History of Jesenreth
The historical chroniclers of Jesenreth universally agree on only a few facts:
- The planet, its sphere, and the other planets were created by the gods.
- The world is very ancient, having seen many rises and falls of civilized societies.
- There used to be more surface land.
- That's all that they all agree on.
Despite this, a broad outline of the planet's history can be drawn.
Between 100,000 and 38,000 years ago, the gods forged the world and everything that was originally on or in it. The lower boundary is determined by educated guesses about how much time the observed erosion of mountains and others features would take, and the higher bound is based on the oldest known historical record, the Almovir Kings List, which has been dated at 35,000 years old, and an estimate of how long it would take to have that number of elven kings. There is much uncertainty and debate between these two dates. Those who believe in the early dates hold that after the world as created, it sat for a long time either empty of life or with only beasts occupying it and was a paradise of sorts.
According to the standard narrative built from the Almovir and other records, the first sapient creatures where the Elf, who were created on what is now called Marbindor, and were taught civilized life and magic by the gods, which they took quickly to and soon had fairly advanced societies, which promptly warred with one another once the gods withdrew from direct interaction with the world. These wars were short, though, and resulted in the unification of the elven race under the Almovir kings, who ruled for a little over 3000 years in total, until that society collapsed due to repeated invasions by early Dwarf, forged by the gods not long before.
The dwarves, who called themselves the Hokrar, expanded as the elves retreated and founded many strongholds. They spread to all of the known major islands, even Jeshos, and several whose names are recorded but do not currently exist, such as Xorbia and Nunfatell. As dwarven society became more advanced, they made peace with the elves and other new races which were appearing on the world, such as the humans, tortles, and genasi.
For about 5,000 years, called the Hokran Period, there was relative peace, expansion and trade, as nations rose, and sometimes fell. The dwarves were dominant, but had long since passed their barbaric phase. Elven culture flourished again, developing a very high standard of magical power, ensuring that they would never be conquered again. Then came the calamity known as the Koshei Wars.
Koshei was a time-traveling aberration who rampaged across many times and places in the multiverse. He and his minions visited Jesenreth about 28,000 years ago, where they sowed such war and destruction that all existing civilizations fell and even whole landmasses were destroyed, leading to the dark age called the Long Night, lasting 10,000 years. Koshei was eventually driven out out of Jesenreth sphere and defeated by heroes elsewhere and elsewhen, but he forever left his mark on the planet and its people in the form of their intense hatred of aberrations.
The Long Night wasn't completely dark: from time to time all over the world cities and even nations were built, learning and magic were cultivated, but always they fell due to disease, monsters, disasters, and war. The true climb out of darkness began 18,000 years ago, when The Twelve Gods took the situation into their own hands and once again walked the planet in their avatars, an event known as the Great Return. All twelve, even the evil deities, helped rebuild populations and civilizations, teaching their various philosophies and arts. Hephemia banished the darkness, Desdera taught the art of just war, Elwer gave the people business, art, and roads, and so on. Then, just as suddenly, they left, after 1,000 years, leaving the burgeoning civilizations to their own devices, and have not manifested directly since.
So began, 17,000 years ago, what is still called the New Age, and by this time the shape of the world was mostly as we know it today. The rest of the races had appeared by this time, including the celestial-begotten Aasimar, the devilish tieflings, and the gnolls, Yuan-ti, lizardfolk, and kobolds. Nations and city states rose, though very different ones than today; names known now only in history books or engraved on ruins, such as the elven Pelgarians, the lizardfolk Horde, and the once nearly globally dominant human Fahradeen Empire. All arose, thrived, faded, and fell over millennia.
The next world-shaking event was the the Imprisonment of Qulphine, 9,000 years ago. The goddess, as the result of a plot by several demon lords, was imprisoned in an inter-dimensional space, resulting in the connection between crea and sapient beings being cut off. Most magic stopped working, causing societies that had become dependent on it to fall into war and chaos. Millions died, and the world burned. Demons ruled on the face of Jesenreth for a period known as the Demonic Interregnum. Qulphine, with the assistance of the other gods, whose ability to use magic was also limited, broke herself out of the prison after 1,000 years and slew the demon lords in the Abyss, destroying them forever and returning magic to the world.
The period since about 8,000 years ago is known as the Modern Age. Over this period the races relearned magic and civilization, and re-explored and re-settled the world, in an arrangement roughly like that of today. The Aasimar and Genasi migrated from Marbindor and Nurdug and settled on Jeshos, about 4000 years ago. A powerful order of wizards founded a magocracy on Itrefaulk. Dnalor was founded, the dwarves constructed their current strongholds, and about 2000 years ago, spelljammers visited Jesenreth for the first time, and partly due to trade with them, city states flourished.The mageocracy fell, leading to the current calender. About 1000 years ago, the yuan-ti raised their temples to the Snake Gods on the Yar Kanti Islands, early tribes arose on Sarborea, and humans colonized the Ketten Islands. The Citadel of High Magic rose to prominence again though not political power, and the Confederation of Uth was founded. Finally, a Half-Elf from another world took a group of humans to Iredol and founded Syndecol Industries.[1]
