Canasthar
1332
This continent exists on a planet much like Earth. There are similar flora and fauna, for the most part, and the air and earth are similar as well. There are crops that are grown, animals that are raised, minerals that are mined. Nature holds a similar sway. In truth, on the surface, the vast majority of the world would be very familiar.
The world of Canasthar, unlike our own, is a world of deep magic that has existed since its creation. Many races live on and under its surface, some utilizing said magic, and some doing their best to ignore it. Some are left over from the time of creation, bound to the cycle, forgotten caretakers.
Millennia ago, the forces that keep the balance were stripped. What few that survived spent centuries thereafter rebuilding their societies, living as best they can. Little is left of history from those days, and virtually nothing is left from before. Some believe someone or something delved too deep into the magic. Some believe that it was part of a cycle -- similar to all cycles -- that the world simply needed a reset. Some believe it was punishment for the sins of the past civilizations sent by the gods themselves. The theories go on and on...
This is the second age. Humans are the dominant race, building villages, cities, and kingdoms. They warred for decades, almost as soon as they were able. Catastrophe brought them together in a fledgling Commonwealth. Dwarves, for their part, make their homes in the mountains, trading in the riches of the earth while their kin work as practical slaves for one of the human kingdoms. The elves have pulled back their people from outlying villages. They hide within their wood in their city, the threat from factions within the Commonwealth becoming more urgent all the time. Other races live their lives, expanding on their culture, all within the sphere of these great three.