Timeline of Ancient History

Key:
BT = Before Time
CP = Current Time

In the beginning...

Little is known or written about the origins of Althanas. Even modern religious texts only conjecture that the Old Gods shaped the whole of creation from formless chaos.


The Great Calamity and Thayne Emergence -- BT ~5000 to BT ~2600

The oldest surviving written text speaks in sparse detail of three things: the Old Gods, a vast civilization of Ancients who feared and worshiped them, and the Great Calamity, a world-spanning disaster that washed away the Ancients in a tide of war and fire. From that fire stepped the Thayne. (More details to come, perhaps just a link to the Thayne page which covers their history.)


Rise of Civilization -- BT ~2600 to BT ~600

As early adopters of both Thayne worship and use of the Eternal Tap, Raiaera becomes a major power in the ancient world. The oldest human (Skavian) ruins in Salvar date back to this period, suggesting a major civilization that stretched across the lands north of Raiaera. The first mentions of the Dwarven city of Kachuck date to around BT 2200, though the city could be much older. Early settlements also form in Corone late in this period.


War of the Tap -- BT ~600 to CP 1

A band of immensely powerful sorcerers known as the Forgotten Ones rise up and attempt to take full control of the Eternal Tap, topple the Thayne, and ultimately become gods themselves. The conflict pits their considerable might and their many followers against Raiaera and other burgeoning powers. The war lasts hundreds of years with several periods of long peace between renewed aggression. It ultimately ends with the defeat of the Forgotten Ones and the shattering of the Tap.


Time of Rebuilding -- CP 1 to CP 350

The various Althanian nations, especially Raiaera and the Thayne's religious infrastructure, try to rebuild from the War of the Tap, but much was lost that could never be restored. With the Tap shattered, Raiaera's magical dominance weakens. Unrest grows among the elves, with a vocal anti-Thayne, anti-Tap faction gaining more influence. The Book of the Sway lists this time as when the Ethereal Sway themselves first appeared to mortalkind in Salvar. The official church would not form until much later. Dwarves and humans establish the city of Teria in Corone. The Citadel is constructed, though no records remain of how, as it used pre-Tap Shattering magic.


Elven Schism -- CP 350 to CP 470

The anti-Thayne, anti-Tap faction within Raiaera gains such a following that it sparks civil war and an eventual exodus of 1/3 of the elves to what is now Alerar. The conflict costs Raiaera more of its power and resources.


Human-Elf Wars -- CP 470 to CP 624

This period of time contains several conflicts between the elves and rising human powers. In Raiaera, the high elves wage a bloody war again the Urodins, humans inhabiting the northern third of the region and drive them into Salvar. The dark elves of Raiaera exterminate untold humans in their conquest of Alerar. Corone and Raiaera fight multiple wars, with Raiaera's direct control of the island of Corone ultimately severed. The high elves and dark elves also engage in several conflicts. Only an outside threat would end the constant fighting.


Demon Wars -- CP 624 to CP 837

Demons spill forth from beneath the earth, ravaging much of the known world. They are eventually repelled after generations of fighting, but at great cost. Several key figures emerge during this time. Radasanth Starsong, a Coronian elf hero, rallies the troops of Corone against the demons. He achieves final victory at Teria, which would eventually become the new republic's capital city and take his name. In Salvar Saint Denebriel, anointed of the Ethereal Sway, saves Knife's Edge, breaking the demon horde at the Grand Cathedral, which would later bear her name.