Earthdawn (Lore)

The peculiarity of things that happened after the last ice age, but before the bronze age collapse.

Earthdawn is a mythic fantasy setting defined by high magic, long memory, and the struggle to reclaim a wounded world. Set in the Fourth World, thousands of years before the cyberpunk future of Shadowrun, Earthdawn begins in the aftermath of an apocalyptic magical event called the Scourge—a time when beings crossed from the realms of nightmare into the physical world, devouring life, sanity, and Pattern itself.

The Metaplot at a Glance

Magic in Earthdawn rises and falls in cycles. At its peak, it becomes strong enough to attract Horrors, malevolent astral entities that consume reality and emotion alike. Knowing this, the people of Barsaive—a culturally rich and diverse province in the former Theran Empire—sealed themselves in underground magical shelters called kaers. Generations later, the magic has ebbed and the Horrors have mostly retreated.

At the beginning of the Earthdawn story, the kaers opened. The world was wild and the Theran Empire came to claim its rightful domains. The people of Barsaive pushed back—hard. Heroes rose to explore, protect, and reclaim the world from both external enemies and internal scars.

Later, the Earthdawn, a skyship, sailed from Throal. A war of independence was fought over several years, and the great city of Skypoint fell.

The Fourth World Setting

The stories of Earthdawn play out in a mythical para-history of the Stone Age in the lands we know as Europe and the mediterranean basin, particularly modern day Ukraine. Barsaive, as it was called then, is a vibrant frontier with a diverse range of fantasy races and nations. Once a dominion of the southern Theran Empire, and maybe even its origin, the region endeavours to define its own indepenendence.

The Namegiver Races in the Primary Setting

In Earthdawn, the sentient peoples of the world are known as Namegivers—because the act of Naming carries magical significance. Each race has its own traditions, philosophies, and metaphysical identity:

• Humans: Adaptable and ambitious, both flawed and fearless.
• Dwarves: The dominant political force in Barsaive, builders of Throal, the kingdom at the setting’s heart.
• Elves: Both noble and tragic—especially the corrupted Blood Elves of the Wyrm Wood.
• Orks: Proud, passionate, and often misunderstood. Their culture values freedom and intensity.
• Trolls: Highland warriors who fly airships and follow codes of honor.
• T’skrang: Lizard-like river-faring dramatists with a gift for flair and family.
• Windlings: Tiny winged tricksters with sharp minds and strong hearts.
• Obsidimen: Stone-bodied beings connected to ancient Liferocks, slow but spiritually grounded.

The Nations and Peoples of Barsaive

• Throal: A sprawling underground dwarven kingdom, and Barsaive’s intellectual and political center. Its Great Library is the setting’s lore anchor.
• Blood Wood: Once the Wyrm Wood, now cursed. Its elf-queen turned her people into pain-fueled immortals to survive the Scourge.
• Cara Fahd: The resurrected ork nation, built on freedom, fire, and memory.
• The Aropagoi of the Serpent River: A network of river trade dominated by powerful family-nations of T'skrang who sail the lifeblood of the river.
• The Crystal Raiders: Skyborne troll clans who raid by airship and hold ancient grudges.
• Iopos: A secretive, controlling city-state ruled by the Denairastas family. Magical, dangerous, and planning something big.