The Age of Cataclysm spans the period from the Age of War, which ended with the Time of Transcendence, through to the Age of Reclamation (after the final battle of the Second Daemon War). It marked the return of Laycindarius (and to a lesser extent Stormwind) as the first New Gods, the death of Aquar the Elder Dragon of Water, and the departure of the last humans in Altalara. In terms of length, it is one of the shorter ages, spanning less than a century,
Night of Falling Stars[]
- Kalen Stormwind's breaking of the Shard and subsequent battle with Laycindarius in the latter's Gate Plane would have impacts felt across Akrylonor, as excess ether spillled back into the world forming into fireballs, lightning, earthquakes, and other ill effects. When downed by Laycindarius, Stormwind would use the devastation falling upon Laycin as a diversion to escape. Laycindarius returned to Akrylonor proper, and diverted much of the stray power down upon Aergoth in revenge for his and his peoples exile.
Return of Laycindarius[]
- Having spent his years locked in the Gate Plane growing only more powerful, Laycindarius took control of the Laycinders once more. While leaving the Council of Mages their authority, he raised the Temple of Keltraon from its resting place in the nearby ocean and claimed it as his own. He bestowed high priesthood of himself upon the Council's head, Marcell Aetherien, a direct descendant of a former Arcane Society archmage, effectively creating an arcane theocracy.
- Laycin soon began forth on a crusade to unite all humanity (and others) under the rule of the magic, and with Aergoth devastated, few seemed able to oppose them. This effort was thwarted by an unexpected source, as the Primordials Baelgar and Varthiir reunited to face this threat, and drove their Beastmen forward. The two Primordials were able to counter Laycindarius' efforts to participate, forcing the conflict to the armies. While the Beastmen could not overrun Laycin's defenses, they proved far the superior force in the wilder terrain, fighting in guerilla fashion and kept Laycin at bay.
Arrival of the Daemons[]
- Meanwhile, Aergoth's ruins were becoming a battleground of their own. The Aergosian refugess found themselves contending with the Scaled Folk from the Scaled Moor who had moved underwater up the coast. The two groups began fighting within the ruins as the Folk attempted to expand their territory. Both sides were surprised when several large ships of an unknown design arrived at Aergoth's port, and disgorged an army upon the ruins. The Daemons were quick to unearth and seize their old haunt at the Temple of the Unspoken, and proved significantly deadly to the disorganized refugees forcing them back out of the ruins. The Scaled Folk held out longer, but were ultimately outmatched and also routed.
Voyage to the Grey Realm[]
- A Mariner captain, Markus Kammar had been sunk by the Daemon Fleet on its way to Aergoth. hough he was able to slip through the Daemon's lines to the Aergosian refugees, the rest of his crew perished. Seeking a way to stop this threat, he consulted the scholar Vanin Thier, and the two made their way to Laycin, to visit the Timekeeper's leader Mikhael Masterson. The senior Timekeeper suggested that they visit Delwynvale, as he had heard of a powerful mage defeating a Daemon force there.
- The two were captured by bandits in their northward journey, who were in turn captured by the Dawn Legion. Unsure as to whether the pair were trustworthy, or simply bandits with a cover story, Elias Valar assigned one of his knights, Athric Tell to monitor them as they went to Delwynvale. In Delwynvale they were joined by the Yveralisyr druidess Thaera, who had followed omens southward and believed the Daemons to be the source. Meeting with the Mayor of Delwynvale, Drogo The First, they negotiated a guide to the spot where the mage, Eli, had vanished after defeating Dessecar.
- Blocked by the Cult of Stormwind's presence at Black Sands, a necklace Thier had taken from the Aergosian ruins was activated, and a hooded figure appeared to speak to the foursome. It could aid, but needed to be free of its prison, telling them to seek Keltraon beneath Laycindarius temple who might be able to work the necessary magic. The group headed southbound to Laycin.
Stormwind and the Fang of Kabal[]
- Stormwind had not been idle since his near escape from Laycindarius, instead plotting his next move. Reasoning that he needed resources beyond his own to bring down the archmage-turned-god, he sought the counsel of Thul'Masira as he had before to find the Rift Device. The exiled Elder Dragon did indeed hold a treasure of use, a relic of the slain Primordial Kabal, recovered by Thualisyr scouting parties in the Spine Range. In exchange, she demanded Stormwind bring her a vessel of power she purported to have lost in ancient times. Stormwind's cult, headquartered at Black Sands set about the task of this, eventually recovering the Dark Source from the Wraelyns, who had held it after ensnaring it in the Age of Settlement.
- Assaulting Laycindarius yet again, Stormwind was defeated once more. Laycindarius had not ignored the would-be killer, and learned of his history. He conjured forth the Revenants of Kalen's parents to distract the warrior-mage, using the diversion to knock the Fang from his hand, and subsequently slay him.
The Temple of Seven and the Lost Continent[]
- Kammar and his companions in the meantime reached Laycin, with a modicum of luck, while Laycindarius was occupied with Stormwind. They were able to infiltrate the Temple's vaults, and locate the concealed entryway to Keltraon's prison. Aided by the Primordial in unsealing him, they entered and Keltraon weaved his own magic to unseal Eli from the Ether Pocket and bring him forth. The now-quintet made a hasty escape from Laycin as Keltraon concealed his presence there.
- Making their way southwards to Last Cove, Eli unsealed the Tower of the Sepulchre to consult the lore his order had stored there. In the process of his divinations, he detected the "Daemon God" Xylnulifein's presence, and the movement of the Daemon army towards the north. Reaching Last Cove, he was able to force the priests at the Temple Of The Seven to open the inner sanctums which contained the names of the Elder Dragons, and many references to Altalar, the continent to the west. Concluding that Altalara was likely the Western Isles where the Daemons first arose against Aergoth, the five headed west on board ship.
Aquar's Sacrifice and the Exodus of Bastion[]
- They would eventually reach Altalara finding it infested with Daemons, and an ill advised sojourn too close to Fort Praius saw their ship wrecked. Saved by a clan of Aquarisyr, they were deposited at Bastion, the capital of the Mariners long lost behind the Shard. Deciphering that the goodly sea god the Mariners were calling The Leviathan (erroneously) was likely Aquar, they moved to the seaside temple, and were able to call the Elder Dragon forth by using his long unspoken name.
- Aquar had long been helping Bastion survive, bringing down high waves and storms on attempted Daemon crossings, and through clans of the Aquarisyr, his servant race. The group put forth their plea, that the Daemon Army was heading towards a confrontation with the only powers on Idryllia that might stop them in the Dawn Legion and its allies, including the distant cousins of the Aquarisyr, the plains halflings. In order to reduce Xylnulifein's power they had to eliminate his worshippers here.
- After long discussion and planning, a strategy was set, Bastion would evacuate save for a skeleton force. Athric Tell commanded this last stand defense, while the others loaded onto their largest ships. The Daemons, no longer impeded in crossing the strait by Aquar's interferences, surged across and swarmed over Bastion, celebrating their victory at last, failing to notice the sparse defenders. Aquar arose from the ocean at the head of a monstrous wave, and pulsed with gathered magic. The wave crashed down on Bastion even as Aquar began to split apart and merge with it, The magic infused water crushed buildings and swept aside walls, and most notably burned the Daemon army like acid, killing them all. The entire island save for Watchlight Peak was buried and pushed below by the wave, with only the Mariner refugees on their ships remaining.
Battle Against the Daemon God[]
- Meanwhile, back on Idryllia, the Daemon Army surged forwards through a large Underworld tunnel that roughly connected Aergoth to the marshlands near Carpath. Discovered by Khazadryn scouts, the onset of this impending battle drew the Dawn Legion, Delwynvale, Obsidian City, Wilderlanders and Yveralisyr from the Northern Forest, and the Khazadryn and Mordrakryn who could make the crossing in time to gather in a great army against the coming threat. Even deprived of divine power with the mass death of his worshippers in Altalara, Xylnulifein was a fierce opponent, and Daemons often matched the might of several opponents, but in the end, the alliance won over and routed the few surviving Daemons back into the Underworld.