Kaladynian History

The major eras, events, and personas of Kaladynian history are included in this brief outline of history. The Measurement of time shown here is the Elven Standard (ES), a system which dates back to the mythical time when it is said the first written records were made. Other systems include the Renaissance Era / Pre-Renaissance system used in the western and northern human kingdoms, in which the year 6010 ES is called 1 RE, and the years before are reverse ordered, and suffixed PR. In all known systems, the standard year is used.

Circa 250 Golden Age of peace for all creatures.

554 Ikxion's Rage (the continents divide).

962 The Separation of the Dark Elves.

1147-1210 The Elvish Wars

1371 Gnomish Astronomer, Garini, Invents the telescope.

1684 Flash powder invented in the Eastlands.

2431 Coming of the Illithid

3712-3853 The War of Empires

4297 Age of the Elven Lords begins, Tharshira founded.

Circa 5000 The First Human Imperial Dynasty, The Kung Tau, founded in the Eastlands

5467 The Age of Goblinkind begins, the first Goblin settlements are founded.

Circa 5470 The "Old" Human Kingdoms arise in the Central Continent

5572 The Human Crusades, religious persecution.

5574 Crossbow Invented.

5839 The Rise of Shogun in the Eastlands.

5913 Banded Mail Invented.

Circa 6000 The Renaissance Era Begins.

6010 Rebirth of the Old Human Empires in the central continent.

6039 The Goblin Wars begin.

6048 Aquerbius Invented In the Nordian Lands.

6072 Field Plate Mail Available.

6083 Full Plate Mail Invented by Dwarves.

6100 Return of the Ancients.

Circa 6120? Tazmix's Temporal Catastrophe.

6120-6132 The Dark Times, the Hundred Years Sorrow.

6135 The Reconstruction Era begins.

Circa 6300 The Second Renaissance begins.

6328 The Coming of Buka, Rise of the Thonians.

Many eras are clouded in mystery, and the true events are not entirely known. However, the tapestry of Kaladynian history is still richly woven in myth and legend. The oral histories of many cultures tell of the deeds of common ancestors.

Those who study Geomancy maintain that the world is much older than it is commonly said to be. The Preeminent Sage of Mineralogy and Metallurgy, Karbus Mitocam of the free city of Norvingshire, also maintains that the world is at least "Scores of thousands upon thousand years" older than once thought, and that other peoples and beasts, long gone and forgotten, once held dominion over the land.

Recorded here are some of the legends of Kaladyn, as they were told from generation to generation. They are meant to provide background for many campaign possibilities.

The first tale deals with the gods, and the creation of Kaladyn, it is the primordial fall from grace story, as told by many cultures in the real world.

And then men became greedy and jealous of each other... In those times the world was a paradise beyond compare, such that gold and silver and precious jewels were scattered about the land as common stones. But then man and Dwarves conspired to strip the land and hoard gems and metal, until the land became barren, and the Mighty god Ikxion, who forged the land itself, became angry that his creation had been raped.

In his anger, he shook the world, and tore Unitar asunder. And Ikxion hid away the wealth of the world, buried it away from the undeserving eyes of avaricious mortals. And the ground became stubborn, so that seeds had to be sewn, the land cultivated before food would grow. Many beasts, in their hunger, began to eat one another, and worst of all, strange energies were released from the ground, and the Chimerae, and the Man-Beasts, and the Dragons were born.

And so gone were the carefree days, men had to toil endlessly to feed themselves. But men were unrepentant, and many (especially the Dwarves) still labor to pull riches from the earth. And to this day, when the earth shakes, it is still called "Ikxion's Rage".

This story is one of several legends which suggest that some of the creatures which inhabit Kaladyn, may not even be of this world at all. Similar stories are told of many of the more exotic, and mysterious races that dwell in Kaladyn, notably the Neoghi, and the Spellweavers.

It whispered that among the creatures and peoples set upon Kaladyn by the gods, walk strange abominations, creature from other worlds, and alternate realities. It is widely known by sages that the accursed beings known as Illithid, which are commonly called "Mind-Flayers", are not native to this world. The tentacle-faced humanoid horrors of the underdark were actually observed when they arrived on Kaladyn. In fact the exact date if said to have been Winds the 6th, 2431 ES. The legend is as follows:

It is from the examination of the notes of the crash site, that many centuries later, Elvish sages discovered these infernal beings had infiltrated the world, and now dwelt among the peoples of Kaladyn. It is interesting to note that the metal of the vessels (now preserved in the Elvish Historical Archives) is known to be "Harder than Admantite", and that Gnomish astronomers had foreseen, and predicted the event with startling accuracy, using divination devices called "Telescopes".

One of the saddest Eras in Kaladynian history was the War of Empires, also known as The Elf-Dwarf War. The exact causes and reasons for the greatest war of all history were lost in the centuries of battle. Even today, Elven and Dwarven sages argue about the underlying catalyst. Whatever the cause, it is known that during those times, Dwarves captured and tortured Elven mages for their secrets, and first learned the ways of magic. Though Dwarves have never mastered the Arts with the same proficiency as other races, a few Dwarvish mages were known to have attained immortality, and some are rumored to live even to this day. The battles of this war ravaged the Eastlands, Hind, and the Lands of the central continent as far north as Lower Nordia. It was this destruction which prompted human refugees to sail across The Endless Sea and found the New Human Settlements, in effect, the conflicts eventually gave birth to the Human Empires.

(As recounted by the Elven Sage Canerion Mathiris)

Long ago, before Ikxion's Rage transformed the world, the Goblinoids were enlightened and cultured (and some say, beautiful). The Goblinoids faired the worst after the great cataclysm; they were mutated, and disfigured by the strange energies from the earth into their current misshapen forms. Many say it was because they were the greediest of all peoples (though the Dwarves maintain it they were!). Whatever the cause, the once gentle Goblin peoples became destitute, savage, and depraved. They also lost literacy, and their written languages, so that today, only the wisest of sages can read the ancient Goblin Epics. They also lost much of their aptitude for magic. In fact Goblin society finally deteriorated to the point where they were no longer even civilized by anyone's standards.

It is known that a few mortals native to Kaladyn have achieved godhood. Perhaps the most well known (and recent) example is the great Thonian Arch-Mage Muni Buka. Aside from the prestige he brought Thonia with his many contributions to the magic arts, and the prosperity he brought them as Pasha of the Empire, legends of his travels through other planes and times abound in stories whispered on cold desert nights. The great sage Y'Barra claims to have known Muni Buka when he was a mortal, as do a few other very long-lived denizens of Kaladyn. Though accounts vary widely, it is said he ascended to godhood after defeating an ancient evil god, in a plane where he was long forgotten. Others say he became so powerful, as to demand godhood from Malfesh himself. Other accounts are wildly different, but one fact is certain; the desert wind diety now worshiped in the lands of Thonia was once a mortal man.