The Third Age (Humanity), Part Two: Year 1709 and Beyond

1709

November 9 (Sat) All but Burne enter Castle Ashaba. Minotaur in the gallery; troglodytes upstairs; weird tentacle snakey thing. Castle empty. Grimlocks in the dungeon. Burne can now enter. Cries for help in the darkness. More dark-skinned strangers (Shadow of Semerius). Party meets Connor. Castle occupants freed from dungeon cells. Tiger surprise. Ancient crypt. Magic portal. Tunnel to underground river, bridge. Water monster. Strange masks. Large room with an altar, incense burner, hole in ceiling; this is the source of the poisonous vapor that surrounds the sinkhole of the collapsed temple on the surface. The masks provide protection from the vapor. Party removes white rock from burner; vapors cease. Ian climbs up to hole. Gregory removes mask, collapses; Burne revives him.

November 8 (Fri) Morning meeting with Boragard and friends. "Let's go destroy the town!" Party turns coat on the way; battle on horseback chase on the road into town. Archer bullyboy escapes. Peace returns in Shadowdale. Party discusses, helps. Gregory learns of lost children. Party travels to an unoccupied mill, where dark-skinned men (Shadow of Semerius) with an unknown language search for something. Party travels to source of stream. Girl found (named Liz). In cave, boy rescued from crevice (with box). Ghouls, a ghast, a wight; mysterious voices. Hasty exit. Forest hides flitting shadows. During return to town, Liz shares dreams. 'Box of the Planes' examined. Posse arrives from neighboring lands. Ian climbs the old tower; Luc and Rahnellus investigate the castle; Gregory, Burne, and Beregon examine the mysterious burned area. That night, a veteran adventuring party passes through; stories and skills are shared.

November 7 (Thur) Trail in woods; spyglass scuffle; items found. Clearing, old stone marker with names of another party (long dead?). Camp of strangers. Decrepit wyvern. Statues of other party found. Patrolling hobgoblins with magic. More Zhentarim, specifically Chronomancers: Vendren, Shelledai, Utuaan. Time askew yet again; party destroys crystal ball after passageways of time and an endlessly repeating battle (fought by themselves, many times prior, to their deaths). Zhentarim share some information, then send party to Shadowdale. Party arrives in Shadowdale, scattered about the area. Gregory and Luc investigate farms, meet Bullyboyz. Burne, Rahnellus, and Ian confront Bullyboyz at bridge. Party regroups at road battle. Retreat to Beregon's home. Boris arrives, injured. Rest; midnight scouting. Castle Ashaba enchanted with sleep spell. Rahnellus brings forth a boat, via his wand. Party confronts Bullyboyz in various places; eventually joins the gang, to learn more about them.

November 6 (Wed) Party arrives in the Dalelands by sunset. Light snow. Stone hostel; hand with dish. Rest, healing. Night: dire wolves attack strange foreigner (oriental); party takes his armor (samurai-like), buries him. Later: an ancient/current stronghold. Time askew; party flipped back and forth between ancient past and present. Giants with human slaves. Strange ritual with red-robed figures; nude female about to be sacrificed. Manticore appears and roars; dragons fill the sky. Volcano erupts. Party returns to present.

November 5 (Tue) Minor earthquakes. Roc attacks. Goblin tribe crossfire. Party fights amongst themselves. Cave with flying heads, tiny statuette, demon painting. Ian goes mad, Gregory almost dies. Gregory to Rhannelous, pointing into the pit: "You need to be down *there*!" Secrets revealed? Luc falls into pit. Luc levitated out of pit, apparently by the demon Shadath: "This one is mine, with whom I am pleased." Party meets Telemon, who shares information. Night in Shadow Gap.

November 4 (Mon) Blue light; tunnel; underground. Tentacles; group discovers bodies of another party around a pit, and finishes incantation which prevents Ishled from rising. Giant ants, weak dwarven skeletons, stirges, ores. Drider and drow. Merkus names Kimian as a way out, and dies. Hanlan says "Hellgate Keep awakens"; tells Burne to "stand." Iduna bound in webbing: "They're real... run." Kimian killed by drow. Illithid sends party back; "This is not your concern." Night in Shadow Gap­

November 3 (Sun) Party passes old site of Trinson home. Shadow Gap. Ettin attacks camp. Mugh (pronounced "moog") passes through. Night in Shadow Gap. Methialas' balloon seen passing silently among the stars.

November 2 (Sat) Party discusses recent events. Cornelius, an associate of Methialas, asks about black powder. Hasterites known as the Order of the Shining Dawn arrive in Tilverton by the hundreds on horseback, determined to take control; party runs them out of town. Mid-morning, the party departs for Shadowdale. Sendant farm in evening: vines amuck.

November 1 (Fri) Party returns to Tilverton, which is troubled by a gender crisis and mirples at play. Amulet mystery solved. Meanwhile, Mourgrym leads an expedition ofwarriors to Daggerdale (4 days' ride).

October 31 (Thur) Party departs Thunder Peaks, camps in foothills. Meanwhile, 'Party X' departs for Shadowdale this morning, arriving at the Sendant farm this night.

October 30 (Wed) News arrives in Shadow dale that a threat of some kind, originating from the Desertmouth Mountains, endangers nearby Daggerdale. In the Thunder Peaks, the party rescues a pair of would-be prospectors from a hungry dire bear. Spiral cave with pits of black sand and ancient paintings of humans and a manticore. Explosion. Narrow crevice and sentries. Gruhn; bowl games. Red gems of charismatic power. Hall of murals ends with stone golems that guard the tomb of Tilvernus. Flames, escape underground, pit of darkness, illithid. Camp in the cave, Gregory ill, silence. Methialas abducts Gruhn's body. Giant balloon. Strange comments made. "A tiefling!" Meanwhile, another adventuring party arrives in Tilverton and accepts the job of finding out what happened to Castilion.

October 29 (Tue) Party leaves for Thunder Peaks; camps in foothills.

October 28 (Mon) News of Castilion's death reaches Tilverton. Winter's Edge Festival spoiled by unprecedented goblin raid. Shadowy figures seen at the Aldersons. Something about a pendant. A chill at Mystra's Shrine.

October 27 (Sun) Luc the bard arrives in Tilverton to perfonn during the Festival.

October 26 (Sat) Rahnellus' travelling party is attacked by goblins. Boris' mother tends to Rahnellus and sets him up at the Tilverton Inn. He can remember nothing prior to this date.

October 21 (Mon) Mourngrym sends a messenger to Tilverton.

October 20 (Sun) Temple collapses in the night. Sinkhole, rubble. Castilion believed to be in the temple at the time. Acolytes attempting rescue are overcome by a deadly unseen vapor that remains localized around the site.

June 15 Temple opens for worship (construction continues).

April 1 Construction of a unified temple begins on Beregon's land.

March 7 Castillion arrives in Shadowdale. Stays at the Boardinghouse for a week, then takes a room at Beregon Hilstar's place.

March 1 Castilion departs for Shadowdale.

1709

The Third Age (Humanity), Part One: Year -200 to the Year 1709

1708/9 During the winter, Father Castillion (age 69) announces his intention to leave Tilverton and found another unified temple in the distant Dalelands.

1708 Boris Borovich's father is killed in a goblin raid. Boris (age 21) and his mother move into town. Boris joins the militia and begins hiring himself out as a farmhand.

1707 Calleum visits Burne for the last time, before setting out on an unnamed quest.

Ian (age 18) has a life-changing adventure.


1701 Luc the bard (age 17) first performs in villages along the Moonsea Road, and appears for the first time in Tilverton.

1699 Fire at the Sendant farm. Gregory's parents and his younger sister perish. Eldest brother William takes over the farm. Gregory is 12 years old.

1694 Burne Trinson's parents are killed in a goblin raid. Burne is 6 years old. Calleum, a paladin who stopped the raid, takes Burne to the temple where Calleum's older brother, Graham Castillion, is head priest. Castillion assumes responsibility for raising the boy.

1689 Ian is born in Tilverton.

1688 Burne Trinson is born on a family fann near Shadow Gap.

In Tilverton, a group of worshippers citing spiritual differences peacefully breaks off from the unified temple and founds a monastery in the mountains to the east. It is unlikely that these events are related.


1687 Gregory Sendant and Boris Borovich are born in Tilverton.

1684 Luc is born in Arabel.

1681 Castillion, age 41, unifies the worship of Tilverton's most popular gods into a single temple.

1660 Graham Castillion, age 20, leaves his birthplace of Suzail and arrives in Tilverton. Here he founds a temple to Lliira, the goddess of liberty and celebration.

1656 Azoun's forces meet those of the city-states of Marsember and Suzail at the Battle of Starwater. Azoun's army is routed, and all cities and towns of Cormyr return to local control. Tilverton is liberated by default.

1655 The first assembly of Hasterites appears in Waterdeep. The teachings of this militant sect spread almost as rapidly as those of the Iminians. Once the Hasterite philosophy takes root in a town, city, or region, those still studying and practicing magic quickly go into hiding to avoid persecution and (in some cases) death.

Also around this time, worship of most deities begins to wane; a movement to unify worship of several deities into one temple/service appears in some cities.


1653 Azoun IV secures Cormyr's northern borders by seizing the small town of Tilverton.

1647 Azoun IV launches a campaign to unite the lands of Cormyr under one banner. In the years to come, he manages to unite Arabel, Immersea, and Hultail.

1640 Graham Castillion is born in the Cormyran city of Suzail.

1600 Iminians (so the followers of Haster's teachings call themselves) can be found as far south as Amn and as far east as Thay.

The study and practice of magic is rapidly waning.


1589 Haster is killed (or martyred, depending on one's beliefs) by a group of wizards who fear the people's zeal for Haster's teachings.

1550 Conventional record-keeping flags this year as the end of the Time of Conflict, although wars continued in several regions. The choice of this date has much to do with the rapid spread of Haster Iminius' teachings, which by now are spreading far beyond Waterdeep.

It is also accepted that the Age of Reason began at about this time. note: this is a somewhat colloquial use of the word "Age," in the sense that it represents a change in popular thought rather than the beginning of a new epoch.


1549 Tilverton founded.

1548 Haster Iminius begins teaching in Waterdeep.

1525 The Third Great Plague rages across the northern lands.

1522 Humans settle in the Tilver Plain.

1488 Cormyr and Sembia fall into civil war, and later collapse.

1482 The Second Great Plague cripples the lands surrounding the Inner Sea.

1401 The First Great Plague decimates the Old Kingdoms: Unther, Calimshan, Tethyr, Chessenta, The Akanal, Threskel, Mulhorand, Chondath, and Sespech; as a result, all fall into chaos and disorder, never to recover.

1380 In the vacuum created by the Great Retreat, wars erupt across all of Faerun. The Time of Conflict begins.

1350 The kingdoms of Cormyr and Sembia are founded. Additional kingdoms appear in the northern lands.

1349 By this year, all Elves have departed Faerun; tales speak of pocket kingdoms remaining in remote forests far to the north, however.

1344 Mystra's Tear appears in the heavens. ("Mystra" is the human goddess of magic, most likely borrowed from the Elven deity Mystren.) At this time, it becomes undeniable that magic is fading from the world.

The Elven civilization begins the Great Retreat. Elven ships set sail in massive numbers for a distant land across the sea.


1324 By this time, humans are settling in the lands north of the Inner Sea.

1226 Humans settle in the Dalelands, the heart and center of Elven civilization.

The last Standing Stone is erected in Cormanthor, although humans rarely venture into what is left of the heart of the great forest.


1182 Humans migrate in droves to the regions now known as Cormyr and Sembia.

A Standing Stone is erected in Hullack Forest.


1130 By this year human settlements ring the entire Inner Sea.

Standing Stones now appear in Yuirwood, The Forest Lethyr, Rawlinswood, and the Grey Forest.


1088 The town of Waterdeep founded.

1000 By this year, humans had settled along the Sword Coast all the way to modern day Waterdeep.

973 Humans first settle in the land known now as Turmish.

A Standing Stone is erected in the Gulthmere Forest.


888 The fall of Myth Drannor, the greatest Elven city. No records reveal what caused it. Many believe this was the beginning of the end for the Elven civilization.

803 The kingdom of Sespech splits off from Chondath.

A Standing Stone is erected in the Winterwood.


668 The kingdom of Chondath founded.

A Standing Stone is erected in the Chondalwood.


432 After a century of civil war, Chessenta splits into Chessenta, The Akanal, Threskel, and Mulhorand.

291 The kingdom of Chessenta founded.

136 The kingdom of Tethyr splits off from Calimshan.

129 The kingdom of Calmishan founded.

30 The first Human Kingdom is founded in Unther. The term "kingdom" is used generously. It will be several centuries before any human kingdom becomes a cosmopolitan center and a force to be reckoned with. Until then, Elves barely take notice of these fledgling human empires.

Year 1: Elves officially allow humans to dwell in the regions of modem-day Unther, the Border Kingdoms, and Calimshan. The first Standing Stones (signifying the peaceful coexistence of both races) are erected in Methwood, Thornwood, and the Forest of Mir.

Year -100 (approx.) Human settlements appear north of Shaar, in the southernmost region of modern-day Unther.

In the west, human settlements begin moving northward around the edge of the Shining Sea.


Year -200 (approx.) Humans, migrating northward, settle in the lands south of Shaar (a vast lowland waste), in a region known today as Halruaa. The first records of humans in greater Faerun place them in tiny settlements along the northern and eastern shore of the Great Sea in the years prior to this.

The Second Age (Elvenkind): Year -3200 to the Year -200

The Elven Kingdoms appear, naming the world "Faerun."

At this time, the world is covered by the great forest Cormanthor. The Elves develop arcane (non-divine) magic, and use it to do wondrous things beyond imagining. They bring with them their own gods - the main one being Corellon Larethian. A secondary god, Mystren, is referred to as the Creator of Magic. (The name is significant because it is believed by many that the human goddess Mystra is a borrowed - and renamed - deity.)

The Elven tales speak of "Shadow Elves," a sort of dark mirror image of the Elven race. Little is known about these fanciful bogeymen, but they are often used today to frighten children into good behavior.

The First Age (Dwarvenkind): Year -5200 to the Year -3200

After the Great Thaw, the Dwarven Kingdoms begin to appear.

Tales speak of endless mountain ranges and a hard, rugged land. Dwarves build vast empires in and under the mountains. Frequent conflicts and wars occur between Dwarves and Giants. Some of the later, lesser-known tales speak of the Dark People, or the Dark Ones - a mysterious enemy that wreaks unknown havoc upon the Dwarven race shortly before their disappearance from the world stage.

Magic at this time is exclusively divine in nature.

It should be noted that while the Age of Dwarves describes the 2,000 years following the Great Thaw, some tales refer to Dwarves thriving (in much smaller numbers) for many centuries (millennia?) long before the coming of the Thaw. Conventional wisdom believes this to be highly improbable.

Though legends speak of Dwarven kingdoms still thriving deep within the mountains of the Great Glacier, few believe such fanciful stories.

Prehistory: The Time Before the Year -5200

The world is a barren, frozen waste. Glaciers cover the land.

Legend states that the Dragons and the Fey were the first inhabitants of Faerun, followed by the Galub Duhr. Also, the Demon Kings are said to have ruled Faerun at some distant time in the past. At what points in history any and all these powerful creatures appeared, held sway, and eventually disappeared is unknown.