Cnuic Ghlainne

Legends state that early in the 1st Age of A'arde, during the initial world rebuilding efforts, Cnuic Ghlainne was gifted to Titania, Goddess-Queen of the Fey, as thanks for their part in the defense of A'arde after the fall of the Antimagic Curtain. Titania initially had no use for it, but then gifted the land to the newly Risen Elven Gods as part of their attempt to save their people, the Cymry, from annihilation. The magic and materials of the land were used to create new bodies for the Cymry, and the first Elves were created from the land of Cnuic Ghlainne. The continent then became the homeland of the Elves, as well as a staging point for many Sylvan excursions during the first through third Ages.

After the Green Knight Massacre toward the end of the 3rd Age, the majority of the Fey withdrew from A'arde, leaving only a skeleton crew of Guardians and Watchers, and making Cnuic Ghlainne a predominantly Elven continent. The Ruin of the Floating Cities, soon afterward, saw many places within Cnuic Ghlainne destroyed and forests burned as pieces of the Cities fell onto the continent. Of the cities within, Dinas Caercoed and Gearastan Uaine were the worst hit by the falling debris, while both the Grand Temple of the Shining Circle and the Grand Temple of the Seelie Court at Rathad an Àilein were completely destroyed. The Capital of Caerdydd Newydd managed to avoid complete destruction due to the raising of an Arcane Barrier, which likely protected the continent from being completely razed because of the Weave Well beneath the city. However, most of the outer city districts were lost, more than half the city's mages were killed in the act of raising the barrier, and the River Dyf was severely polluted by magical fallout. Despite all this, Cnuic Ghlainne fared better than most continents due to the natural protective magics in the area that burned up many of the larger pieces of City that fell toward the land.

The Age of Chaos was a particularly difficult time for Cnuic Ghlainne, as it was under constant attempted assault by Fiends seeking the power of both the Seat and the Weave Well. Damage to the Arcane Weave, and the thinning of the Veils between the Material Plane and the Planes of Navia, meant that Cnuic Ghlainne was particularly vulnerable due to their high concentrations of Arcane power. This meant that the Elves were in a constant state of siege warfare, where they were the besieged, and there was no way for anyone to come to their aid as ships and shipbuilding of anything larger than a sloop were made impossible by constant assaults from Fiends elsewhere in the world. It took centuries before the Elves were able to repair their magical defenses to a point that they could safely start repairing the Weeping Tears that allowed Planar Portals to be created.

Entry into Cnuic Ghlainne is strictly controlled, and gaining permission to visit can take years. Because of this, the most frequent visitors to the continent are a select group of merchants and ambassadors.