Godstime

The three gods of the elements struggled to control their realms against the chaos brought on by Death. Baliol battled great hurricanes, typhoons, and tidal waves that attempted to tear the very soul from the sea. On the earth, great quakes and volcanoes shook the ground deep into the realm of Hastur. Even the airy domain of Blacklock swirled with great tornadoes and whirlwinds. Far above the highest clouds, the goddesses of the heavens also felt the chaos. Melandrea, the Sun, oftentimes went black during the heat of the day. Comets and meteors filled the darkness of the night, the realm of Karelia, Goddess of the Stars. Oakentree saw that all good must be balanced by evil, all law by chaos, and all life by death. He reveled in the life of Summer and mourned the death of Winter. And so the epochs passed. The primitive races evolved slowly, inconsequential and insignificant. The Elder Gods were unchallenged, supreme.

Seasons came and went, great storms raged and died, the earth shook and then rested, and through all of this the Elder Gods grew more dormant, the equilibrium of the forces of nature lulling them to sleep. In the Realm, the animals of the earth and sea continued to evolve. It is during this time that the elves and dwarves began to form into the earliest civilizations. Mankind, with their short life spans and warlike tendencies, were prolific if not as advanced as their elven and dwarven cousins. The Realm was a place of great change and progress. The arrival of a fiery chariot from the heavens passed almost unnoticed, as such events had occurred many times over the eons. It was a day no different than any other, and yet a day that future generations of religious and historical scholars would call the beginning of Godstime.

Human cultures across the Realm tell different stories of this epic event. In the Western Empire, the ancient philosophers tell the tale of two gods, Death and Fate, coming down from the sky and walking the face of the earth seeking the most promising race on which to bestow the secrets of their technology. It was in the fertile Valley of Rembia in the heart of the Western Empire, that these two supreme gods, ended their quest. Choosing the primitives that lived there as their pupils, they showed them magic and technology. The early pictographs of the dark-skinned races indigenous to the tropical lands of the East show images of thirty gods, riding in flaming chariots, glowing in silver, with swords that cut with light. These beings, known to Western historians as the First Tribe, are shown in the skies above great temples and bloody sacrifices. It was at this time that the domain of Susanowo (Baliol) was conquered by the great ships and sailors of the Tang Empire far to the South. Tradition holds that their naval skills were gifts from great gods who sailed over the water without touching its surface.

Which of these traditions are true may never be known. Perhaps all. Perhaps none. However, it is generally held by scholars that the development and evolution of the human races proceeded with incredible speed. Settlements were built, fire was discovered and mastered, and, in the span of sixty generations, mankind became warriors. In his arrogance, mankind had forgotten the Elder Gods, their elemental power and their fury. They had become pawns in a cosmic game of chess. Man served the New Gods, who gave them knowledge, power, and mastery over the other beasts of the Realm. The game was staged. On one side, the Elder Gods, long dormant and almost forgotten were stirring to life. On the other side, the New Gods, armed with great power and the armies of man, challenged them. The board was nothing less than the world itself.