Calmira

Calmira is a world devastated by the Dominion of the Wyrm – a time where the Dragon Tyrants ruled the world. Each Tyrant ruled its own territory, constantly fighting with neighboring wyrms for land and treasures. The peoples of the land were scattered – elves and capable forest folk fled across the planes to the feywild; dwarves and other mountain-dwellers moved deeper into the depths their caves, collapsing the surface tunnels; those with nowhere to run – plainsmen, humans and the halfling hillfolk – were taken as slaves and soldiers. Nothing survived unscathed – not kingdoms, not political factions, not even the land. Mountains fell, volcanoes erupted in unspoiled land, plains were flooded, and waters were made uncrossable. It took the combined might of each of the most powerful from every race and area to trap the most powerful dragon among them, Embrek-Yed-Al, beneath the desert where he made his home. With him went his hoard – the largest treasure trove of history and treasures ever collected in this world.   The new heroes, christened the Wyrmstalkers, moved across the continent, braving the inhospitable wastelands between each dragon's dominion. Though taking heavy casualties, they eventually managed to rout or kill every wyrm. For the last few hundred years, they have been tasked with purging the last remaining dragons from the land to ensure the continued freedom of the people. The cities, freed from the Tyrants, gained control of themselves. At first, cruel warrior-kings rose up and lay the foundations of order and structure in the population. They built walls and kept their people isolated – not hard to do, as the lands between were rather inhospitable. Over time, the warrior-kings were deposed and all manner of rulership would come to be. The rivers of acid and poison dispersed; the roads were cleared; contact was made with surrounding territories.   Slowly, over the decades, the cave-dwellers were forced up due to increased earthquakes and cave-ins deep in the earth. They found a new political structure – people huddled together in very disparate locations, either unable or unwilling to reengage contact with their neighbors. They found the wild races – the orcs and the centaurs – living among the large cities, afraid to leave the walls of their heavily-fortified encampments. And they found something new. A race that has never been seen in numbers; a race with no culture and no identity of their own: the dragonborn.   The scions of the Tyrants and their mortal servants, the dragonborn were largely shunned and separated from the main populace, seen as reminders of the suffering caused by their progenitors. They, at least, often left their cities to live alone or in small droves with others of their kind. Similarly, the returning dwarves and elves and other such folk were treated with suspicion and distrust, having abandoned the peoples of the surface to their horrid fates. They are often shunted to outer societies or dangerous missions. Even today, there is little to no contact with the southeast of the world, and only the wealthy or their servants are able or willing to travel between regions, with one exception: The Wyrmstalkers. They are a powerful force, revered by many as saviors and heroes. Some cities have even set up shrines and temporary lodgings dedicated to them. They are almost considered holy.   In recent years, unseasonable weather has become commonplace. Natural disasters have slowly become more and more prevalent – earthquakes, mudslides, rockslides, storms, hurricanes, tornadoes, tsunamis, and floods have all become an almost monthly occurrence in some areas. Strange creatures are appearing, in larger and larger groups, with each of these disasters. Magic acts unpredictably. People have gone missing – political figures and commoners alike.   Something is brewing. Society and order are tenuous now, and the mortal powers of the world are in motion. To what end, no one can say. Empires are rising from the dead, while others are poised to fall into chaos.