The continent of Xanthiri is both new and ancient, caught in a cycle of rebirth and destruction. The current peoples of Xanthiri have only been around for a millennium. The people and nations who came before perished in a world shattering event known as the Scourge. Those who came before them are now pieces of prehistory, dying out in a similar fashion. It may have happened many more times before. It may happen once again. To the North, an empire faces a crisis, a power struggle between its religion and government as it tries to keep up the appearance of wealth. The western nations fight back against a plague in the aftermath of war, attempting to heal the wounds of centuries past. The nations of the south are also fighting back, against invaders from across the ocean, a thing unheard of after the Arrival a millennium ago. Rebellions rise and the power hungry take charge in the east as a famine looms over the horizon.