The Sundering: World Lore & History

For complete cosmology information (why fantasy creatures exist, alternate-Earth setting, three-layered cosmos), see Cosmology & Origins.

The Cataclysm Event

Year 0 - The Engine Activates

In the height of the Old World's Golden Age, the brilliant scientist Dr. Nikolas Theslar believed he had discovered the secret to infinite energy...a method to harness the planet's own magnetic field and broadcast power wirelessly across the entire world. No more hunger, no more war over resources, no more darkness.

His grand experiment was conducted at the Sibarian Wastes Research Station, a massive tower complex built at the North Pole. The theory was sound. The calculations were perfect.

But the world itself was not empty.

When Theslar activated The Engine (then called the "Theslar Engine" by scientists), it didn't just tap the magnetic field...it ripped open the boundary between the material world and the Void, an extra-dimensional space of pure, corrupting energy. The Engine became a tear in reality itself.

Timeline of Destruction

Hour 0-6: The Pulse

• Electromagnetic shockwave radiates from Sibaria at the speed of light
• All electronic technology instantly fails within a 3,000-mile radius
• Aircraft plummet from the skies, power plants explode, communication networks collapse
• Millions die in the first six hours

Day 1-30: The Scream

• Magical energy floods the world like radiation
• Mages and sensitive individuals go mad, burning from the inside
• Reality "soft spots" appear...places where the Void bleeds through
• Creatures from the Void (later called Abominations) begin manifesting
• The Taint enters the world...corrupting magic twisting living tissue

Year 0-10: The Collapse

• Civilization crumbles without infrastructure
• Kingdoms fragment into city-states, warlords and cults emerge
• Knowledge is lost as libraries burn, scholars die
• The New Dark Age begins

Year 10-50: The Adaptation

• Survivors discover Soulstones...crystalline formations near Void rifts
• These stones can store and regulate Tainted magic safely (mostly)
• Early weaponization attempts fail catastrophically
• The Church of Absolution forms, declaring the Cataclysm divine punishment

Year 50-150: The Casket Era Dawn

• First primitive Caskets built...armored suits powered by Soulstones
• Knights and warriors can now channel magic through mechanical intermediaries
• Caskets become the ultimate weapon: mobile, powerful, terrifying
• New arms race begins between surviving factions

Year 150-250: The Factional Wars

• Major power blocs emerge and consolidate
• Church of Absolution undergoes internal reforms (Year 134): Hardline "Absolutist" faction purges moderate leadership, codifies doctrine that all suffering is penance, mandates soul-binding for criminals as "merciful alternative to damnation," establishes Inquisition to root out heresy. Previous Church opposed soul trafficking; reformed Church embraces it as sacred duty
• The Exchange rise to dominance through war profiteering
• Dwarven forge-cities become industrial powerhouses
• The Ossuarium establishes permanent necropolis territories

Year 250-350: The Mutation Age

• Vestige Bloodlines emerge as distinct faction after Exodus (Year 352)
• Emergent Syndicate appears from Sibarian ground zero (Year 381)
• Reality fractures increase in frequency and severity
• Fae incursions become more frequent and unpredictable
• Nomad Collective masters survival in the most hostile regions

Year 350-437: The Long War

• No faction can achieve decisive victory
• Casket technology reaches plateau of sophistication
• Asymmetric warfare becomes standard (each faction uses unique Casket designs)
• Generations of Remnants have known nothing but war
• Hope for peace or restoration becomes distant memory

Year 437 (Present Day)

• World has been fractured for over four centuries
• Nine major factions locked in endless cycles of conflict
• Casket technology is mature, sophisticated, and deadly
• Void rifts still appear daily, spawning monsters
• The Engine in Sibaria still pulses after 437 years, still tears reality
• Some seek to destroy it; others want to control it; most just try to survive it

Competing Theories: How Factions Interpret the Cataclysm

Different factions have wildly different interpretations of what the Sundering actually was:

The Church of Absolution: "Divine Punishment"

• The Old World grew arrogant, playing god with forces beyond mortal ken
• The Cataclysm was the Creator's wrath, cleansing the world of hubris
• Soulstones are fragments of fallen angels, cursed remnants of celestial beings cast down
• Only through Penance...endless atonement via suffering and sacrifice...can humanity earn forgiveness
• Casket pilots are Penitent Knights, bearing the weight of sin in iron shells
• Goal: Destroy the Sibarian Engine, seal the Void, restore divine favor

The Elven Verdant Covenant: "Ecological Murder"

• The Old World violated the natural order, forcing technology where nature should flow
• Theslar's Engine didn't "tear reality"...it poisoned the World Tree's roots
• The planet itself is alive (the Worldheart), and ley lines are its veins
• Soulstones are crystallized Worldheart blood, the planet's attempt to heal itself
• The Void isn't another dimension...it's the death-dream of a dying world
• Goal: Stabilize the Worldheart, heal ley line corruption, achieve symbiosis with Soulstone energy

The Dwarven Forge-Guilds: "Engineering Failure"

• Theslar was a brilliant idiot...right theory, catastrophic execution
• The Engine is still running, still bleeding energy
• Soulstones are solidified exotic radiation, byproduct of dimensional bleed
• The Void is real but not mystical...it's a parallel dimension of pure energy
• Abominations are just exotic lifeforms adapted to high-energy environments
• This is a solvable problem if you have enough runecraft and stubbornness
• Goal: Reverse-engineer The Engine, stabilize or shut it down properly

The Ossuarium: "Death is No Longer the End"

• The Cataclysm shattered the boundary between life and death
• Necromantic energy is easier to channel post-Sundering
• Soulstones are crystallized life-force, stolen from the living by Void exposure
• The Undead are the logical next step in evolution...no need for flesh, no fear, no corruption
• Goal: Achieve true immortality, perfect the undead Casket pilot, outlast all living factions

The Wyrd Conclave (Fae): "We Walked Through the Door"

• Fae existed in the Feywild, a parallel realm of dream-logic and bargains
• Theslar's Engine merged dimensions, creating overlap zones
• Soulstones are condensed possibility, crystallized "what-if" energy
• Reality is now negotiable in ways it wasn't before
• They view the Cataclysm as opportunity, a chance to expand influence
• Goal: Expand Feywild influence, maintain dimensional overlap, ensure the Void never fully seals

The Vestige Bloodlines: "We Didn't Choose This"

• The Sundering didn't just kill humans...it mutated them
• Early Void exposure caused genetic corruption: human-animal hybrids
• Not shapeshifters...this is forced evolution
• Soulstones are stabilizers, the only thing preventing further mutation
• Without Soulstones, Blighted continue degenerating until they become Abominations
• Goal: Find a cure for the Blight, gain recognition as people (not monsters), survive

The Emergent Syndicate: "Evolution Demanded Sacrifice"

• Pre-Sundering, they were human researchers at Sibaria, exposed to the Engine at ground zero
• Void energy fused them with arthropod genetic templates stored in bio-labs
• Not mutation...metamorphosis. They are post-human, multi-limbed, chitinous, hive-minded
• Soulstones are neural bridges, allowing individual consciousness within the collective
• They remember being human, but those memories feel distant, irrelevant
• Goal: Perfect the transformation, expand the hive, prove post-human evolution is survival

Major Territories

Territory	Faction	Description
The Sibarian Wastes	None (Ground Zero)	Uninhabitable exclusion zone. The Engine still stands, miles-high and pulsing. Void rifts spawn Abominations constantly. Reality is "soft"...physics don't work consistently.
The Penitent Kingdoms	Church of Absolution	Fragmented theocracy. Gothic architecture, oppressive religious law, constant guilt culture. Capital: Cathedral Prime (also called Absolon), the Iron Cathedral-City built on the ruins of Paris.
The Verdant Enclaves	Elven Covenant	Isolationist eco-states. Scattered forest realms, some mobile (giant walking trees). Hostile to industrialization. Capital: The Grove of First Light (location shifts seasonally).
The Forge-Holds	Dwarven Guilds	Industrial powerhouses. Mountain fortress-cities, deep underground workshops. Most advanced Soulstone research. Capital: Ironhearth, the Eternal Forge.
The Bone-Marches	The Ossuarium	Necropolis territories. Mist-shrouded borderlands, graveyards the size of cities. Quiet, patient, utterly alien to the living. Capital: The Ossuary Throne.
The Shimmerlands	Wyrd Conclave (Fae)	Reality-optional zones. Geography shifts, time flows inconsistently. Beautiful and dangerous...flowers that sing, forests that hunt. Capital: The Wyrd Conclave's Endless Dusk.

The Soulstone Mystery

Every faction has a theory about what Soulstones really are. The truth? All theories are simultaneously correct.

The Void doesn't follow singular rules. It's a dimension of pure chaos and potential. Soulstones form when material reality tries to "heal" Void exposure...but the result reflects the beliefs and expectations of nearby sapient beings.

• Near human settlements? They crystallize as "divine fragments"
• Near elven groves? They grow like roots
• Near dragon lairs? They incorporate fossilized dragon essence
• Near undead? They appear as crystallized life-force

This mystery is intentionally never fully revealed in-game. The ambiguity is better than a singular answer.

Current Era: The Casket Wars

The Political Situation

Fragile Peace Through Mutually Assured Destruction

• No faction can conquer the others (Caskets make total war too costly)
• Arena Combat becomes proxy warfare...disputes settled by champion duels
• Monster Raids from the Sibarian Wastes unite factions temporarily
• Soulstone scarcity drives conflict...everyone needs them, supply is limited
• The Engine still pulses; some want it destroyed, others want it controlled

The Three Great Questions

1. Can the Cataclysm be reversed? (Church says yes via penance; Dwarves say yes via engineering; Elves say yes via harmony; Fae say "why would we?")
2. Should Soulstones be used at all? (Necessary evil? Corrupting poison? Sacred tools? Just rocks?)
3. What happens if The Engine is destroyed vs. controlled? (End the Taint? Collapse all magic? Kill the world? Unlock godhood?)