Age of Cinder

The Setting

• World was filled with ash and lava rivers pouring everywhere, Volcanos instead of mountains
• There was little geysers that spewed creating more heat in this world
• It was hardly livable, till the Pyraxis ore was really founded
• One day a Dwarf founded the Pyraxis ore and others helped analyze it

Nations

Cindervale

• Oldest Nation
• History Obsessed, and conservative
• Many Laws to prevent another war but destroyed
• Still lives after the Age of Cinder

Thornreach -destroyed but area still survives

• Burnt plants that found away to grow even through the harsh conditions
• Known as a peaceful nation but very tense with the rising conflict

Stoneward

• Mountain nation formed from plugged and cooled volcano ranges
• First people to realize how to plug a volcano
• Strong dwarven and goliath heritage
• Holds the most accurate Age of Cinders records

Emberfall - destroyed

• Southern highlands and broken terrain
• Ruins everywhere, some still warm
• Destroyed in the War taken by Cindervale
• Rumors there are still Pyraxis there

Lakesong

• Founded by Wizards and Mages to create water
• Water never last long
• Trade-focused, culturally diverse

Species

Tieflings, Children of Heat

Tieflings were the most numerous people of the Age of Cinders.

Why they thrived:

• Natural resistance to fire and heat
• Cultural comfort with infernal environments
• High adaptability to Pyraxis use
• Seen as “blessed by the flame”

Tiefling societies:

• Formed early city-states around Pyraxis cores
• Became merchants, artificers, and rulers
• Were often blamed later for the war’s excesses

Modern prejudice against tieflings in Ashkara traces directly to this era.

Dragonborn , Forged for War

Dragonborn rose during the war itself.

Why they thrived:

• Natural elemental affinity
• Scales resistant to heat and shrapnel
• Martial cultures well-suited to endless conflict

Dragonborn:

• Were often bred or magically altered for battle
• Served as generals and champions
• Formed clan-legions rather than nations

Many modern Dragonborn bloodlines are genetically and culturally scarred by this age.

Goliaths, The Survivors of Stone

Goliaths lived where even lava could not reach.

Why they thrived:

• Natural resilience to extremes
• High-altitude survival in cooling volcanic peaks
• Stoneworking cultures independent of Pyraxis

Goliaths:

• Were miners, builders, and mountain wardens
• Often neutral during the war
• Remember the Age of Cinders more clearly than most

Their oral histories are some of the most accurate surviving accounts.

Dwarves, Masters of Pyraxis

Dwarves were the architects of the Age.

Why they thrived:

• Heat-resistant physiology
• Deep-earth living traditions
• Mastery of forging and mining

Dwarves:

• Discovered advanced Pyraxis shaping
• Created the first heat networks
• Controlled vast underground cities

Their decline began when Pyraxis veins collapsed and turned to ash.

Rarer Peoples During the Age

These races existed, but in small numbers:

• Humans (shorter lifespans struggled)
• Elves (magic-sensitive, ash-sickened)
• Halflings (nomadic scavengers)
• Orcs (outcasts, raiders, mercenaries)

Many modern populations expanded after the Age ended.

The Great Rebalancing (Post-Cinders)

As Ashkara cooled and healed:

• Humans expanded rapidly
• Elves returned to forests
• Halfling communities settled
• Mixed bloodlines became common
• Tieflings became outcast and not normal to see

War

• Lasted 200 years
• Outlived Nations

The war began with Pyraxis dependency, not conquest.

Once Pyraxis was discovered:

• Cities required it to survive
• Infrastructure depended on it
• Healing systems relied on it
• Armies needed it

Early War — The Claim Years (Years 1–40)

• Fighting centered around mines and heat networks
• Battles were limited and strategic
• Tiefling city-states held major Pyraxis reserves
• Tieflings were seen as essential, not feared

During this era, Tieflings:

• Dominated governance and infrastructure
• Served as engineers, healers, and administrators
• Were trusted because they understood heat

Middle War — The Endless Ember (Years 40–160)

This is when Ashkara broke.

What Changed:

• Pyraxis weapons became widespread
• Heat-based healing extended the lives of rulers and generals
• Entire cities were “burned cold” by heat extraction
• Overmining destabilized the land itself

Late War — The War Without Heirs (Years 160–200)

By now:

• Most original nations no longer existed
• Records contradicted each other
• Soldiers fought for warmth, not victory
• Pyraxis ash poisoned land and water

Fear replaced reason.

Tieflings became:

• Symbols of the old order
• Convenient scapegoats
• Accused of hoarding Pyraxis
• Blamed for prolonging the war

Pogroms began before the war even ended.

The End

• Rescources stretched thin
• Pyraxis became the rareist thing
• One hero from stornward and his party made a plan to seal the volcanos of the nations, it was the first time that peace was forged in years.

New Beginnings

Wizards and Mages became resourceful for agriculture and water,

with no heat rain was allowed to come down

for years it rained and rain, creating lakes and established oceans and rivers

Grass and plants started grow, and now became a normal world