• The Days of Thunder

  • -35000 DR to -30000 DR

    Merrouroboros circa -35,000 DR

    This earliest days of recorded history begins at the end of a great Ice Age, some 37,000 years ago, when the last glaciations largely ended and the great ocean receded to reveal dry land. In this ancient time before The Sundering, the lands which would one day be identified as Faerun, Kara-Tur, Maztica, and Zakhara were each but one part of a much larger super-continent named Merrouroboros.

    While life spread quickly, none of the dozen or so common races which populate the world today existed in this distant era. Merrouroboros knew none of the civilized folk - elves, dwarves, halflings, or gnomes. Nor did the savage peoples - goblins, orcs, ogres and their kin - inhabit the land. Though humans did exist during this time, they were primitive and apelike, using only simple tools and living in caves. Unintelligent reptiles known as Thunderers ruled the land, sea, and sky. By the end of the first millennium post Ice Age, primitive bands of hunter-gatherer lizardfolk lived along the fertile waters of the Goldenwater in modern-day Durpar, exploiting game, lake-fish, and wild plants of all kinds. Unlike the Thunderers, the sauroids possessed superior intellect and tactical sense. In time they would become known as the sarrukh, the first of the mighty creator races, also known as Iqua-Tel'Quessir. »

  • c. -24400 DR

  • The elf city of Occidian is sacked by a horde of orcs led by the abyssal fiend Haeshkarr, which then attacks Sharlarion. The horde and Haeshkarr are defeated by the elves at great cost. »

  • The First Flowering

  • -24000 DR to -12000 DR
    The Sundering

    Faerun, circa -23,000 DR

    The great elf civilizations of Faerun reach their peak during this age. As a result of the elves' success against the orcs, dragons, and giants, the other races thrive in safety and begin the slow climb to civilization.

    During the next several millennia, elf civilizations mark time by the reigns of rulers. The Elven word rysar is used to define a span of important time or generation, depending on its context. As a time measurement in this context, one Rysar encompasses the reign of a particular ruler, or coronal. »

  • -10700 DR

  • Battle of the God's Theater
    The God's Theater (present-day the Tunlands) on eastern Shantel Othreier is the site of one of the largest and costliest of all the Crown Wars' battles. Nearly 70,000 elves died at the hands of elf and orc enemies, as an orc horde 100,000 strong fell upon the already embattled elves. Aryvandaar won the day, and occupied the northern half of Shatel Othreier. »

  • -8210 DR

  • The non-gold elf clans of Ilodhar abandon that realm due to constant harassment by orcs and ogres. Several clans travel north to Rystall Wood, while others travel east to western Arcorar. »

  • -7400 DR

  • The elf realm of Ilodhar falls under an orc horde. »

  • The Third Rysar of Uvaeren begins after the sudden death of the coronal while hunting. The new coronal Kiyuigh, is more militarily disposed and begins proactively attacking orcs and giants in the mountains. »

  • -6400 DR

  • The elves meet the dwarves of Sarphil on the battlefields of the Vast and forge a tenuous alliance since the elves save the dwarves from death at the orc's hands. »

  • -3655 DR

  • Orcs pour forth from the Spine of the World, but the elves of Eaerlann and Illefarn turn them back with help from the fledgling Netherese Empire and the Reingarth barbarians. The tribal lands of the Rengarth are absorbed into Netheril, although the barbarians remain largely autonomous. »

  • -3611 DR

  • Gharraghaur becomes the first of the great dwarf kingdoms to fall to orc attacks. Its people are too busy mining to arm themselves in numbers enough to withstand the orcs before it is too late. »

  • -3605 DR

  • Orcs pour from the Spine of the World but elves turn them back in a great slaughter with help from the fledgling Netheril. This orc incursion lasts nineteen years. »

  • -3389 DR

  • The dwarf realm of Haughdannar falls. The sea is thought to have driven the dwarves of Haunghdannar mad; the realm rapidly dwindled as ship after ship that put out did not return, except for small fishing boats that never left the sight of land. The land was overrun by bugbears, trolls, ogres and orcs. »

  • -3386 DR

  • Hoyden is established by elves seeking to end the squabbling between the nations of Eaerlann, Miyeritar, and Illefarn. Hoyden enjoys a peaceful existence with the sylphs and pixies. Each helped the other in dealing with the troublesome orcs of the Hidden Forest; the orcs, in turn, quickly learned to leave Hoyden alone, though infrequent tests of the village's defenses were not unheard of. »

  • c. -3259 DR

  • The community of Unity is established sometime in this era. This community is named after a promise made by humans, elves, and dwarves to unite against the onslaught of goblin and orc raiding parties. Unity serves as a base of operations against the warring goblinkind until the elves' and dwarves' civilization finally collapsed.

    Unity comes to be the home of the largest temple to Amaunator, the Forest Enclave of the Face of the Sun. »

  • -3145 DR

  • Ioulaum leads the Netherese against a horde of orcs from the Rampart Peaks gathering near the southern edge of the Plain of Standing Stones. While the orcs retreated, Ioulaum was satisfied, and began scouting, tracking and scrying for the orc's homeland, and finding them in the knolls surrounding the Canton River. Ioulaum begins a war called "Excursion into Extinction" that lasted 16 months. He sacrifices 32000 troops, but kill 140000 orcs. The two mountains where the war is set become know as Bone Hill and Thunder Peak. The resulting extermination of the orcs allows Netheril to expand unchecked both south and west. »

  • -2716 DR

  • The Netheril city of Arctic Rim is established. The city is credited for being the northernmost Netherese city, but only 100 people lived there. Some claimed that it wasn't a real city since it was merely an outpost for the Netheril militia to keep a close watch on the Rengarth Tundra as well as remain alert for any large force of orcs or other goblinkind. »

  • -2646 DR

  • Whether the dwarves of Delzoun struck a mother lode of precious metals or just decided to increase trade is unknown, but Northreach of Netheril is virtually buried beneath ship after ship of gold, silver, platinum, and bronze. The population doubles, despite a vicious winter that sees the residents battling orc tribes that were starving out on the Rengarth ancestral lands. »

  • -2103 DR

  • A horde of orcs from the Spine of the World, led by giants and their ogre generals, crushes the human civilization of Illusk despite aid from Netherese arcanists led by Jeriah Chronos the Chronomancer. »

  • -1895 DR

  • When Netheril first hit its magical peak, Macht Lake is named after the Rengarth word for "power" or "might". Despite the fertile land around the lake, however, no villages or outposts placed there survive very long due to the merrow population. The aquatic ogres proved ruthless in their dealing with any creatures they came across; orc, human, or otherwise. »

  • -1645 DR

  • Quagmire fields more than 20,000 troops to battle an orc horde that thundered its way across the ancestral lands of the Rengarth on their way toward the heartland of Netheril. While more than 11,000 Quagmire troops died, they claimed more than 150,000 orcs, sending the creatures scurrying back into the Barren Mountains and western forests.

    In many ways, Quagmire serves as a force of arms for Netheril, sending its warriors out to problem areas throughout the kingdom. Wherever there was a chance for combat, warriors and priests of Targus (Garagos) are present. Even many of the grounding cities sent their warriors to Quagmire so that they could be prepared for the orc, kobold, and goblin battles that awaited them. »

  • -1561 DR

  • Death of General Matick of Netheril.
    Mathick was a ruthless man with a violent streak as long as a dragon's tail. He joined the ranks of Seventon's army and began a rapid climb to the top (sometimes through the attrition of his superiors). During his life he thwarted over 30 minor goblin assaults, and his successes were legendary even during his own life. The ratio of Netherese losses in relation to enemy kills were the lowest of any general in the nation's history.

    Matick was believed to have slaughtered over 25,000 orcs, 35,000 goblins, 2,000 trolls, and about 5,000 halflins and elves (whom he hated feverishly). The general was also said to have been responsible for the creation of three spells that eventually become armor, magic missile, and shield, but sages believe he actually had these spells commissioned. »