Timeline

The History of the Valley

~10,000 years ago

The first human tribes migrate to the world through portals near the Western Icefields and settle along the Western Central Plains.

~8,000 years ago

First major wave of Orc migration.

Early Orcs settle in the lower mountains of the Western Expanse and raid the human settlements.

The First Orc War begins.

~7,500 years ago

The First Human Empire is established.

Orcs are driven from most settled lands.

First permanent settlements established in the Eastern Ice Fields.

~6,500 years ago

First major Dwarven settlement built along the Northern Wall.

First recorded Fairy Storm splits the Human Empire. The magical storm lasts three years.

The First Human Empire collapses into civil war.

First permanent Dark Elf city established in the deep caverns.

First organized expeditions explore the extensive cave systems beneath the Central Plains.

~6,000 years ago

Second wave of Orc migration.

Second wave of human migration.

First Elven warband forms. The First Elven-Orc War begins.

~5,500 years ago

The College of Magic is established in Rial along the Ironwater River.

~5,500 - ~4,500 years ago

The Golden Age of Man in the southern and western valley.

Most human cities unite under a loose Human Alliance.

~4,500 years ago

Third Human-Orc War.

The city-state of Haban declares war on the Kingdom of Wel, breaking the Human Alliance.

The Golden Age of Man ends.

~4,300 - ~1,500 years ago - The Dark Ages

Dozens of small human kingdoms rise and fall.

Large orc clans raid constantly across the valley.

Elven civilization nearly destroyed by continuous orc attacks.

The Golden Age of Orcs.

~4,000 years ago

First dragons arrive in the valley.

First recorded dragon sighting.

~1,500 years ago

The massive volcano Omen erupts in the Central Sea. Dark smoke clouds cover the skies for years.

Orc Chieftain Kargrag rises to power, possibly driven by prophecy of the Dark Sun. He wages war against the more violent orc clans to secure his position. Kargrag forces peace with other races and breaks the power of the raiding chieftains. A new, more settled orc civilization emerges.

~1,500 - ~500 years ago

The Golden Age of the New Orcs.

The orc artisan N'gol creates most surviving orc artwork. N'gol eventually settles among the elves.

~1,300 years ago

Unified orc culture reduces raiding across the valley.

Safer trade routes between western city-states lead to closer political ties and the founding of the Western Empire.

~1,000 years ago

The dragon Eabuth arrives and establishes her lair high on the Northern Wall. Her presence disrupts mining operations across the north.

Seeking new mineral sources, humans push south into traditional dwarven territories.

Disputes over mining rights along the Southern Wall lead to the First Human-Dwarven War.

The prolonged war and mineral shortages strain the Western Empire. The empire collapses with the death of King Arleman.

~500 years ago

The dragon Woon arrives and settles in the orc cities of the Eastern Mountains, driving the orcs from their ancient homes and shattering the unified central orc region.

Tolokgrag, the last great orc chieftain, dies. The orc clans fragment and scatter.

~400 years ago

The Hundred Year Storm.

A combination of severe weather patterns, brutal winters in the north, and three major Fairy Storms creates nearly sixty years of natural disasters, isolating settlements across the valley.

Trade networks collapse. Many cities are abandoned when they can no longer feed themselves.

~350 - ~300 years ago

The Good Years.

Several decades of recovery, growth, and relative peace for most settlements.

~300 years ago

The Cold Summers.

Poor harvests drive widespread famine. Arleman the Great (Arleman II) rises and launches a campaign to unite the known world under his rule.

Over the next 30 years most major settlements are conquered - human, orc, elf, and dwarf alike. All significant military forces are crushed or absorbed.

The Second Empire is founded, the largest in the valley's history.

~270 years ago

Major cities are founded and unified in the northern mud hills.

The first great guild halls are established.

Industries develop throughout the northern forests and foothills to support the empire's military campaigns.

~250 years ago

Arleman the Great is assassinated in Rial.

The empire had been held together primarily by Arleman's military forces and personal authority. A succession crisis fragments the empire as regions support different claimants.

Regional conflicts escalate into city-against-city warfare. The Second Empire collapses over the following two centuries.