Timeline of the Black Star Universe

Little details are known about the time before Akara was settled by civilized men but legends and myths of the gods and the creation of the universe are given in approximate numbers using the year notations available in the Akaran calendar.

The Creation of the Universe, the First Age -50,000,000AF: The first of the Elder Gods are born from the swirling cosmic void. At first they are formless, shapeless, and mindless but as the millennia go by these entities begin to grow in power by feeding on the roiling, chaotic energies of the universe. In time they develop sentience and personality. The oldest and most powerful are able to adopt a corporeal form and exert their will upon the void, changing it as they will.

-30,000,000AF: Many of the Elder Gods have attained great power and under the leadership of the oldest among them, Dievas the Allfather, spread out across the universe, creating worlds and seeding them with the building blocks of life. A small but influential faction led by the Elder God Maz'gathod are against expending their energy on creating life and instead are focused on the attainment of yet more cosmic powers. The universe is partitioned amongst the Elder Gods with half being seeded with life while the other half goes to Maz'gathod. This leads to vast swaths of the universe going dark completely as they drain the life of every star they come across.

-10,000,000AF: The Elder Gods have started life on millions of worlds across the universe. The Allfather and his followers continue to foster their creations and use their power to maintain order in the universe. Interestingly, the entities discover they receive power from the reverence given to them by their creations. Maz'gathod and his followers look on hungrily as the Allfather and his fellow gods bath in adoration and power and a plot is formed.

The Celestial Schism: The Elder God Maz'gathod, seeking power for himself, attacks several younger, weaker followers of Dievas and devours their celestial energy, killing them. He is confronted by Dievas himself and an epic battle begins that sees both gods gravely wounded and taken to safety by their allies. Maz'gathod's faction becomes known as the Fallen. The War for Creation has begun.

The War for Creation: Both sides muster their forces and a sequence of universe shattering battles take place which see the outnumbered Fallen steadily pushed back by the Elder Gods. Despite the violence Dievas held out hope that both sides might be reconciled. Maz'gathod turns to the seeded worlds rich with life and the Fallen begin draining them completely of energy, turning vibrant worlds bursting with life into barren rocks. Thousands of worlds and billions of mortal lives are snuffed out, sending a mournful howl through the ether and the Elder Gods knew what had happened. They pursued the Fallen, catching some and destroying them but for every one they caught many more slipped through their defenses and destroyed yet more worlds. The Fallen grew more powerful and before long were able to fight evenly with the Elders and not long after the tide turned in the Fallen's favor.

The war waged on for thousands of years with untold scores of cosmic beings on both sides being destroyed and much of the universe being laid waste. After many defeats and being driven back to their final refuge, Dievas and his remaining followers realized the only way they would stand a chance against their enemy

The Earth is shaken to it's core as the Elder Gods do battle in the skies and Maz'gathod's corpse is spirited away in the final clash. The continents are shattered and many of the sentient races are pushed to the brink of extinction. The elves begin mark this period as the Time of Woe, a period of intense natural disaster, famine, and plague that nearly wipeout their entire race.

Phrygia founded by Dorian settlers, beginning of the AF (After Founding) year notation.

04/05/0AF Phrygia is founded.

09/25/08AF Masalia is founded.

322AF- The Sable Swords are founded by the exiled prince Sabbas who flees Phrygia after being framed for the murder of his father. The order begins as a band of his closest companions and expands into a mercenary band, traveling the known world in search of just causes and the truth of the murder of the king.

425AF- Unification of Akara by King Kailan, beginning of the age of man. Humans assert dominance across the region and hunt down monsters.

08.18.818AF- The Demon Invasion begins. A massive volcanic eruption destroys much of northern Galat, leaving a gaping crater known as the Abyss that leads straight down into the Earth. The city of Vamaj is utterly destroyed by the superheated ash cloud and most of the population killed instantly. Before the ash has settled hordes of hideous demons climb out of the pit. Once they arrive in sufficient numbers they set out for their first targets, the towns of Stonyfield and Bridgeton.

08.25.818AF- A horde of lesser demons sweeps across the sleepy town of Stonyfield in the middle of the night, ripping the townsfolk from their beds and chasing them through their houses and streets for sport. The defenses, long since fallen into disrepair due to a century of peace and safety, were brushed aside in a matter of moments. The demons tortured, murdered, and devoured thousands of souls for days before returning with a handful of captives to the Abyss. A handful of survivors managed to elude notice by hiding in the public pit latrine. They managed to escape the ruins of the town and make their way to the Altona River, crossing over into Talava and raising the alarm at Point Lookout.

08.26.818AF- At dawn another, larger horde arrived at the walls of Bridgeton, a Galatian trading settlement directly across the river from the Talavan city of Vari. Being a major trading hub and the headquarters of the Varian Faith, the settlements were well-defended and garrisoned. The river was wide and fast-moving and crossed by an immense pontoon bridge which facilitated the rapid reinforcing of the city. The demons initial assault was a success as they swarmed the walls, climbing over each other until they topped the battlements, driving the defending militiamen back. At first it was believed to be a bandit attack but as news of the severity of the danger spread mass hysteria spread among the populace and fleeing residents jammed the streets as they attempted to hurry to Vari. The templar knights of the Varian temple were dispatched to reinforce Bridgeton's defenders with as many professional men-at-arms Vari could spare. The streets were barricaded around the bridgehead and the desperate defenders held on as long as they could to buy time for the civilians to make it to safety. The town caught fire and the resulting inferno and choking smoke led to a complete withdrawal from the bridgehead and the partial destruction of part of the pontoon bridge.

823AF- Gregor's story begins.