The 200-Year Rift

The 200-Year Rift or as more commonly called, "The Rift", is a gap in knowledge of that happened between 1831 and 2034 whenever anyone tries to recall what might have caused the Scar - the massive canyon in the northern region of Aevrela that was not there before.

Background

The Scar on the Face of Aevrela

Before we are able to talk about the 'symptoms' of the Rift, it is first important to know about the Scar. The Scar being the huge canyon in the northern region of Aevrela almost splitting the continent in two. The Scar measures a little over 800 miles long and at times up to 10,000 feet deep, appearing sometime between 1831 and 2034. Since the symptoms of the Rift, described further below, prevent anyone from remembering anything about the Scar and how it might have come to be, it is widely believed that the 200-Year gap in records and history books is related to the Scar. 
The Scar is where the majority of the archeologists and other researchers of the Rift consider their main base of operations. Throughout the region of the Scar, from the depths of the canyon to the cliff edges, strange artifacts have been recovered and there has been evidence of battles, buried underneath the stone and rubble of whatever caused the Scar. 
For more information about the Scar, see the following Article

The riftforged came into existence, and then died

The Scar is not the only new thing to appear on Aevrela during the 200-Year Rift, before the rift, no one recalls the existence of mechanical creatures commonly referred to as the riftforged, and there are no records of them existing before that time either. However, after the Rift, there was evidence of this new creature, although mostly through the bodies, broken pieces and parts of the riftforged. Few riftforged appeared to have made it out of the 200-Year Rift alive and those that have also do not remember what happened during that time period. What can be said about the riftforged, and is further elaborated elsewhere, is that they mostly appeared to be built for war. Although, like many other questions about the Rift, there remain many questions on why they were created, who created them, and whose side they fought on. 
See Article on the Riftforged for more information

Symptoms of the Rift

Remembering

If anyone tries to remember what might have caused the Rift and the Scar, they are not able. For some people it is just a gaping blank space in their mind during that time period or years of missing memories, for others, it results in migraines that cause them to be bedridden for several days. The common folk believe that the headache is the mind and body's way of saying, you don't want to remember what you did during that time.
Some of the survivors from the area around the Scar have been interviewed by researchers. From these interviews, it has been gathered that while farmers could remember what crops the sowed and when they were harvested, they do not always recall who the crops were sold to. Similarly, smiths of all fashions - those that make horseshoes and nails to those that make weapons and armor - also do not remember all of their patrons. They remember crafting items, but they do not always remember to what purpose and to whom they sold the items to. Some of the smiths do not even recall what they made, although they remember that they worked on certain items. 
Some people seemingly remember all that happened during their life as normal. These tend to be individuals, such as the sea elves, that did not live near where the rift occurred and might not have had any interactions with what happened. It is believe that those that lost their memories are only those that were involved or might have known someone who was impacted by the creation of the Scar. 

Written Records

While there are diaries, journals, and logs of mundane tasks that people kept from that time period, any information that might gleam greater insight into what occurred during the gap is notably missing from records. Within all the libraries across the continent there are no historical records of what occurred during the Rift or what might have caused it. 
There are some books from that have information from that time, but when people try to read certain portions, the words look out of focus, the readers eyes and body naturally want to avoid certain parts of books that they read, forcing them to skip past passages of books. 
That in mind, any new research notes, such as the one you are reading from now, there is never any problem in comprehension. Only the notes from that time period have the strange 'blurring' effect. 

Asking for Help

Some people have sought information from angels, demons, devils, and even the gods - but the result is always the same. Either they were not involved with what might have happened and have no idea or they too have the gaping void in their memories. Now, some people do not believe that the gods would not know what happened, which in this esteemed researchers opinion is correct. It is believed by some, myself included, that the gods were at least involved with what happened, either causing the Scar that almost split the continent in two or causing the Rift in everyone's mind. 

What is known

The following facts are known about what occurred during the Rift:

People born, lived, died, and died, and died

There are still records of births and marriages that occurred during the Rift, like any other time period. As well as records of those who died, as observed through gravemarkers and other logs of life and death. What can be said of the records of birth, marriage, and death is that many people died during the 200-Year Rift.
Researchers of the Rift have pieced through what information remains, and have concluded that an unnatural number of people died during the 200-Year Rift. Meaning that either disease, famine, or war occurred during the time. Based on other evidence - the newfound presence of the riftforged - it is believed that there was a great warring period during the time of the Rift. However, who started the war and why, that part still remains a mystery.

Claims of Responsibility

Some individuals have claimed that they were the ones responsible for the Rift, most of which have proven false, but I will note two of the more popular theories from the common folk on who to blame for the Scar and Rift. 

The Silent Assembly

The Silent Assembly is a group of cultists, for the lack of a better word, who are obsessed with the Scar and the Rift. They claim that they know who is responsible, a new god that goes by the name of Rinir, the god of Time. Claiming that Rinir did not just steal the memories from people, but actually stole a portion of the life of those effected.  Most researchers do not believe that this is actually what happened, given that based on the interviews and evidence collected, not all those effected by the rift necessarily lost time, for some individuals they don't remember why they might have done certain things. 

The Black Sorcerer

Some of the common folk claim that it is the infamous necromancer, the Black Sorcerer, of Shambling Mire that caused the Scar to appear. They claim that he caused a huge explosion with the goal of wiping out all life in the northern half of Aevrela, in attempt to raise an even larger force of undead to conquer those that thwarted their previous efforts.  This theory is considered debunked by most researchers as there is not a large necromantic presence in the Scar as would be expected if it were created through necromantic magic.

Final Thoughts

To surmise the findings of this humble researcher, the cause of the Scar and the Rift are still very much a mystery.  I theorize, and many others would agree, that the Scar came first and then something or someone (most likely the gods) decided that it was best that people do not remember what caused the Scar and somehow have altered our memories and records to keep this information a secret. If anyone has figured out what caused these two events, they have kept silent likely due to fear of repercussions from the gods or the gods have taken individual actions into their own hands. I personally believe and hope that the gods would not go after individual researchers, for I might be one of their next targets.