaped with lively enthusiasm.

**Dulath** has never been accepted or worshipped by mankind because he is considered the Grim Reaper. Dulath slumbered in the Underworld except in times of great peril when massive wars or plagues broke out which he absolved the souls of the dead to feed his magic. He would secretly raise armies of the undead in his chamber of the Underworld to rise up against the living to spread blights and plagues. After the kings of the land banished Beledath, Dulath rose to the material plane and brought the world's greatest plague unto the kingdoms of man. Dulath made a new home amongst the land of the kings that banished Beledath and allowed Beledath to live in the Underworld in peace.

**Vita** was the driving force of the aftermath against Tharos' wrath. Once he turned to slumber, Vita took advantage of his absence by trying to restore the land he destroyed. During her efforts of restoration, she created the waters that formed the Crilix Ocean to heal the pangea from Tharos’ fiery breath. She had sequentially caused the pangea to split into two continents: Silvestris (east) and Therinox (west) which are joined by the Crilix Ocean. Her ambitions were eventually countered though with the blight of Dulath as his powers were amplified by the dead lands he now owned. The two dueled which Dulath overpowered Vita. Vita retreated to the skies and disappeared from the Material Plane, waiting for the opportunity to come back and restore the land back to its original grace.

**Venia** conjured a powerful magic shield that endowed her favorite cities and settlements from Tharos' rage. When Tharos besieged her cities, his fire had no effect and merely dissipated into thin air. Furious at Venia's actions to protect humanity, Tharos fought Venia and eventually Venia was caught with no escape inside a mountain with which she casted a spell on herself that turned her physical form into adamantine which was immune to any physical harm. However, she has since been unable to revert back into her physical form.

**Kaylenith** knew of the upcoming fury of Tharos after Venia suffered her fate and charmed civilizations to raise armies to defend her. Although the armies were great, they were no match for the strength of Tharos. All cities and settlements involved in the resistance were laid waste with Tharos' fiery breath. Filled with sorrow, Kaylenith fled from the world. It is rumored that she flew to the skies and escaped before Tharos could catch her.

## Additional Lore

Your character may know more details about the multiverse depending on their origin. Any additional lore will be provided to you by the DM based on your backstory and where your character begins in the multiverse. Based on the nature of how the narrative occurs for a long standing campaign, you may learn new world lore on the fly depending on where the party is in the multiverse.