Historical Events of Arcanthea

History in Arcanthea is written by survivors, which explains why most accounts focus on the dramatic failures rather than quiet successes. Here are the events that shaped the world I stumble through:

The Lost Island of Aetheris

15,000 years ago

The Crown of the Celestine Isles, most advanced sky island in High Elf history, mysteriously fell from the heavens into ocean depths. The High Elves there were considered nearly divine for their magical mastery, which makes their complete annihilation even more unsettling.

📜 Event Summary

  • Date: Approximately 15,000 years before present
  • Location: Celestial Abyss (deep ocean trench)
  • Casualties: Entire population of Aetheris
  • Cause: Unknown, theories range from magical catastrophe to divine punishment
  • Legacy: Dragons and Old Aetherian language

Remnants lie in the Celestial Abyss, a deep trench protected by magical anomalies and violent storms. Expeditions form regularly; none return with anything except trauma and debt.

Fyrie plays mournful melodies when discussing Aetheris: ancient loss, forgotten songs

I’ve been invited to three different Aetheris expeditions. I declined all three because I prefer my disasters smaller and more personal. The ocean has enough mysteries without adding my corpse to them.

The Fall of Razrias

2,000 years ago

Prosperous Ajin kingdom at the Adamantine Range’s base, twelve clans united after centuries of warfare. An unknown Primordial manifested during celestial alignment, leading to coalition warfare involving humans, elves, and dwarves.

📜 Event Summary

  • Date: Approximately 2,000 years before present
  • Location: Adamantine Range foothills
  • Participants: Razrias kingdom, multi-racial coalition, unknown Primordial
  • Outcome: Mutual annihilation—Primordial destroyed, coalition army obliterated
  • Survivors: Scattered Ajin bloodlines fled to Great Yuria Forest

Final battle: mutual annihilation. Primordial destroyed, coalition army obliterated, surviving Ajin bloodlines fled to Great Yuria Forest under Asuka Clan protection.

Victory achieved through total sacrifice, the kind of heroism that makes great songs and terrible precedents.

The Mage Wars

100 years ago

Series of conflicts across Orin when mages revolted against technological replacement. Traditional magic versus industrial innovation—pride against progress, tradition fighting change.

📜 Event Summary

  • Date: Approximately 100 years before present
  • Location: Throughout Orin, particularly Vaillancourt
  • Combatants: Traditional mage aristocracy vs. industrial reformers
  • Outcome: Reformers won; technology integrated with magic
  • Casualties: Significant civilian losses, multiple cities damaged

The mages lost. Technology marched forward regardless of magical objections, leading to current integration of arcane and mechanical systems. Some wounds never heal; I still encounter elderly mages who mutter about “proper magic” and “mechanical abominations.”

The Conflict

Mage aristocracies controlled society through magical monopoly. When dwarven engineering and gnomish innovation made technology competitive with magic, that monopoly crumbled.

Traditional mages fought to maintain social positions built on magical superiority. Industrial reformers fought for economic opportunity beyond hereditary magical bloodlines. Both sides committed atrocities they later justified as necessary.

War of Three Crowns

1702-1714 CE

King Laurent of Vaillancourt seized Ferremont from Rosencourt in 1702. His death sparked civil war between sons Marcel and Bernard, with Rosencourt intervening to reclaim lost territory.

📜 Event Summary

  • Date: 1702-1714 CE
  • Location: Vaillancourt and Rosencourt
  • Combatants: Prince Marcel vs. Prince Bernard vs. Rosencourt
  • Outcome: Marcel victorious, became King Marcel d’Étincelle

Marcel proved himself father’s equal by defeating both brother and foreign claim, securing crown and contested province. Family blood and foreign ambition drowned in same mud, efficient resolution through superior violence.

Marcel became King Marcel d’Étincelle, establishing precedent that royal succession disputes should be settled quickly and decisively rather than prolonged through diplomatic niceties.

Fyrie plays military marches when discussing Vaillancourt’s royal history—she approves of decisive action

Lessons for Modern Adventurers

History teaches us that:

  • Primordials Are Rare for Good Reasons: When cosmic forces manifest, civilizations die. The Fall of Razrias required total sacrifice from multiple nations. We got lucky once; relying on luck again seems foolish.

  • Technology Wins Over Tradition: The Mage Wars proved that clinging to outdated methods guarantees obsolescence. Adapt to progress or become irrelevant.

  • Lost Civilizations Stay Lost: Aetheris expeditions make excellent examples of overconfidence. Whatever treasures lie beneath the Celestial Abyss have already claimed more lives than they’re worth.

  • Quick Resolution Beats Prolonged Conflict: The War of Three Crowns showed that decisive action prevents escalation. Marcel’s swift victories saved more lives than years of diplomatic negotiation would have.

  • Coalition Victories Require Total Commitment: Half-measures against existential threats fail catastrophically. The coalition against the Razrias Primordial understood this, they committed everything and achieved the impossible through sacrifice.