The Sundering

Era beginning/end

A cataclysmic event that wiped history off the world, from which a new world began.

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Where were you when the world was torn Asunder? The day when the machines met the void? The blank years between then and now? I wasn’t there. You weren’t there either. Then who’s to say it happened at all?

—Anonymous, “Where Were You When the World Was Torn Asunder?”

  The Sundering, also referred as the First Voiden or just the War, was a worldwide cataclysmic event that occurred almost two millennia ago. It marked the end of the First Era and caused the destruction of all civilizations that flourished during that time, erasing its history and leaving the world a blank slate from which the Second Era flourished.  

Erased from Time

Not much is known about the nature of the Sundering or the world before it, and theories regarding the event are hotly contested between scholars, priests and historians alike. However, the most popular agreed-on theories agree on the following:  

• The Sundering was felt across the Material Plane, and beyond.

• There was evidence of war to some degree.

• The Sundering destroyed much historical evidence of civilizations that came before it, and leading up to it.

• The Sundering marked the last known record of direct contact between the Material Plane and all other planes of existence.

  Thus, the most popular theory is that of a global war that severed the Material Plane’s ties to all the other planes around it-- hence the name that was given to the event, ‘The Sundering’.  

Fractured Records

First-era myths and legends recount appearances of interplanar creatures such as devils, celestials, fey, djinni and and shadar-kai who could freely walk in to the Material plane through interplanar gates. Supporting this theory are numerous shrines and ruins across the Material Plane that appear to be the remains of doorways or archways. These ruins may have once contained or guarded ancient portals to parallel dimensions. In the present day, such portals are nonexistent and interplanar contact is limited only to the advanced magical rituals of powerful wizards. These accounts of interplanar creatures are plenty in texts retrieved from the First Era, but early Second-Era texts depict them only in the context of stories and legends with no direct accounts of their appearance. This suggests that the Sundering may have fundamentally changed the way the Material Plane interacts with the worlds around it.   The Celestine Codex, the oldest extant chronicle of Galoria, is estimated to have been compiled in 2E 89 out of the historical manuscripts penned by St. Celestine of Eterna. The Codex lays out the foundations of Galorian society, most notably the calendar which is still used today. The Codex details the first use of the term ‘Second Era’, or 2E, and the counting of years since the Sundering as a new unit of time:  

“And thus from the 90th Summer since the Sundering of the Planes, an endless war of which Our Gracious Celestine brought forth Enoreth; we shall henceforth mark our days in respect to the First Day, the Void from which our second turning of the world took root.”

  Historians can trace ancient texts as far back as first century 2E, but any information of the First Era is sparse and incredibly difficult to verify. Myths, legends, textbooks and religious writings of the First Era have been recovered in ruins, and much of the technological and magical advancements of the era have been inferred through archaeological digs and recovered relics. However, solid information of the Sundering itself -- what it was, what caused it, what happened-- is only mentioned in the Celestine Codex, itself an ancient text that has been misinterpreted and reinterpreted many times over the years.  

The Sundering of the Planes

Expeditions by a handful of Eterna’s Royal Academy have reported of a few minor interplanar crossings where wild pixies or planar imps have slipped through. However, these crossings are transient; vanishing as quickly as they appear, and no creature stronger than an average deer or hound has been sighted crossing though these boundaries. A caster of respectable strength may call upon interplanar beings for aid. A wizard’s Find Familiar Ritual is one such example, where a caster may pull forth an interplanar creature to serve them. However, such summoning rituals are special in that they specifically summon a particular creature into the Material.   Areas where the interplanar boundaries are weaker may show subtle signs of that plane’s influence. The eerie fog that blankets the Mistwoods is fey in nature, and rumour has it the deepest reaches of the woods hides small pockets of fairy activity. The ghostly activities Duskwitch is famous for has been pegged on the local cemeteries drawing in influence from the Shadowfell. The Gate Isles owe its turbulent weather and geography to the ever-churing Elemental Planes. However, these boundaries never break. No Eladrin, Shadar-Kai, genie, angel or any other denizen of the planes has walked in to the Material Plane since the Sundering.