Timeline

Pre-Schism - Lush Canthia supports the development of several intelligent species. The elves are first by several millenia, and use their powerful magic to subjugate, or "steward," several neighboring races as they rise in power -- most notably, a major tribe of the fledgling humans. Dwarves reach technological heights that will not be matched again for millenia.

0 - The Schism occurs, sundering the continent of Aei’lar into its current form and creating veins of manashard across Canthia. The Dwarves are wiped out. A relative few become Coalfolk. The massive energies mutate other races into strange forms.

143 - Earliest written records after the Schism are old religious documents kept by the Talo'kar.

253 - The Aei’kar, after spending centuries attempting to regain their lost technology and magical prominence are defeated by a minor rebellion of humans in the southwestern province of Har’wen.

282 - The humans of Har’wen succeed in beating back their Aei’kar overlords and establishing a fledgling tribal existence on a new island they name Vaelorn.

304 - Contact between the Aei’kar and the Nua’dar is made. The first recorded meeting between two Shards of Elfdom does not go well and the First War of the Elves begins.

307 - A delegation of Mor’kar arrive on the scene of a battle between the Nua’dar and the Aei’kar. Their powerful magic and sudden appearance bring a calm to the fighting and the war is brought to a close by Mor’kar negotiators.

419 - The Spire is built by the Mor’kar and all races are invited to be educated in the ways of magic if they show the necessary aptitude.

430 - The first High Magister of the Spire is selected, a Mor’kar by the name of Aei’klathairius. His first decree as High Magister is to allow humans and other Shards of Elfdom into the Academ Vindicarii, an institution which had, up until that point, been both secret and exclusively made up of Mor’kar.

472 - The first manashard is discovered by human explorer and renowned Artifex, Thren Kolari, in the ruins of the old Aei’kar city, Khovash. Thren uses this new energy source to invent the world’s first toaster. He later dies of shard sickness.

489 - Belkjan Ujk, the self-styled messiah of a local tribe of bloodwolf worshippers, conquers the Westwater Isles and spreads his Temple of the Red Wolf throughout.

506 - An Eiru peace delegation travels to Vaelorn, the island that lies directly below theirs. They are immediately captured and eaten, with only one kept alive because of his beautiful singing voice.

531 - Amorantha Tokal, once a human magister of the Spire, reappears in Vaelorn with a massive following of worshippers. Her cult, the Seekers of Dawn, colonise an island to the north of Vaelorn, establishing the Narceean Sanctity. Rumours from Narceea claim that Amorantha has acquired godlike powers from a mystical artifact called the Heart of Ivo.

549 - The first of the Coalfolk, a Verrosten named Arkheipt the Rusted, emerges near Haemish Lorman's farm. Once it is determined that he has not arrived to murder the livestock or defile the famer's daughter,

578 - The Vindicator, Hepthet Urd, manages to strike Bellestrikarius'Tolumn, the Dragon Queen, with his Final Penance before being killed by her brood.

587 - Narceea is formally recognised by the Spire, the final qualification for nationhood. This is achieved only after the ambassador, one Riardan Wasker, agreed to add Narceea as a signatory to the beginnings of the Pax Arcanum and preapproved any alterations made to the document in the future.

598 - Conflicts between the nobles of Vaelorn erupt when the House of Elldeer is destroyed in a midnight raid by unknown mercenaries. Tarius, Lord of House Nimaruun accuses his chief rival Wurn of House Freilander of masterminding the plot and declares war on him.

601 - The first manashard-based ground transportation is tested. The tester, Artifex Cornelius Hershem, is killed by the horse he tried to insert the shard into.

612 - The Kingdom of Vaelorn is established by the Red Lord Tarius Nimaruun. His defeated foe, Lord Wurn Freilander travels south to found the Principality of Straegard. The two remain at odds since.

630 - Straegard attacks Vaelorn, regaining House Freilander’s home province of Freiluund and sparking off the War of Broken Lances.

633 - The War of Broken Lances ends with Vaelorn much the worse for wear. In all they have lost their profitable counties of Freiluund and Drexin as well as their young king, Erich Nimaruun. His second cousin, Laer Windlace takes the throne of Vaelorn.

639 - The Pax Arcanum is signed and brought into the records of the Spire. This formerly recognised the organisation of the Vindicators, which had been

720 - War is declared by the Narceen Sanctity against the Talo'kar, led by High Archon Framan Aderak.

723 - The Alliance of the Shards is formed between the Aei'kar High Elders, the Nua'dar Premier, the Mor'hein Council and the Talo'kar High Sacristans.

727 - Ivo is discovered during the first test flight of the ornithopter by legendary Artifex, Erasto Ketal. Though the ornithopter is destroyed in the flight, Ketal returns with an ancient Ivonian vase for his wife.

732 - Erasto Ketal perfects the model of the ornithopter using manashards from Ivo. These distinctly blue manashards give the craft it’s name: the Sapphire Sparrow. Erasto grows rich on commissions from Straegard for his efforts in weaponising both the ornithopter and Ivonian manashards.

750 - The Eiru, tired of constantly being eaten or enslaved by the Lower Folk, as they call them, declare war on all but the Aei’kar. Because of their natural flying ability they quickly decimate the central provinces of Vaelorn.

762 - The war against the Eiru turns against the bird-men as Straegard enters with a new contingent of ornithopters capable of matching the Eiru’s natural speed and maneuverability. One Major Kehlmeig has particular success adapting the pack hunting techniques of the Razorwing to ornithopter combat against the bird-folk.

765 - The Rastian Heresy begins. The provinces of Elaeth, Marn, Orrin, Warral and Denn under control of the rebels.

767 - Flush with victory against the High Islands and rich with gold and manashard from her treasuries, High Lord Vrotan Berekan - ancestor of Imran - sends General Kehlmeig on an expedition to the West, with the aim of claiming any land found for Straegard.

785 - General Kehlmeig sends back word of his arrival at the fabled Westwater Isles, as well as an intial report containing notes on flora, fauna, geography, and limited anthropological data on the native humans, the Njerëzim. After publicly executing the Ujk bloodline for "barbaric behavior," Kehlmeig claims the Isles for Straegard. He and his Western Expeditionary Force are never heard from again.

896 - Eustace Frennen becomes lord governor of the province of Idlebruuke.

901 - Tuir, the Wanderer is captured by Eustace Frennen in Idlebruuke and jailed behind a magical prison. There he is tortured and interrogated for the secret of immortality.

912 - The flying zeppelin is invented by Radis Koliur, an Artifex from Narceea.

951 - After fifty years of captivity, Tuir tears at his own wrists and dies. His power restored and unbound by Eustace's magic, he inflicts the Ravage of Tuir upon the entire populace of Idlebruuke.

987 - With an enormous influx of undead into his kingdom, Quentin Windlace rides against the horde in order to protect the west. He is promptly eaten by the rampaging living dead.

989 - Quentin’s successor Laer IV orders walls built at the three points where Idlebruuke still connects with the mainland of Vaelorn.

1062 - The Three Gates of Idlebruuke are completed. Passage to and from that cursed province is strictly controlled by the Red Hand, the military wing of the Kingdom of Vaelorn.

1298 - The first trans-island manarail is built in Straegard between Tergom and the southern port city of Keld.

1300 - The first ranged mana weaponry is test fired in Straegard. A few mooncycles later, the Vaelorn test a similar weapon on the hordes in Idlebruuke.

1315 - Eight provinces of what would become the Crownless Lands secede from both the Principality of Straegard and the Kingdom of Vaelorn.

1323 - The One Year Rebellion begins between the Eight Free Provinces and Vaelorn.

1324 - Defeating the mighty Red Hand armada, the Eight Free Provinces bind together in the Confederated Province of Vaelorn. Many remain calling them their old name, the Crownless Lands.

1415 - Dara Elutia Vender Trisk is born in Weishall, Narceea.

1417 - Kestrel Adain is born in New Anegal, CPV. He is orphaned shortly thereafter and given to a Mor’kar, Aei’klatharius.

1420 - Dara E.V. Trisk is inducted into the Order of Ardent Paladins.