The Cataclysm

Disaster / Destruction

In the year 9th century of the Era of Freedom, a series of catastrophic events culminated into a period of time dubbed The Cataclysm. Some historians believe these events were linked while others believe them to be isolated events.

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The Disappearance of Yaosret, the Shepard Dragon of the Titanic Mountains.

The first event that plagued the Travenhall Empire was the disappearance of Yaosret. Without his protection, the monsters of the Titanic Mountains were able to migrate west throughout the lands of the empire. The migration was slow, but each year brought twice as many monsters as the last. By the end of the War for the Empire, the monsters became so numerous that the lands became impossible to inhabit without the help of the Phoenix Flame Crystals.

The Eshan Raun Invasion and the War for the Empire

One of the greatest wars ever fought in the written history of the empire was the War for the Empire. The Eshan Raun mobilized their forces under their Sovereign, Krezarax, and left devastation in their wake. As terrifying as they were already, their true horror was not realized until Sovereign Ringavere Collin was defeated in battle during the first Battle of Falia. Krezarax seized the sovereign throne and each of the 11 kingdoms of the empire were in far too much disarray of their own to challenge his rule.

The Planar Breach

Prior to the Cataclysm, Gaia was securely protected by a strong multidimensional sheath known to magical scholars as the Planar Barrier. The barrier kept most of the denizens of the Great Beyond from entering our world. Though it could not stop everything, the barrier was able to keep Beyonders of immense power from entering and only allowing a few isolated cases of lesser demons and other spirits to enter through the aide of conjurers. At the time, no one even knew of its existence because the protection it provided was so efficient. At some point during the War for the Empire, a section of the Planar Barrier was shattered causing a massive breach. This Planar Breach allows spirits, demons, celestials, fairies, and all manner of Beyonders to enter the world of the living much easier. Because of this, events such as ghost hauntings, demonic possessions, necrozoa hordes, and many other supernatural phenomena went from being isolated extremely rare occurrences to fairly common ordeals. People all over the world are suffering the side effects of the Planar Breach and each country has their own method of dealing with the threats they face from the Great Beyond.

The Desertion of the Gods

Towards the end of the War for the Empire, the Vatican Church of the Holy Trinity was at a loss for leaders. The Divine had passed without a prophet successor, the Cardinals had disappeared without a trace, and the entire clergy that remained began to lose their power. All that remained was the Paladin Order and their leader Paladin Grandmaster Author Gard. He held the church together by a thread, but its fall was inevitable without the power of the Old Gods. The church came to the conclusion that the world became unworthy of the God's love thanks to the atrocities committed by the Eshan Raun Cult. One thing was certain however, The Old Gods were nowhere to be found, and the world was coming to an end.

The Wrath of Caius

At the culmination of the War for the Empire, the god of shadows, Caius, was reborn into the mortal world. He was revived by Krezarax with the intention of harnessing the power of an infant god. The original Wings of the Phoenix were able to prevent Krezarax from absorbing the power of the Infant God, but were unable to stop Caius's invasion all together. They fought bravely against the power of the god and managed to hold him off long enough for the newly ascended Ranon the Phoenix to arrive with his army of light. Ranon was able to defeat Caius and reduce him back into divine matter from whence he came, but not before Caius had sacked the entire capitol killing thousands. This event marked both the end of the Cataclysm as well as the end of the last era.  

War Against the Gods

When the dust settled after the Cataclysm, Ranon was crowned Sovereign as well as divinus of the new church granting the newly formed title, Sovereign Prophet. His first decree as Sovereign Prophet was the declaration of war against the Old Gods. He told the people that the gods did not abandon them because of the Eshan Raun, but instead wished for the utter destruction of the mortal world. He said his sole purpose for becoming a god was to protect the people from both the Wrath of the Gods and from the terrors plaguing the land from the Titanic Mountains and Planar Breach. He declared all worship of the Old God's punishable by death, for it is through worship that gods attain much of their power.