The River of Time

Before examining the Timeline itself, there are a number of aspects that should be mentioned in order the chronology of the histories may be better understood.

Dating Scheme:
Scholars of the chronology will notice that the dates count downwards to zero, before counting upwards again. That is due to the dating system, which is based on two great events - the Great Conflict, and the Ice Age. These events are denoted as follows:

- Great Conflict = Grandis Conflictio (GC)
- Ice Age = Glacies Aetas (GA)

Before year zero, the events will be recorded backwards, in terms of the Great Conflict, or GC. Thereafter, the Ice Age began at year zero, and so years would be recorded "since the ice age", or GA.

*Inclusion
The Druids, Sages and Scholars are hard at work to incorporate the great events and history of all the world into the Timeline. However, this is a slow and time-consuming process. Please understand that if an event or piece of history is not shown in this Timeline, it is merely because the Druids have not come around to it yet. It would also be appreciated if scholars could inform any of the Druids that an omission was detected. The Faithful of the Light would gladly go into the matter and correct it.

Should there be anything else that students of the Timeline would like to learn about the chronology of the World, the Druids would be glad to hear these queries. May the Light guide our way into the future.

Distant, unrecorded past
Energy Infinitum explodes -- the beginning of Time as it is understood in present day. The mysterious Creator shapes the universe and the myriad worlds within it.

3000 GC - 1 GC
Temmarendil was created, and the Creator wept at beholding the beauty of his work. The tears he shed fell upon the newly made world and become entwined with its destiny for all time. Thus, from these tears, the high gods of Temmarendil were given life - Halos (good), Mirius (neutral), and Morbius (evil). Also created were twelve ‘items’ of enormous power, known in present day as the Tears of the Shaper.

Immediately vying for authority, the three high gods unleashed events that became known as the Great Conflict. It was the beginning of recorded history.

Enchanted by the new world, the high gods began filling it will all manner of animals and plants. To oversee the many living things upon the surface, Mirius created the race of great Dragons, under whose benevolent eyes all else would flourish.

Satisfied that all was as it should be, the Creator departed, leaving Temmarendil in the hands of the high gods.

Following the example of Mirius, Halos created a host of celestial Angels that would nurture the spiritual lives of the mortal beings upon the world. Envious and filled with spite, Morbius also shaped a horde of supernatural beings - demons that thrived on destruction and chaos.

Gifted with a glimpse into the future, and foreseeing great strife between the quarreling Halos and Morbius, the neutral god Mirius realized that soon terrible destruction would sweep Temmarendil, and would doom his race of majestic dragons. Thus he quietly created the race of High Men, intelligent, resilient and talented, but lesser than dragons, so that they would almost remain unnoticed by his brothers, but could continue with work similar to what the dragons were doing. From the High Men would later spring the races of Elves, Humans, Dwarves and a number of others.

The terrible day came when the great demon-lord Mephisto and his seven Overlords unleashed their infernal horde of demons upon Temmarendil. As expected, the angels of Halos answered the challenge and battle was joined on a wide, destructive scale. The dragons remained true to their task of nurturing the world, remaining neutral and out of the conflict, as Mirius hoped that the Conflict would burn itself out quickly.

Their host almost innumerably vast, the demons became an unstoppable tide of destruction, to the point where they began to threaten the very fabric of Temmarendil. Mirius then saw that it was time to intervene -- he could not remain neutral, as his own role of keeping the balance was in jeopardy. He bade his dragons to join the fray and prevent the demons from tearing the world apart.

But it was almost too late, and dragons began to fall in battle with no end to the Conflict in sight. Even Morbius stood aghast at the extent of the devastation, and could do little to prevent it from continuing. When it began to seem that no force could stem the demon-horde, and Temmarendil teetered on the edge of ruin, Mirius saw that his vision was coming true -- the Dragons would have to make an ultimate sacrifice. Unable to bear the thought of the magnificent creatures to utterly vanish, Mirius called upon his most faithful disciple, a High Man called Chronos, to gather a number of dragon-eggs and flee to the north, to a place where no-one could ever intrude.

Bidding the High Men to hide themselves deep beneath the surface, the lord of the Dragons, (often called the Grandfather), gathered all his remaining people, and invoked the power of the world itself. They cast the world into an immense pall of cold from which nothing would be shielded -- especially the demons and the dragons, both of who required warmth for their very existence.

As the frigid weather began to set in, the high gods gathered and looked upon Temmarendil in sadness. They realized that since there were only three, they wielded too much power and could therefore unmake the Creator’s work. Making an agreement amongst themselves, they spent all their power in a single act of will to remake themselves into eleven lesser deities -- the Younger Gods.

Halos’s being split into Kala, Meira and Tilana, the deities of the Good. Morbius’ essence separated into Lómion, Tauranik and Torath, the deities of Darkness. Mirius divided into four other -- Nathos, Mesalea, Mitaneus and Aeros -- the ones to keep the balance. In addition, to honor his great spirit, the lord of dragons, the Grandfather, was uplifted and became the eleventh deity. Ever after, these beings would decide Temmarendil’s fate, and with their power divided amongst so many, the chances of destruction looming that closely ever again would only be a distant specter.

The icy cold bit down hard in a matter of days, and so sudden was the onslaught that the teeming demon-hordes were caught unawares. Both the demons, and the dragons perished to the last one over the centuries that followed -- none survived, no matter where they tried to hide. Only the demon-lord, Mephisto, escaped death, but in his desperation in searching for a way to cheat the inevitable by creating a portal into a parallel reality, he became trapped within a dimensional prison known as the Mirror of Souls.

As the last demon upon Temmarendil died, it was like the ringing of a supernatural bell - the magically induced cold began to relent and the natural world started to reassert its true course. The long thaw began.

IMPORTANT NOTE:
Between the time that the great cold of the Ice Age struck the world, and the year count of 0 GA, an undetermined number of years passed during which the High Men lived mostly beneath the surface in protective hiding. There are no records or defined calendar from those times, but from the little evidence that *does* exist scholars believe that several centuries had passed. There is much division amongst historians on how long this 'dark' period had been. Some are convinced that it could not have been shorter than 2000 to 3000 years (perhaps longer), whilst others are sure it was 1000 years at most. However long the 'dark period' was in truth, the race of High Men changed greatly, and by the time that they emerged again, and the calendar used today was started, they differed considerably from the beings who saw the world before the Ice Age began. It is an ongoing mystery why so little lore or knowledge had been retained from the 'dark period'.

0 - 700 GA
Even forewarned as they were by the dragons before the world was cast into its freeze, the High Men were not able to protect against all the effects of the immense magical energies. After the long ages in hiding while the deadly magical cold hung over the world, the High Men had evolved into a number of distinct, separate races, and these descendants now emerged into the new world, of which much was still covered by glacial ice.

As Temmarendil began to recover, more and more settlements began to be established -- cities and empires were built, people scattered to the far edges of the globe. Overall, the world thrived, sometimes peacefully, and sometimes by sword and fire.

By 700 GA, the world as it is known in the present age had become established, and much of what has happened before the Ice had passed into legend.

More detail to specific events will be mentioned in the following texts.

* (A quick note to scholars: Some historians might note that a couple of historically significant persons have incredibly long life spans. It is believed that these folk are very direct descendants of the ‘original’ High Men, who are known to have had extraordinarily long lives. There were few such pure bloodlines, and as centuries passed, dwindled further until in present years, the life-spans of human folk generally go no higher than about 80 years).

25 GA (approximately)
Even though much of the world was still covered by Ice, the High Men and the strangely (magically) evolved offshoots from the original bloodline emerged from their subterranean hiding places. There is strong evidence in present day of where these places were, for each one is market by incredibly immense structures (large as present-day cities) that are believed to have been shaped by the ancient Dragons before the Ice Age. In those times, they did not have names, or names that are now forgotten, but in present day these structures are known as Dragonspire Keep in Draconia, Wngrad in Ystradd and Reahile in Rendor. Some speculate that there might be others of similar appearance and massive scale lost somewhere in the Orgelands, in central Ta’ashim and in Telavor, but there are no explorers who had managed to prove it as yet. It cannot be doubted that human hands had *not* built those ancient first city-sized castle-keeps. Soon after people set foot outside the huge underground communities, they began dispersing, moving to every corner of the world and building settlements, some of which still exist in present day. It is referred to amongst scholars as The Scattering.

The largest settlement that existing upon Lyndret in those early times, where located in the region now called Khanduras. In present day, only ancient ruins remain to tell of its existence.

77 GA
The first great structures that would become the city of Q’lynnesti are built, and thus also the realm that would become known as Micarthia was established. Many folk that were closely related by direct bloodlines to the High Men made their homes here, and thus the great architecture, knowledge, and power of latter-day Micarthia flowed directly from the lore that existing prior to the Ice Age. These ancient influences were also destined to shape the future of many lands upon Lyndret, centuries later.

94 GA
Micarthian mariners and explorers sailed far and wide upon Temmarendil’s oceans, and discovered wide, lush lands far to the south. They named it Magnamund, and in a few short years, hundreds of Micarthians traveled to the new lands and began building settlements. It did not take long before they started thinking of themselves as a separate nation, and thus their development from that point onwards followed a distinct, separate path from that of Micarthia. Nonetheless, the great ancient works of engineering and architecture found in Magnamund show a similarity (in terms of scale and craftsmanship) to those of Micarthia, even though the design and aesthetics are quite different.

100 GA (approximately)
From the sketchy information available today, it is believed that the group that would become known later as the Dark Order had been established during these times. It is often lamented by scholars that the Dark Order had never made their records and knowledge of ancient times available for the world to study, for they surely possess the most complete and detailed recorded knowledge spanning from ancient times to present day.

103 GA
Elven historians reveal that as a result of vehement disagreements between the first Elven family-clans, a terrible conflict erupted amongst the Fair-folk. It is referred to as the Kin-strife, about which the Elves are ashamed and do not easily speak of, even in present day. The families ended their bloody battles after about 20 years, except for one distinct group, who had become very skilled at warfare, and who relished the bloodshed and combat. This group broke from the others in disgust, promising that their enmity would never die and that other Elves should fear their wrath for all time. This group became known as the Moriquendi, or Dark Elves, who are in present day regarded as a separate race, with unique characteristics. The Dark Elves yet hold to their ancient vows, for the mutual hatred between the Moriquendi and the Elves had not changed in any significant way up to the present age.

173 GA
In Khanduras, a wise and great lord by name of Leoric was crowned King, and with his host of noble warriors, inspired a rule of peace and prosperity for many people in the southern parts of the continent. Many present day tales of chivalry, courage and honor is based upon the exploits of Leoric and his people (even thought many are fantastic embellishments to the true facts).

191 GA
The study of magical power had started to become refined and in order to create a place where further study could be pursued in an environment especially suited for the task, a group of especially powerful wizards employed their arts in the making of two enormous towers in the southern parts of the realm that would later be known as Ystradd. These were the Mage-towers of Flarrom, of which the taller one is called Ynun (or "Eye" when translated from the old language, Nahdin) and the shorted one is called Odal (or "Ear"). Even to present day, the Mage-towers remain the primary center of magical lore upon Temmarendil.

218 GA
Filled with spite and hatred, the Vampire-lord, Guillarme’s malice settled upon Khanduras, with his attention focused upon King Leoric’s court. Within 4 short years, most of the once-noble knights, advisors and the king Leoric himself had succumbed to Guillarme’s evil powers -- reduced to undead beings that preyed upon the living. The Elves in the region tried to contain the threat, by sealing the undead in the catacombs beneath a huge cathedral, and drove off the Vampire Lord with powerful magics. Guillarme chose not to fight the Elves, and went northward, to the realm of Krarth, where he created a small kingdom for himself over the centuries. Even to present day, Krarth bears a dark cloud of evil, for Guillarme still exists in his mountain abode.

The undead hordes of Khanduras remained sealed in their prison for centuries, until it was inadvertently opened in 825 GA.

449 GA
The first recorded hostilities between the neighboring realms of Westmarch and Draconia began. Perhaps it was inevitable, as both were powerful countries governed by ambition and the desire to expand their borders. The conflict between these nations would shape the future of Lyndret in many ways.

470 GA
After a period of civil unrest, a noble by name of Auric became the first King of Draconia, and the realm was unified for the first time, heralding a time of unprecedented development. It was party due to this prosperity that Auric was known as the Golden King. The great Houses of Scarlet, Guy, Val, and Tenara rose to prominence in those years.

500 GA
A great clan-lord by name of Tyren gathered the flags and fealty of the divided warring clans in the southern parts of Lyndret, and the realm of Tyrengard emerged.

Feeling discontented, a kinsman of Tyren named Arles gathered his own clan and traveled over the mountains westward. In the lush valleys they found there, they discovered that many Elves had made their home in the primordial forests. Showing their strength by aiding the Elves to drive back the Trolls to the north, an alliance was forged between Arles and the Elves and thus the first seeds of the realm known as Ystradd were sown.

512 GA
A renowned traveler and explorer from the desert lands of Aranoch, Ulan-ibn-Jhal, published a set of detailed maps of Lyndret (and to a lesser extent the surrounding oceans, islands and other continents). Ibn-Jhal’s maps are still in present day the most accurate, complete and detailed of any that had been produced, and copies of his maps remain an essential item for any serious traveler.

560 to 570 GA
Open warfare erupted between Westmarch and Draconia (the First Westmarch War), and escalated to a point where neighboring nations also entered the fray. Widespread destruction swept the realms and threatened to cast civilization upon Lyndret into ruin and barbarism.

For ten years the battle raged, until at long last it was ended within Draconia, where the armies of Westmarch were destroyed after a great dragon flew in and annihilated them. From where it came and where the dragon went after, or why it chose to aid Draconia and its allies, is not known. After this time, no dragons were sighted again, and they disappeared from recorded history.

The war had claimed the lives of countless thousands, and amongst them, most of the nobility of realms such as Draconia (the house of Tenara had been completely annihilated). King Auric acted quickly to reestablish order by creating a new nobility, and gathering the heads of the uplifted Houses to a great meeting. Thus, the first meeting of the High Council of Draconia was recorded. The Council established a number of ‘provinces’, each ruled by a Duke that would be chosen from amongst the Empire’s nobles. Amongst those first high-nobles was a man named Guyver, who became the Duke of the western coastal region, with the city of Drak Kalthorne as his administrative center. To the east, the rich forested lands became known as the Duchy of Enchantica, and were given into the care of Lord Valiant to rule from the city of Drak Yardok.

A wise sage by name of Onaeus Lamptides arrived at Draconia’s shores from distant Micathia, and was destined to change the course of destiny for many lives and realms. Held in special favor by his goddess, Kaleh, Onaeus was richly blessed by the Light, and in order to see her teachings flourish, she granted him extraordinary vitality and long life. In a very short space of time, his wisdom led him to be held in high regard by commoner and noble alike, and many people chose to follow his teachings of the Light. In 569 GA, Onaeus was granted leave to begin a new settlement, which he named Soliath, in the northwestern parts of the Empire. Later, that region became the Duchy of Nova Q’lynnesti, named after the great city of Q’lynnesti of Micarthia.

As a result of Onaeus’ teachings, the religion of the goddess Kala became formalized, sanctioned and supported by the new High Council of Draconia. In the years that followed, every part of the continent would be visited by traveling Kalan monks tasked with spreading the teachings of the Light -- often rejected violently, but sometimes accepted with interest.

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