The Cataclysm
The Cataclysm
Date 1st of the First Month, 0 AC Zodiac Rising Phoenix Age Age of Chaos Era The Age of Chaos & First Kingdoms Region Global Observance New Year
Summary
The Cataclysm ended the Age of the Empire. An attempt to create an endless source of magic tore open the fabric of creation; the resulting magical blast erased whole regions, formed the Eye, and left the Maelstrom where the Empire had stood.
Context
The Empire depended on abundant magic to sustain a vast population accustomed to lives without hunger or want. When those resources could no longer meet imperial demand, the emperor ordered researchers to seek an inexhaustible source of power.
Event
The experiment failed catastrophically. Magic poured through the wound in creation and swept across the world in a single transformative disaster. Cities and landscapes vanished, climates shifted, and the old magical order collapsed.
Significance
Thelemarian historical reckoning begins with the Cataclysm: its date is the first day of Year 0 AC. It divides the lost Age of the Empire from the Age of Chaos that followed.
Consequences
The Empire ceased to exist. Magic became unstable and dangerous, contact with the gods failed, monsters spread, and magical anomalies changed living peoples. The world endured centuries of fragmented kingdoms, disease, warfare, and upheaval before lasting powers arose again.
Legacy
The first day of each year is observed as New Year, while the Cataclysm remains the fixed origin of the calendar used to date later history.