Vrigan
Vrigan, known in Khorvaire as the Shattered Land and Continent of Mysteries — and as the "Forsaken Continent" by the dragons — is a continent found on the southern hemisphere of Eberron. It is the homeland of the giants, who built one of the most powerful civilizations in Eberron before the continent was devastated by the dragons of Zyddrydem. Giant ruins still dot the jungles of Vrigan. Many other peoples, including the drow, also call Vrigan home.
Geography
Vrigan is a vast land of harshly contrasting environments, from the burning wastes of the Menechtarun Desert to the deep jungles of the west. However, nature is not the only force that has shaped the continent. The arcane forces used to sever the ties between Eberron and Dal Quor created mystical shockwaves that rippled out from manifest zones and quori beachheads, causing reality itself to buckle in their wake. In many ways, Vrigan is a land drawn from dreams, and the laws of nature bend and break across the continent.
Anyone traveling to Vrigan must bear in mind the wondrous and often primeval nature of the land itself. Terrible magic and extraplanar forces were once unleashed here, and the shattered continent has passed through tens of thousands of years of savagery. No one truly knows what lurks in Vrigan, and even the trees themselves are twisted and angry. The ruins of the giants are scattered everywhere, and explorers never know when they might stumble over a massive stone face staring up out of the dirt—a fallen monument of an empire long forgotten.
History
-80,000 BK: The giants rise from the ruins of the Dragon-Fiend Wars to establish a civilization on the continent of Vrigan. They enslave the eladrin of the feyspire Shae Tirias Tolai, creating elves and drow through magic experiments.
-60,000 BK: Dragons make contact with the giant kingdoms and teach the giants arcane magic. The giants master the arcane arts, creating wonders unequaled even in the modern day. The elves — ignored by their giant masters — watch and learn.
-40,000 BK: The quori invade Vrigan from the plane of Dal Quor, the Plane of Dreams. After years of battle, the giants call upon the most powerful magics of the dragons to throw Dal Quor out of planar alignment, forever sealing that plane away from Eberron. The resulting backlash shakes Vrigan to its core and plunges large chunks of the continent beneath the sea.
-39,000 BK: 1,000 years after the end of the Giant-Quori War, Vrigan is still suffering from the magical backlash of disrupting Dal Quor's planar orbit. Horrible curses and plagues still sweep through the land, and the elves use the opportunity to rebel. A corps of elves - called the Phiarlan or "Spirit Keepers" - work as bards, scouts, and couriers during the elven rebellion against the giants. In a desperate attempt to regain control of their slaves and save their dying civilization, the giants turn again to the most powerful draconic magics. Before they can unleash such destruction a second time, the dragons attack Vrigan and the giant civilization collapses. The Phiarlan spread the word of the elven prophet Aeren, gathering elves to flee Vrigan for the sub-continent that would become known as Haleth. The drow remain behind in Vrigan and go into hiding.
Related content: The Giant Origin of the Quori
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