The information below catalogues events known to present day Terra due to historical record, covering roughly 120 million years, starting with the information coded into the earliest Baumeni logographs, up to recent events. Terran historians usually divide their history into five ages, sometimes referred to as eras. Below you will find a description of each, along with a timeline for the major events of that age
Terra's history covers everything from 6.98 billion years after the beginning of the universe to the present day, 7.1 billion years after the beginning of the universe. Present day terran historians consider the beginning of the Age of Balance up through the present to be the “current era”. Dates before this are marked as “BCE” for “before current era”. Within the current era, dates in the first million years of the age of balance are often postfixed “FCE” for “first current era”, while the second million years is marked “SCE” for second current era”. The present day 1,483 years into the “third current era”, commonly referred to as the third age
The first of Terra's ages, this is usually considered to extend into pre-history and include all the events from the planet's birth (5.25B) all the way through to the invention of iron (7.023B). This age is characterized by its lack of dense population centers and also its primitive technology. As the age progresses, populations started to grow and therefore interact, though such interaction was limited until much later in the age. Technology also progressed at a similar pace until the advent of the iron creation process, after which Terra would see a much more rapid progression of technological advances
Towards the end of the age, as the human population on Aimsir started to grow, structured societies began to form, and competition over resources started to produce tension among humanity and also between humans and the Carragh. Once metal technology provided more advanced weaponry, the tension spilled over and fighting became common place, causing historians to mark this as the end of the stone age
During this age the Baumeni and the Ulfar are confined to the northern continent of Saoirse and also have only limited interaction with each other during this age. The baumeni, content to tend to the Weisewald, did not venture out past its borders. The ulfar lived a very rustic life during this age, not bothering with agriculture or building structures until the very end of this age. They formed small to medium sized packs and engaged in a nomadic lifestyle, mostly hunting for food. Most of their free time was devoted to a ritualistic storytelling, developing a rich oral history over thousands of millennium
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The Iron Age begins with the advent of iron in 59.5M BCE, and the increased production of weapons. Wars and invasions were common place and lasted for hundreds of thousands and even millions of years. Conquest and re-conquest were common. Late in the Iron age, the inhabitants of Terra discovered the ability to bind their will, their Ki, to the elements and their own bodies. They eventually learned to harness this power for war, and this ignited the Great War, in which every nation and every species eventually joined into a global war which lasted almost five million years. The aftermath was a patchwork of smaller kingdoms, the remnants of the empires that spawned them
The Great War left the war machines temporarily disabled, and there was a brief period of relative peace as nations rebuilt their armies, recruited talented binders, and built elite fighting forces. The assassination of Kalmar's king in 33M BCE is generally agreed to be the end of the Iron Age as it ushered in a new era of war primarily fought by binders and support regiments
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The Age of Iron ends with the assassination of the King of Kalmar, chosen by historians to mark the shift away from the chaotic wars of the Age of Iron, towards more surgical warfare carried out by elite ki binders. Political deception and intrigue were a part of daily life and the ruling courts of the Terran kingdoms were heavily intertwined. There were, however, still some larger scale wars and conquest, though for any large scale assault it was necessary to have sufficient cause. The justifications for war varied from country to country, generally deemed by historians as little more than pretense for the ambition that still lingered from the Iron Age
Kingdoms poured vast resources into grandiose projects of construction, culture, and public improvement. These projects were aimed at recruiting the most powerful ki binders in an attempt to hold on to power and to avoid being absorbed by a more powerful neighbor. Ultimately these practices would set the stage for the bloodiest period in Terran history
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The Age of Blood begins with two of the largest kingdoms entering into war when Kalmar declares war on Reshk'tar. Every kingdom on Terra would end up joining into several concurrent wars, including the Carragh and even the isolated Baumeni. These wars would rage on for eight million years, varying in intensity over time. Kingdoms rose and fell, alliances were made, and kingdoms were acquired
Eventually, terra would become more or less divided into east and west, and the fighting would increase intensely, severely reducing the total popluation on Terra. For the first time, the natural birth rate would not increase fast enough to keep up with the death toll. Eventually, Jhau'nen and Reishk'tar, the two main combatants, would lose their appetite for war and the Council of Ceilidh would be held, also known as the Council of Seven, in which a peace agreement would be reached which persists to the present day
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Terran historians regard the Council of Seven, also known as the Council of Ceilidh, to be the event that ushered in the modern era, also known as the current era. The modern era is often broken up into three ages, corresponding to the first and second million years in the “Age of Balance”. The present day falls 1,483 years into the third million years, also known as the Third Age
The council was held at Ceilidh, within the kingdom of Reishk'tar which at the time was a smaller fishing town, known for its nearby resort, home to simple but sprawling bathhouses. One of the larger bathhouses was viewed as a suitable location as most of the great halls had been destroyed in the fighting, and Ceilidh had remained neutral during the wars of the Age of Blood
The council established an agreement to refrain from conquest and invasion of another kingdom's territory, outlining the borders for the seven involved territories. Additionally, as a gesture towards real peace, the nations changed their names, dropping their apostrophes and kingdom titles. Additionally, the ancient kingdom names were modernized to be more timely, linguistically. Reishk'tar became Reithe, Jhua'nen became Yuanen, Aru'taal became Arutal, and Gerth'tah became Gerth. Saor's name remained unchanged, as did the recently formed Kilig. At this time, Naer, Gael, Koraha, and Teagh were undeveloped, spotted with half destroyed cities.
Khan'Laheeri, Kal'tael, Nae'eri, Hito, and Akkaus did not survive the Age of Blood. The Akkau were dispersed and would take to nomadic lifestyles. Nae'eri was completely destroyed and abandoned. Kal'tael and the continent upon which it rested was rent asunder, eventually the survivors would reestablish this nation as Gael, only to be destroyed again before the present day Gael was formed on the broken continent. Hito would eventually go on to declare independence from Yuanen under the name Fiadh. Khan'Laheeri was completely wiped out and it is unknown if any of its people survived its destruction. All this would happen within the “First Age” of balance
The first million years after the Council of Ceilidh, the first age of the modern era
The second million years after the Council of Ceilidh, the second age of the modern era
The current age of the present day, 1,483 years into the third age of the modern era
