History of Tyr

Authors Entry
Time is a strange phenomenon that we as mortals experience linearly, however time itself is not linear. Time is malleable, bends to whatever shape it needs to be. It's minimalistic, like the surface area of a bubble. Forgive this human wizard for the entries below are filled with gaping chasms within which many will fall victim. Like staring into a rabbit hole with no end, and infinite depth of possibilities to explore. There is simply too much to remember, and hastily scribbled notes on rotting parchment do not help. The reclusive and often hostile nature of our inhuman neighbours tends to breed disinterest or outright contempt in the minds of human scholars, so the details and written factual accounts can be rather vague. It is through personal use of a strange ancient magic that I was able to recollect many events however, even my memory can leave me lost. Thus, do not assume the following citations of worldly events to be all there is to learn of our world. These are simply put, learned assumptions and observations through magical experimentation, told decidedly from a human perspective.

There are two parts to this world, and I have dubbed their naming of dates thusly; BF - Before Founding. The time before Humans arrived on Thoenus, within reason. MR - Mystara's Ruin. The time after Mystara was shattered.

Without further ramblings, behold the story of the great world of Thoenus.

~ E (Renowned Scholar of Magical Arts and Chemical Compounds, Emilia Jane Stone)

Age of Ancients (Unknown - 14,000BF)
In the age of ancients, the world was vastly different to what we know now. Unformed, shrouded by fog. Covered in vast bodies of water under a crimson sun. A land of grey crags, ferocious storms and Everlasting Dragons.

In this chaotic, wild age came those that became known as Ancients, of whom nothing is now known except their presence was absolute. The Ancients were powerful beings, nature-masters and life-shapers, able to produce anything they needed by manipulating the principles of nature itself. The natural power they were harnessing would soon become known as magic. Though, this age came to an end by accident. A failed experiment to expand the sea's fertility breathing new life into the world and an abundance of plant life. Choking the seas with a toxic brown tide that spread across the waters, killing all it touched and sending the once noble peaceful Dragons into nothing more than crazed beasts.

The Green Age (14,000 - 8,000BF)
Desperate to save themselves, the Ancients built a large tower that would pull on the sun and the moon's energy which they named the tower of light. Birthing a fire within the world, and with fire came heat. With heat life, as the brown tide was burned away. The endless seas receding, revealing a verdant world of plant life and making way for magnificently tall trees known as Archtrees. The largest becoming known as Yggdrasil.

This new world and way of life drove the Ancients underground, withdrawing from the world and spiralling into the same savagery that took their Dragon brethren. Though the last of the nature-masters stayed behind, eventually transforming into new races to better suite the new world. Becoming humans, demi-humans and other humanoids that repopulated the world and built new civilisations in their wake. The former tower of light being renamed to Strixhaven. Other great cities of the regions began to rise, such as Greenheart, Fairhaven, Neverwinter and Baldur's Gate were also built during this period.

The Time of Magic (8,000 - 3,500BF)
With magic flowing freely throughout the world, there was an increase to those of magical inclination much in the same way the nature-master's of old used. This lead to the rise of several powerful wizards who would further divide the use of magic into categories, or schools of manipulation. Mordenkainen, a future Archwizard, would take on the school of conjuration and become head master of Strixhaven, magic Capital of Theonus. Mordenkainen selected several other potentials for Archwizardom to join his side and become members of what is known now as the Wizard Circle of Eight.

The chosen Archwizards were given control over their individual schools of Evocation, Abjuration, Illusion and so forth. These members were Leomund, Bigby, Tenser, Rary, Melf, Elminster, Fizban and Xanathar. Each further enhancing and progressing the fields of magic and study of which they were assigned to new heights that the nature-master's of old could only dream of achieving. Though their power did not come without cost. The chosen were seen as elites of the magical world, and thus jealous broiled within those that were rejected.

Fizban's study of Dragons revealed that there were maybe some dragons that had retained their sanity during the first sundering of the world, and his findings would see the rise of a powerful group known as the Dragontide. Those members who sought to return the Dragonkind to their rightful place atop the world as noble creatures of intelligence. Though their ideals would be perverted by a man named Sammaster, who along with another group known as the Red Wizards would seek to bring about Immortal Dragons, much like the Everlasting Dragons from the Ancient's time.

Leomund's findings of other dimensional planes bought about the discovery of the Celestial and Abyssal planes. Lending way to Demonic cults and Divine worshipping paladins which in turn would see the magical world split once more into Divine and Arcane, and also too the Rakdos Entertainment Group. An Abyssal cult that would like nothing more than to see the powers of the Abyss rise to the material plane.

Female sorcerers of Theonus also formed their own groups to combat the rise of the wizarding powers, these two groups would work in secret in a male driven world and would be come to known as Sisters of the Dark Moon and the Enchanters of The Twelfth Crystal.

The Age of Kings (3,500BF - 100MR)
With the Archwizards in control of most of Theonus, there came about a desire to maintain their positions of power. Grand Wizards seeking a similar status in the world would also succumb to the desire of everlasting life. In a desperate bid to obtain the knowledge and power needed to match if not beat the Archwizards. This lead to a race between the higher powers to find a way at immortality.

With the Abyssal and Celestial planes being drawn closer to the material realm, strange new beings began to emerge. Otherwise ordinary folk who were extremely gifted would rise and become Hero's or Villain's of the world. Champions of their godly patrons. This would however bring about a war known as the Cleansing wars, where all those deemed unworthy would be slain or thrown into slavery. The Demi-humans, who closely followed the older ways of the nature-master's were seen to be secondary to the greater powers of the Arcane and Divine ways that were discovered. So much so, that many of their populations were decimated to the point of near extinction driving many of these races into hiding.

Powerful Sorceress Iggwilv, along with the help of Xanathar and Leomund had actually managed to bring beings into the material realm from the Abyssal and Celestial planes. Though this act caused the rift between planes to become unstable, flooding the world with monstrosities and powers that the world could not contend with easily. Allowing the darker factions of Red Wizards, Rakdos and Dragon cults to step closer to achieving their goals.

Vecna of the Red Wizards, Lord of Thaydia would be the first to achieve the otherwise impossible feat of becoming the first Lich of the world. Making deals with the Devils of the Abyss for forbidden knowledge and the ability to entrap a part of ones soul into that of an item known as a phylactery. This knowledge would be sealed away in a book called "The Tome of Vile Darkness". Iggwilv would go on to write another book of similar nature, about how to control and make deals with Devils known as "The Demonomicon of Iggwilv." Word of these tomes would quickly spread throughout the world, and great wars would soon stir to obtain the knowledge they contained within.

Undead Plague (100MR - 400MR)

 * The first Draco-lich is created by the Cult of the Dragon.