Ok, this thread will be for the new timeline as I write it. Any and all suggestions are welcome. We will start with the new Pocket History, and then move into the timeline itself. Please note that the name of my "mysterious stranger" is in honor of the late Terry Amthor, since Shadow World will always serve as an inspiration to me.
POCKET HISTORYPART IUntold ages ago, a large island, or a small continent on some distant world was struck by a large crystalline rock from the sky. This meteor was magical in nature and it sent fractures through the fabric of the land and severed it from its connections to its original world, setting it adrift in the Ethereal Plane. Over time, this land moved from world to world phasing into existence and back out randomly, never settling in any one location.
As it drifted, this land, which later became known as Anwyn, was bathed in a pale blue misty light, never knowing either day or night unless it had phased into sync with a given world. Even then the pale mists still covered the land. At least until the
Anki arrived on Anwyn.
PART IIThe Anki were a very powerful and advanced race of skilled magic users. They were seeking enlightenment and ascension to the Upper Planes when they came upon Anwyn as it phased into sync with their own home world.
According to the few surviving records left by the servants of the Anki, the Anki moved to Anwyn while it was synced with their world. Anwyn was covered in ruins from other beings that had moved to Anwyn while it touched their worlds, only to die when it phased back to the Ethereal Plane. Recognizing that this was what had happened, the Anki devised a spell that would tie them to Anwyn as long as it was traveling to and from the Ethereal Plane, to keep them safe from the normal dangers found there.
The records also hint that the Anki were perhaps communing or conversing with a group of deities who wanted Anwyn to be stabilized and fixed into its own dimension, not phasing from one to the next. It is unknown how many years or possibly even millennia it took them to find a way to do this.
While the text do mention that it involved creating Anchors or Tethers, it gives no details and the texts end just before the Anki were to make their attempt.
Some scholars believe that the Anki botched their ritual, while others think that they forgot to include themselves in the ritual, leaving them stranded and dying within the Ethereal Plane, and yet a third school of thought believes that they may have achieved their ascension by performing this ritual. Scholars have yet to come up with any viable theories on how Anwyn, which is in a pocket dimension, has a Sun and a Moon, let alone seasons and weather.
PART IIIOne day, on many different worlds, there appeared a traveler who called himself Amddagr (pronounced AM-thohr). This traveler appeared many times over the course of several millennia, never seeming to age and simply disappearing if attacked. When he did appear, Amddagr would warn of impending natural disasters, all of which came true, and then he would disappear until danger threatened once again. Amddagr also become known as the Harbinger, and as the Doom Seer and many other similar names on the many different worlds where he appeared. He only showed up to warn or help others escape large dangers such as massive storms, volcanoes, and the occasional meteorites.
There came a day when the Harbinger appeared, prophesying doom for the entire world. He apparently appeared this way on several worlds, and gathered what peoples he could, telling them that he would lead them to a place of safety. He also explained to them that they would not be the only peoples that he was taking to that new world, as there were several other worlds also on the brink of being destroyed, and that he was trying to rescue them as well.
As he led these peoples to their new homes, travelling along what he called the Mother Roads and the Mother Currents, depending on the method of travel, he also taught them all a language called Ænglits, so that they could speak to one another. Each different group of people that Amddagr led to Anwyn were left in separate regions of Tir Tuath and Tir Caledi, but told where they could find the others.
Each group is given a rough map of Anwyn with the major regions named, along with the mountain ranges and many of the rivers in Tir Tuath.
Timeline- 0 CE – Amddagr teaches them a common language, leads several different groups of the D'Anui to the land just outside of an ancient city in ruins that lies on the western shore of Tir Tuath, next ot the Bay of Sorrows. He tells them that the city is called Hyb Rasil and that shall be their new home. There are two main groups of D'Anui, the Cymbrians who were led to Anwyn by sea and the Albyri, who were led to Anwyn along the Mother Roads. Along the southern coast of the Bay of Sorrows, lands the ships of the Zhuan, another group of humans, but who appear very different from the already diverse D'Anui to the northeast.
On the eastern coast of Tir Tuath, Sylvari and Verdyri, often called elves by the other Kins, make landfall where the river that becomes known as Avir Loddiel empties into the sea.
The Dvargr emerge from caves along the southern slopes of the Coastal Mountains. The Ethori also emerge from caves in the Bryni Weall, also called the Wall of Hills. The Aeshi step out of a wall of mist between two huge trees, look around and melt back into the forests of the Dark Woods, also known as Duin Weald.
Far to the northeast in Tir Caledi, The Odavi and the Risi also emerge from the mists on a small island in what is called the Mirr Afon. After some discussion Odavi head north looking for new homes while the Risi head south and intot he foothills on both sides of the long valley. Neither group is eager to enter the ancient forests to their east.
- 1 CE – The elves claim all of the lands north of the Coastal Mountains that lie to the east of Avir Loddiel to be theirs, calling it Ælftyr.
The Dvargr begin digging Nidrheim, what will become the capital city of their new nation of Chorak as the Ethori begin expanding their caves into becoming their capital city of Zhor Isin.
The Zhuan call their new nation Utara and begin building the port city of Kaido. - 2 CE – Nymeth is crowned first king of the Cymbrians. The Albyri refuse to recognize him as their king. This leads to much conflict between the two peoples.
- 3 CE – After a harsh winter and much squabbling with the Cymbrians, the Albyri decide to form their own nation of Albyr. As part of the settlement to avoid a war, no Cymbrian settlements are allows north of Rymus Afon, Afon Isi, and Afon Nzu.
- 4 CE – The Albyri decide to make their first settlements in the land between Rynus Afon and Feydd Afon. This allows them to open mines in the Ivory Cliffs.
- Other Anki structures, called Pylons, are discovered, but while they appear to have doors, nobody has been able to open them.
- 7 CE – The Odavi, encountering many dangerous creatures coming out of what they call Wybr Ghenfl, the Monster Pass, they move to the northeast into the area that becomes known as Xondaz to better protect themselves.
- 9 CE – The Albyri create the Achairi Cadhmr (Sowrd of the Plains), a group dedicated to protecting the northern plains of Tir Tuath from monsters.
- 15 CE – The Sylvari complete the initial construction of Yntys. The initial wooden construction is soon starting to replaced with more permanent structures, but it will take many years to complete this.
- 17 CE – The Utarans (Zhuan) complete there port city of Kaido, and begin looking for ways that they can expand.
- 11 CE – The Sylvari send groups of Verdyri traders and Sylveri diplomats to find the other Kins.
- 21 CE – The Utarans follow the river, Jhelu Ozen south to the great swamp and found the village of Kuril to begin exploiting the resources found there.
- 23 CE – Nuadd becomes king of the Cymbrians upon his father's death.
- 25 CE – The Zhuan split Utara into provinces based upon the rivers. There are only the two provinces to begin with, Kaido is in the western province of Tui [TWEE] and Kuril is located in the eastern province of Xin [SHIN].
- 27 CE – Nidrheim is completed.
- 31 CE – Nuadd becomes very ill and his cousin, Bresn ascends the Cymbrian throne.
- 33 CE – Zhor Isin is completed. King Bresn sends troops north to attempt to bring the Albyri under his rule. This begins what becomes known as the War of the Rose,as Bresn's heraldry includes that of a rose.
- 40 CE – A Risi healer figures out that Nuadd had been poisoned and is able to both cure him and restore him to full health. He begins his campaign to regain his throne. The start of this campaign effectively ends the War of the Rose.
- 42 CE – Nuadd regains his throne when Bresn is killed in battle. Nuadd sends a peace offering to the Albyri. They except, but are wary of the Cymbrians.
- 43 CE – The Ethori negotiate with the Dvargr to create another city within the foothills of the Coastal Mountains, and they begin working on Zhubroch.
- 50 CE – The first Tuathi Council is held at Yntys. The Dvargr propose a unified coinage standard to make trading easier. This also allows eachnation to make their own coinage as well. The Council also commissions several ships to circumnavigate Anwyn to find out how large it is. The Council agrees to meet every 10 years to discuss issues that affect all of the peoples of Anwyn. The Odavi and the Albyri both skip this Council.
- 53 CE – The initial survey of the coast line begins with ships heading west our of Hyb Rasil, and north out of Lyntis, with both groups mapping as they go.
- 55 CE –The initial survey of the coast of Anwyn is completed and the individual charts are compiled into a single cohesive map for the Council.
- 56 CE – The trading town of Na-Kutha is founded on the spit of land where Afon Kzal and Avir Loddiel meets, with Ælftyr being on the far side of the river, Avir Loddiel.
- 60 CE – The second Tuathi Council is held in Hyb Rasil. They commission a more detailed mapping of the coast lines. The Albyri attend this Council but insist that it no longer be held in Cymbri. The majority of the Council agrees to move back to Lyntis.
- 63 CE – The Dvargr travels to the edges of Duin Weald, the Dark Wood, and begin trading with the Aeshi. They are later joined by the Ethori, and this begins the founding of the village of Woodhaven.
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- 67 CE – The more detailed mapping of the Anwyn coasts is completed. Both groups lost several ships this time, as they put to shore for supplies and found unimaginable dangers along the most northern coasts, in those few locations where landings were possible
- 68 CE – King Nuadd signs a decree that all future kings of Cymbri must step down from the throne upon reaching 70 years of age. He then abdicates his thrown in favor of his grandson Lugus, who becomes king.
- 70 CE – At the Tuathi Council, the Sylvari lay claim to Tir Hoige, with the majority of the Verdyri planning on staying in Ælftyr. The Odavi still have not attended a Council meeting. The Aeshi express intrest in the Wraithwood since the Risi say that neither they nor the Odavi want anything to do with it. The Council determines to send an ambassador to the Odavi to find out why they have not attended and to see if they could get them to attend in the future. The Odavi Expedition is to meet in the spring of the following year, in Na-Kutha. The Council also decides that they need to form a guild of adventurers to explore the other regions of Anwyn more fully.
- 71 CE – The Aeshi send a large contingent to travel with the Odavi Expedition, to survey and prepare the Wraithwood for future Aeshi colonization. The Odavi Expedition is to be led by Risi from their own country of Nythm in the lower Mirr Valley.
- 72 CE – The expedition reaches the river known as Mirr Afon (Mirr River). The members of the expedition make a crossing to an island in the middle of the river while the majority of the Aeshi turn east into the Wraithwood itself. The expedition is met, on the island, by representatives of Odavi. The Odavi tell them of Wybr Ghenfl, the Monster Pass, which has kept them occupied since they discovered it, and which is the reason that they had not attended previous Councils.
- 73 CE – An agreement is reached where a small town, to be known as Mirrhyc, will be built across the river at this point. Adventurers will be allowed to travel from Mirrhyc to the Esker Highlands, by way of Wybr Ghenfl. All Odavi lands north and east of Bryni Aryfn, the Border Hills, are forbidden to non-Odavi without specific invitation.
- 75 CE – The first groups of adventurers head toward the Esker Highlands. None of these groups ever return.
- 76 CE – Small groups of Aeshi begin migrating to Canga Vytr, the Wraithwood. they are only rarely glimpsed while travelling.
- 78 CE – The Sylvari begin their migration west to Tir Hoige. They found the city of Avel Lin in a sheltered bay along its coast. A large number Verdyri also join this migration.
- 80 CE – The full Tuathu Council meets again in Yntys. During this meeting, Yntys is dedicated as the permanent home of the Tuathi Council. This meeting also serves officiate the commission of a new guild, the Explorer's Guild, which will work to help pair adventurers with others of a like mind to explore the wilderness.
- 87 CE – The Sylvari complete their migration to Tir Hoige.
- 92 CE – – First appearance of the creatures known as the Cobyn. They are first sighted in the northern peaks of the Costal Mountains. There appear to be 3 different subspecies of these creatures. The Cobyn appear to have an intense hatred of the Dvargr and the Aeshi in particular, attacking them on sight, regardless of the odds.
- 94 CE – Tribes of Cobyn begin appearing all over Tir Tuath. Some scholars believe that somebody may be bringing them to Anwyn via the Mother Roads, which were thought to be closed..
- 101 CE – A mage who had been thought lost on one of the early expeditions to the Esker Highlands, Gwyddion, shows up inside Hyb Rasil, exiting a misty portal, followed by a small horde of Cobyn. Once the Cobyn are loose in the city, Cobyn opens and disapears through another portal. According to one scholar who had known him before his ill-fated expedition, he appeared to have barely aged since he was last seen, and he also appeared to be using some strange crystals to open his portals.
- 102 CE – Due to the actions of actions of Gwyddion, a number of mages in Hyb Rasil band together to form a Mage's Guild, called the Vel'Dwym (Hall of Magic, in Ard Tafodd), to better regulate the use and learning of magic.
- 104 CE – Gwyddion looses some Cobyn in Tir Hoige and other locations around Anwyn. The Dvargr start hunting him in earnest after he releases some Cobyn into the tunnels of Nidrheim.
- 108 CE – King Lugus abdicates in favor of his son, Olthair.
- 110 CE – The Tuathi Council invite representatives of the recently formed Vel'Dwym to the Council meeting and ask them to find out how Gwyddion was getting to and from other worlds and to also put a stop to his attacks.
- 111 CE – The Vel'Dwym create the Shadow Hounds (Gwm'Godd), an organization within the Mage's Guild who is dedicated to bringing magic users who break the bylaws of the Guild to justice.
- 113 CE – TheDvargr, in conjunction with the Gwm'Godd, finally capture Gwyddion and they later report that they buried him alive with a cohort of Cobyn, after ensuring that there was no way that he would be able to cast any spells.
- 120 CE – A faction of Sylvari and Verdyri in Tir Hoige argue that perhaps Amddagr was wrong and that Gwyddion proves that they might be able to return home.
- 125 CE – The first expedition to Tuist Rhion returns bearing strange magical crystals that resemble those used by Gwyddion.
- 130 CE – Talyfr, an Ethori member of the Vel'Dwym continues his studies of the crystals from Tuist Rhion, in his attempts to access the Mother Roads. After some experimentation, it is determined that some of these crystals can be used to ease travel upon the Mother Roads.
- 132 CE – Talyfr creates the Wayfinder's Guild (Sgan Hivgar in Ethori), who offer their services to speed travel on Anwyn, using the crystals to travel the Mother Roads, but only to other locations on Anwyn. They have not yet discovered how to travel to other worlds. Travel using the Mother Roads is expensive, and not entirely accurate for its intended destination, so it remains rare.
- 137 CE – In Tir Hoige, the group of Sylvari and Verdyri who wish to return to their homeworld, chafing at the restrictions imposed by their leadership, all migrate to the forests on the northern coast of Tir Hoige to create their own nation of Challydd. . Within months of their arrival, the forest is encompassed by a misty barrier keeping all others out. The Sylvari chapter of the Vel'Dwym have no idea where they gained the power to erect such a barrier.
- 142 CE – King Olthair steps down in favor of Dibeldd.
- 145 CE – Sylvari scholars notice that there appears to be an increase in the number of portals to Tir Ysgarth, the land of Faerie. Their counterparts at Yntys in Ælftyr notice similar portals happening across Tir Tuath as well, though not as numerous is happening in the Faerie Mountains.
- 150 CE – Talyfr petitions the Tuathi Council to create an outpost closer to Tuist Rhion, to make it easier for the Sgan Hivar (Wayfinder's Guild) to gain access to the crystals. The Council takes it under advisement.
- 159 CE – An outbreak of the Dark Plague breaks out in Hyb Rasil and quickly spreads across most of Anwyn, killing about half the population of Anwyn over the course of the next 5 years.
- 160 CE – King Dibeldd dies from the Dark Plague without naming an heir. His two sons go to war with each other, both dying in the conflict. A cousin of the late king, name Fiach ascends the throne.
- 170 CE – The Tuathi Council commisions an expedition, by ship to find a place to create the outpost requested by the Wayfinder's Guild.
- 180 CE – The Tuathi Council decides to build not a simple outpost, but a whole city to support adventuring into the wilder regions of Anwyn. This city is to be called Hyb Ciuin and is to be ruled over by a triumvirate appointed by the Tuathi Council.
- 189 CE – Completion of the Kuor Chon, the wall of water, sometimes called a moat, which will separate the city of Hyb Ciuin from the rest of Anwyn. With this protection in place, work begins on building the city's walls as most workers simply camp inside the Kuor Chon for protection.
- 197 CE – King Adoryn ascends the throne of Cymbri.
- 200 CE – The elves within the misty barrier in northern Tir Hoige attempt a ritual to return them to their homeworld. Something goes disasterously wrong and those who are not killed outright are forever changed, becoming a new type of elf. They name themselves the Yddari, also known as the Dusk elves or Grey Elves. their forest is also changed, and they name it Llydd Dwyg, the Grey Wood. The misty barrier cutting them off from the rest of Anwyn also collapses at this time as well, sending a ripple of magic across Tir Hoige that anybody who is magically sensitive can feel.
- 202 CE – The Sylvari send an expedition to the north to see what caused the ripple of magic. The expedition discovers the Yddari, who refuse to talk about the misty veil or what happened to them within it.
- 204 CE – The city walls of Hyb Ciuin have been completed. Workers are brought in to construct the citadel, and various public buildings. The workers also build many smaller buildings as their own housing.
- 214 CE – A great fire destroys much of the city of Hyb Ciuin and killing most of its inhabitants. It was started when a cow that had been removed from the stockyards kicked over a lantern. This prompted laws that allowed livestock such as cattle and even animals used as mounts, to only be allowed in certain areas without a special permit. Even taking a mount from the docks to one of the authorized ostlers requires a permit.
- 230 CE – The Yddari make their debut at the Tuathi Council.
- 238 CE – The city of Hyb Ciuin is finished rebuilding. It becomes a hub of travel for those adventuring into the Tuist Rhion and into Ilthach as well.
- 241 CE – The Wayfinder’s Guild, using the crystals from Tuist Rhion, figure out how to access the Mother Roads of the Sea, sometimes called the Mother Currents to access other worlds.
- 244 CE – King Glyn ascends the Cymbrian throne upon the passing of his father.
- 247 CE – The first voyage to another world is made. During this first foray, they encounter people in a land known as Iweriu, a land with little magic. After spending nearly a year visiting the ports of Iweriu and the nearby land of Albyon, the Wayfinder is able to guide the ship to a second and a third and a fourth world before finally guiding the ship home, five years after it originally left.
- 259 CE – The Dark Plague strikes Anwyn again. This time it kills only a third of the population.
- 260 CE – King Madoc ascends the Cymbri throne after his father dies from the Dark Plague.
- 268 CE – The first Outsider enters Hyb Ciuin, brought back to the city by a group of adventures. They had found the stranger wandering about the Esker Highlands. Outsiders are what people who come from other worlds are called.
- 272 CE – The Wayfinders (Hivari) discover that the worlds from which they originally came are closed to them. After much research, scholars theorize that either the worlds no longer exist or that the connectionsare so severely damaged that it may take them millenia to regenerate
- 276 CE – Madoc's son Carydoc ascends to the Cymbrian thrown after his father dies in a hunting accident.
- 279 CE – Albyr expands to encompass the land between Rymus Afon and Afon Og.
- 300 CE – The Dark Plage strikes again, killing off half of the population.
- 302 CE – Carydoc passes away peacefully in his sleep, leaving his son Ricyn to become the new king of Cymbri.
- 305 CE – Hyb Ciuin declares its independence from the Council ruling it and decides that it will elect its own Govenor from its own people, with elections to be held once every 10 years.
- 319 CE – A group of adventurers discover that a Sylvari Priest of Balar is behind the periodic outbreaks of the Dark Plague. In battling and defeating him, the priest triggers a massive Wyrstorm that engulfs all of Anwyn for 3 days. Many towns and villages are destroyed because of the wild magic that the storm releases.
- 324 CE – Wyrstorms are becoming more and more frequent, although none have achieved the size of the first massive one.
- 330 CE – The Tuathi Council commissions the Vel'Dwym to come up with a solution to help protect against the Wyrstorms.
- 333 CE – The Vel'Dwyn come up with a rather simple solution, Storm Rods. Each rod is tipped with type of crystal that, once activated, attracts the lightning caused by a Wyrstorm. The rod then channels the magical energy back into the earth where it can dissipate harmlessly.This destroys the rod channeling the power, but they are easy to produce.
- 342 CE – Hyb Ciuin is attacked by a horde of zombies from Ilthach, under the control of a minor Lich. The adventurers within the city rally and destroy them all.
- 344 CE – Having no sons, King Ricyn declares that from now on, the throne shall pass to the eldest child, not the eldest son, and he passes the throne to his daughter Yleana, now Queen of Cymbri.
- 345 CE – Two of her Dukes and many of their Counts and Lords take up arms against the idea of a Queen being the ruler of Cymbri. Yleana herself leads her troops into battle, defeating the rebels easily, cementing her place as the Queen of Cymbri.
- 346 CE – The surviving nobles who took up arms in rebellion were stripped of their titles, ranks and wealth, and shipped off to Hyb Ciuin to serve as debt-slaves until they earn their freedom.
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- 405 CE – Aosath Bak leads a group of over 100 people out to create their own settlement outside of Cymbri, in the wilds of the Iron Hills.
- 422 CE – Aosath Bak passes away under unusal circumstances.
- 433 CE – Aosath Bak's son dies similar circumstances as his mother.
- 435 CE – The remaining few people from Aosath Bak's village return to Hyb Rasil, starving and disorientated. There are only a dozen of them left.
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- 529 CE – Hyb Ciuin decides that it needs to build an outer moat, so that it can use the land between the two moats as pasture land and for some minor farming to reduce their dependence on imported foodstuffs. The city starts on plans for where and how to get the new moat dug.
- 530 CE – Now
Note: the Cobyn are a humanoid creature that lives in caves. They have a single egg-laying queen per hive, regardles of how many females are in the hive, and when their numbers get too large, they will either war amongst themselves or a group will swarm, find and create a new hive.
