Chronology of Eldareth

In the earliest age of creation, Elgalar gives life to the first gods, the beings who would later form the Celestial Accord.

Together, they begin shaping the primordial essence of creation into Eldareth. Each contributes according to their nature and power, helping form the world, its magic, and the life that will eventually inhabit it.

Following Lyrael's death, Feonar gathers fragments of her scattered essence and guides them across Eldareth. They eventually reach four unassuming elemental spirits, transforming them into Durnathar, Kyrion, Nerissa, and Velora.

With greater command over their elements, the four Primarchs begin gathering those displaced by the Primordial Titans and join the wider struggle against them.

Following the hard-fought victory of the divine forces and their mortal allies, the Primordial Titans are finally defeated.

In the aftermath, portions of their immense power are bestowed upon five of the dragons who fought in the conflict, transforming them into the Dragon Ascendants. The three giant Jarls, Thalkor, Saaktar, and Thorden, receive portions of that power as well.

With the Titans gone, Dragons and Giants emerge from the Dawn War as some of the most powerful forces in the world that follows.

Following their ascension after the Dawn War, the five Dragon Ascendants travel to a volcanic archipelago in the Stormbreaker Sea. There, they establish their territories and leave their influence upon the land through their divine and arcane power.

The islands eventually become known as the Aldramar Isles, remaining the sacred domain of the Ascendants for millennia.

Following the defeat of the Primordial Titans, groups of giants journey north into Skorrheim and the regions to the east that will become known as the Kharzai Steppes. Among them are Thalkor, Saaktar, and Thorden, the three Jarls who were each bestowed a portion of the Titans' power in the aftermath of their defeat.

The Jarl Triumvirate becomes especially prominent in Skorrheim, where their influence will shape much of the region's later history.

In the generations following the Dawn War, scattered human communities begin to grow and organize, drawing on knowledge passed down from the Primarchs and adapting it to the lands they inhabit.

These early societies lay the foundations for the kingdoms and empires that will later emerge across regions such as Calvessa and Célaine.

The fleeing clans arrive in Eldareth and establish settlements in lands that will later become Vel'Nathar and Célaine. Over time, they build ties with the peoples already living there and make the Material Plane their new home.

Lerathae's role in their escape leaves a lasting mark on these communities, and she becomes one of their most widely revered deities.

As giants establish themselves across the northern lands, some groups in and around the eastern Kharzai Steppes turn to dangerous forms of sorcery and alchemy. Over time, these practices alter both their bodies and their society.

These fallen giants become known as the Urghai, powerful ogre-kin who establish strongholds such as Gorhul-Tor and later become oppressors of the Orzhun peoples.

Created through experiments intended to produce resilient servants, the Orzhun eventually rebel against their masters and drive them from much of the region. During the uprising, Malgathar's influence reaches them with promises of strength and dominion, and many pledge themselves to him.

The violence of the rebellion and the purges that follow leave lasting damage across the Kharzai Steppes, leave a major wound in the local Wave.

In Zalthyx, Lessarith approaches several communities whose religious traditions are closely associated with Yssarel. Promising power and freedom from the bonds she claims have constrained them, Lessarith transforms those who accept her offer into the first Ssith'katha.

The transformation becomes one of the foundational events of later Ssith'katha history and religion. Traditions surrounding it differ sharply over time, particularly in how they interpret Lessarith, known among the Ssith'katha as Sszal'Zirith, and the relationship between the transformed communities and the other peoples already living in Zalthyx.

Internal rivalry, territorial strain, religious disputes, succession conflicts, and the difficulty of governing large regions weaken several of the early Ssith'katha dominions.

Their collapse does not erase the societies they created. Successor states inherit cities, roads, fortifications, legal traditions, religious institutions, and trade networks. Zalthyx enters a long period of shifting regional powers from which later civilizations eventually emerge.

As several early Ssith'katha powers expand toward the northern reaches of Zalthyx, they begin fortifying important passes through the natural mountain and volcanic system later known in Common as the Obsidian Spine.

Roads, bridges, tunnels, walls, depots, settlements, and fortress complexes accumulate over centuries under different rulers. Captive labor is used in some periods, but the earliest works predate the later systematic enslavement of the Vashkari by many centuries. The Spine never becomes a single continuous fortress or an absolute barrier between Shahoya and Zalthyx.

The blight spreads through forests, waterways, and other living regions, corrupting plants, animals, and the land itself. As it advances, communities are displaced and once-habitable areas become increasingly difficult to survive.

The Creeping Rot becomes one of the clearest signs of Vorandor's growing influence before the conflict with the Triad erupts openly.

After centuries of consolidation and the construction of strongholds such as the Obsidian Spine, divisions begin to weaken the major Ssith'katha powers. Internal rivalries, disputes over their divine purpose, and the difficulty of controlling large territories all contribute to their decline.

The dominions eventually splinter, beginning a long period of rivalry and political fragmentation across Zalthyx.

Zhàohuáng and Wei'Shen look upon the destruction left behind at Noryeong and choose to intervene through mortal guides. They send seven dragons across Shen-Su, each carrying teachings centered on wisdom, patience, balance, and the responsible use of power.

Their guidance becomes influential among the communities and kingdoms that rise in the generations that follow.

As the Triad's influence spreads, Malgathar works through rulers, generals, and political factions, deepening existing grievances and encouraging distrust between neighboring powers. Armies are raised, alliances are tested, and tensions along contested borders begin to harden.

By the end of this period, several nations stand close to war, with Malgathar's influence helping turn long-standing disputes into open hostility.

Bound by their oaths to Malgathar, the Orzhun unite as the Great Host under Great Khan Karagun the First.

He leads the first march beyond their homeland, striking at neighboring tribes and settlements across the Kharzai Steppes and surrounding territories.

As mortal conflict spreads and the Great Host continues to rise, Vorandor releases a second and far more aggressive plague. The Scab-Rot spreads quickly through vulnerable populations, causing rapid physical decay and severe illness.

Ordinary treatments prove largely ineffective, and even divine healing struggles to halt its progression.

In the decades following the Second Elven Exodus, contact grows between the three elven peoples. Vel'Nathar becomes one of the principal regions where they meet, trade, and encounter traditions that had developed separately over centuries.

Their histories and customs remain distinct, but continued contact and their shared origins begin fostering a broader sense of kinship between the elven peoples of Eldareth.

Elven communities remain part of Vel'Nathar throughout the Age of Wonders, but increasing numbers choose to settle in Alven'Nathiss. At the same time, humans and other peoples continue to establish themselves across the region.

Over the following centuries, this gradually changes the population of Vel'Nathar, with non-elven peoples becoming the majority.

Giznat goblins develop reliable methods for refining and controlling the magical mineral known as Galarium. Scholars and innovators soon expand upon these techniques, leading to rapid advances in arcane engineering and infrastructure.

Galarium-based lighting, transport systems, and increasingly sophisticated arcane constructs become widespread. Academies and institutions dedicated to its study flourish, helping drive a new period of magical innovation across the empire.

Across the north-eastern Vashkova, where the Kharzai Steppes connect to Ethelra through the narrow western land corridor, settlements face continued attacks from invading forces, including the expanding Orzhun forces. As their defenses begin to fail, the Vashkovans turn increasingly to death magic and the raising of the dead.

Necromancers gain greater influence within the region, establishing fortified strongholds and using undead forces to defend their territory. Over time, necromancy becomes deeply tied to Vashkova's survival and the power of those who rule it.

As reports of widespread necromancy and the emergence of vampires spread from eastern Vashkova, imperial authorities establish the Imperial Inquisition to investigate and suppress forbidden magic and those who practice it.

Its methods quickly become severe, with purges and harsh enforcement extending beyond Vashkova into other parts of the empire. The Inquisition's growing reach creates fear and resentment, particularly in the outer provinces, and contributes to increasing tensions with imperial rule.

After centuries of centralized rule, the Thessaric Empire begins to weaken. Heavy demand for Galarium strains remaining sources, while mage orders and noble houses become increasingly independent and pursue their own interests. Corruption further undermines the imperial bureaucracy.

These tensions erupt into the Sundering Years, a century marked by intermittent civil wars, assassinations, and mage uprisings. Rival archmagi and noble houses compete for resources and political control, turning several provinces into battlegrounds.

Centuries after the decline of the earliest Ssith'katha dominions, political powers across the Zsarthal Basin begin consolidating under an imperial government centered on Xzareth-Ka.

Oracles, diviners, and religious authorities hold considerable influence, but prophecy is only one part of the empire's power. River administration, agriculture, taxation, public works, military organization, trade, and a substantial bureaucracy allow the Zsarthal Empire to dominate much of the central Basin for centuries.

After decades of surviving largely in name, with its authority confined to Thessaria, the remaining institutions of the Thessaric Empire begin to collapse. Reforms attempted by the last Sovereign fail, the treasury can no longer support the legions, and the imperial court steadily loses its remaining influence.

When the last Sovereign disappears, the court finally dissolves and the empire ceases to function as a governing power. Thessaria remains as its former capital, marking the final end of the Thessaric Empire.

Several Ssith'katha powers begin using Vashkari captives on an increasingly systematic scale. Over time, Vashkari are forced into mines, quarries, roads, agricultural labor, military infrastructure, and later construction and maintenance projects throughout parts of Zalthyx.

Some are put to work in later expansions of the Obsidian Spine, but the Spine itself is already centuries old. The system is not administered identically by every Ssith'katha state, and the exact responsibility of individual powers differs across the period.

The enslavement displaces large numbers of Vashkari from communities connected to their ancestral homeland of Vaash'toran and becomes one of the defining traumas of later Vashkari history.

Reality convulses as the Mythal fractures and Eldareth's ley network reacts violently. Ley lines rupture, shift, and surge, spellcasting becomes dangerously unreliable in many regions, and magical infrastructure across the world begins to fail.

Cities are damaged, landscapes are scarred, and areas of unstable or dead magic begin to form. Overloaded arcane systems produce further destruction, while the wider relationship between Eldareth and the surrounding planes becomes increasingly unstable.

The resulting devastation and environmental upheaval force widespread migration, reshaping much of Eldareth in the years that follow.

In the decades after the Upheaval, instability between Eldareth and the surrounding planes begins to manifest in new ways. More individuals are born with pronounced planar traits, while dormant planar heritage becomes more likely to surface.

These people become broadly known as the Planetouched. Their growing numbers are one of the clearest signs that the Upheaval permanently altered Eldareth's relationship with the planes.

Tensions between Vel'Nathar and rival merchant powers, including fleets associated with Tessarion and Calvessa, escalate into open conflict over key international shipping routes and access to Galarium.

The resulting war disrupts established trade networks and begins to shift the balance of naval power across the region.

As Eldareth continues to recover from the Upheaval, efforts begin to restore relationships disrupted by the cataclysm. Building on the earlier Moonlit Treaty, scholars, clerics, and envoys travel from Vel'Nathar to the Isles of Alven'Nathiss in a formal pilgrimage.

The event renews diplomatic ties between the two powers and strengthens cooperation between their scholars and magical institutions, becoming an important step in rebuilding old alliances during the Reckoning Years.

A powerful coalition of orcish clans under the Fellcrag banner begins sustained raids through Grimcleft Pass, threatening settlements throughout the Greyspires.

In response, forces from Vel'Nathar's Iron Assembly join with Emberforge dwarves, Skybreaker goliaths, and Highland mercenaries. The resulting Fellcrag War becomes one of the region's largest conflicts, reshaping alliances and relations between the peoples of the Greyspires.

After investigating a major dimensional disturbance and growing Far Realm activity across distant routes, the crystalline Naerid vessel Ithis Veyra deliberately travels to Eldareth to warn its inhabitants. The vessel is attacked before reaching the world and arrives catastrophically damaged, crashing near Lake Morren in the Greyspires of Vel'Nathar. Only a small number of Naerids survive.

The survivors bring knowledge of distant worlds, planar and multiversal travel, and the spreading disturbances they encountered on their journey. Their arrival leads to the encounter with the monks who become the first Venthari, while the wreck of Ithis Veyra and the artifacts recovered from it become important sources of psionic, planar, and dimensional study.

Breaches open across Eldareth, allowing aberrations and other Far Realm forces to enter the Material Plane. As the conflict spreads, the Dragon Ascendants create the first Dragonborn within Thuradun, the Forge of Wills, to strengthen the forces resisting the Incursion.

The tide turns in Vel'Nathar when Nyxarath attempts to cross into the Material Plane. The Athrakan Obelisk, more commonly known as the Celestine Obelisk, is awakened and answers distant sister Obelisks, producing a dimensional resonance that collapses the breach and disrupts the invading forces. The Incursion continues for a time afterward, but its momentum is broken.

As settlements founded during the Western Exodus become more permanent, five major communities shaped by Vel'Nathari, Tessarion, Calvessan, Celainian, and Ostherian traditions begin coordinating defense, trade, diplomacy, and disputes between their territories.

Their developing political compact becomes known as the Concord Territories.

This is an early phase of Concord government. The five constituent states and the stronger federal institutions associated with the modern Concord develop gradually over the following decades.

As Concord-linked settlements expand beyond their earliest coastal territories, they increasingly encounter land, routes, resources, and settlements already used or governed by Tavaska, Rakkari, and other Shahoyan communities.

Relations vary considerably. Some communities establish trade agreements, shared settlements, and negotiated boundaries. Elsewhere, incompatible land claims, settlement expansion, resource competition, and disregard for existing rights produce displacement and localized violence.

These early disputes shape later Concord relations across Shahoya without creating one universal conflict between settlers and the continent's older peoples.

Following the establishment of Dragonborn society in the Aldramar Isles, some groups begin migrating to other regions of Eldareth. Exploration, access to particular resources, spiritual callings, and a desire to carry the teachings of the Ascendants abroad all contribute to this movement.

Over time, these groups establish smaller enclaves in distant lands, marking the growing presence of Dragonborn beyond their island homeland.

By this period, the Xal'Tarothi Empire controls extensive territories across southern Zalthyx through a mixture of direct provincial government, older local institutions, military authority, and political dependency.

Its sacred monarchy, temple institutions, noble houses, bureaucracy, military, and trade networks are firmly established, with Xal'Zorath remaining particularly influential in imperial political theology.

The fragmentation of the Zsarthal Empire to the north creates new opportunities for Xal'Tarothi influence, although the southern empire does not control all of Zalthyx and remains only one of several major powers.

An unnatural and persistent winter settles over the Northern Highlands and nearby northern lands. Crops fail, wildlife dies off, and communities struggle against conditions that show no sign of easing.

Druids and archmages from several orders attempt to break the frost, but none succeed. Its cause remains unknown, prompting continued investigation into the magical or environmental forces sustaining it.

After decades of negotiation and localized conflict, representatives from affected Concord settlements, Tavaska communities, and Dawncoil communities meet within Tahanwe to establish more formal terms for living alongside one another.

The resulting Quietmarch Accords address land use, travel routes, trade, political jurisdiction, and the protection of culturally or religiously important sites.

Their authority is regional rather than universal. They do not bind every Tavaska, Dawncoil, or Concord community, and enforcement remains imperfect. The districts most directly shaped by these agreements gradually become known as the Quietmarch.

After decades of developing their society across the Isles, the Dragonborn begin formalizing many of the institutions and customs that have emerged since their settlement there.

The Five Great Clans establish the Aldramar Citadel on Myrddrathis as the seat of the Aldramarlith, their governing council. Sacred sites such as the Twin Temples of Io and Ao, the memorial valley of Khor'Thalas, and the arcane academy of Khal'Zorith are also established or formally consecrated.

During this period, major cultural traditions including the Rite of Becoming and the Convergence of the Five Clans are given more formal structure, helping define the enduring shape of Dragonborn society.

After decades of settlement and institutional growth, Seravon's productive river country and major inland routes support a substantial expansion of Concord administration.

Federal courts, government offices, religious institutions, trade networks, and other shared services increasingly concentrate in the region.

Seravon becomes one of the major centers of Concord public life without becoming a sixth member state. Tavaska and Rakkari communities that predate the Concord remain part of the region's population and politics.

As planar instability continues, individuals across Eldareth, particularly those with magical ability or psychic sensitivity, begin experiencing increasingly vivid and unsettling dreams that seem to offer glimpses of other realities. At the same time, subtle influences from other planes appear more frequently in the Material Plane.

Among the elves of Alven'Nathiss, these experiences become known as the Reverie Murmurs. As reports increase elsewhere, scholars and mystics begin investigating whether the boundaries between worlds are continuing to weaken in ways they do not yet understand.

The phenomenon, soon known as the Reverie Murmurs, spreads across the Isles as large numbers of elves report vivid and often overlapping dreams. Many of the visions depict an ancient underground gate or structure whose purpose remains unknown.

News of the Murmurs spreads beyond Alven'Nathiss, drawing the attention of scholars, diviners, and others concerned with planar instability. Debate grows over whether the dreams are prophetic, a manifestation of Val'Syra, a warning of something awakening, or connected to the wider instability affecting Eldareth.

Without warning, a massive rupture appears above Vel'Nathar, stretching hundreds of miles across the sky. Ley lines convulse beneath the land, spellcasting becomes unstable. One confirmed nexus in Lunebrook erupts with uncontrolled Spellfire as the disturbance spreads through the region.

In the moments following its appearance, strange shadow creatures appear beneath the Rift and attacks are reported beneath its span. The Rift remains in the sky afterward.  Its cause remains unknown.

This event marks the beginning of the Whispers of the Shattered Veil campaign.