Golarion

History

The Age of Lost Omens

Ten thousand years ago, the world of Golarion came close to ending. Earthfall, as this extinction-level event came to be known, saw the world pummeled by a shower of falling stars that sank continents, hollowed out new seas, and destroyed civilizations. It took centuries for the world to recover, and centuries more for society to rebuild, but recover it did.

Dwarves ascended to the surface from the underground reaches of the Darklands in their legendary Quest for Sky, elves returned from the neighboring planet of Castrovel via a network of portals to reclaim their lands and traditions, and gnomes from the mysterious First World sought shelter from a now-forgotten terror. Survivors from other ancestries who had sheltered through the terror and destruction of Earthfall emerged during the Age of Darkness to reclaim their ancestral lands, from scrappy goblin tribes with a knack for surviving despite all odds against them to industrious halflings who emerged from the ruins to found societies of their own.

But humanity made the most astounding recovery. Less than 2,000 years after the near-extinction from Earthfall, the Age of Destiny saw the rise of many new human empires throughout the world. Humanity built wondrous structures, and its schools relearned magic that had been thought lost. Among these human nations walked a man named Aroden—an immortal survivor of the devastation of Earthfall. Aroden had long since cultivated a following of loyal subjects who regarded him with awe, for immortality was but one of the wonders he’d achieved. Greatest among these was his discovery of a shard of potent magic known today as the Starstone, a fragment from the stars that fell during Earthfall, which had lodged at the bottom of the Inner Sea. Contact with this alien artifact assailed Aroden with phantasmagoric visions, subjected him to a series of deadly martial trials, and posed exhausting moral quandaries that challenged his limits more than any of the arduous experiences he had yet endured. He emerged from this test a living god, and his first divine act was to raise the Starstone and the mass of land on which it had lain from the bottom of the sea to form the Isle of Kortos—also known as Starstone Isle—where he then established the city of Absalom.

In the centuries to follow, Absalom grew into one of the largest cities in the world, and Aroden’s legacy grew alongside it. As the millennia passed, his attentions increasingly turned away from the concerns of the Inner Sea’s inhabitants to otherworldly matters beyond mortal ken, but prophecy spoke of a time when he would return to Golarion and lead humanity triumphantly into an Age of Glory. As the time of Aroden’s return drew near, entire nations undertook monumental preparations to welcome him back to Golarion.

But instead, Aroden died, and with him the reliability of prophecy as well. Golarion was wracked by storms, war, and supernatural devastation as the god’s death marked the beginning of a new age—a time of uncertainty, but also a time of opportunity. This is the Age of Lost Omens, an age in need of heroes like never before.

Recent Events

• 4606 AR - Aroden dies mysteriously, leaving the Empire of Cheliax without a divine mandate. Iomedae takes on many of Aroden’s followers and legacy, becoming known as the Inheritor. The Eye of Abendego forms off of Garund’s western coast, drowning the nations of Lirgen and Yamasa. The Worldwound opens in northern Avistan; demons pour forth and destroy the nation of Sarkoris.
• 4640 AR - After decades of civil war, House Thrune allies itself with Hell to seize control of Cheliax, ushering in the current dark chapter in Chelish politics.
• 4667 AR - Democratic fervor sweeps through eastern Avistan, prompting the endless Red Revolution in Galt, as well as the more successful People’s Revolt in Andoran in 4669 AR.
• 4697 AR - The Goblinblood Wars ravage Isger, drawing soldiers from across the Inner Sea region.
• 4709 AR - Golarion learns of the existence of evil subterranean elves called drow.
• 4713 AR - Mendev’s Fifth Crusade finally defeats the demon lord Deskari and performs a ritual to close the Worldwound.
• 4714 AR - In Numeria, the artificial intelligence Casandalee ascends to godhood.
• 4715 AR - Civil unrest in Cheliax leads to the secession of Ravounel. A similar uprising is crushed in Isger by Chelish agents.
• 4717 AR - Absalom outlaws slavery, drastically reducing the Inner Sea’s slave trade.
• 4718 AR - The Runelords return from millennia of hiding, establishing the nation of New Thassilon in the region of Varisia.
• 4719 AR - The current year. Tar-Baphon has recently broken free of his prison, destroying the nation of Lastwall and ravaging Avistan before finally being forced back onto the Isle of Terror.

Important Nations

• Cheliax
• Andoran
• Isger
• Absalom

Gods

Gods of Good

• Erastil - Old Deadeye - LG god of family, farming, hunting, and trade
• Iomedae - The Inheritor - LG goddess of honor, justice, rulership, and valor
• Torag - Father of Creation - LG god of the forge, protection, and strategy
• Saranrae - The Dawnflower - NG goddess fo healing, honesty, redemption, and the sun
• Shelyn - The Eternal Rose - NG goddess of beauty, love and music
• Cayden Cailean - The Accidental God - CG god of ale, bravery, freedom, and win
• Desna - The Song of Spheres - CG goddess of dreams, luck, stars, and travelers

Gods of Neutrality

• Abadar - Master of the first Vault - LN god of cities, law, merchants, and wealth
• Irori - Master of Masters - LN god of history, knowledge, and self-perfection
• Gozreh - The Wind and the Waves - N god of nature, the sea, and weather
• Nethys - The All-Seeing Eye - N god of magic
• Pharasma - Lady of Graves - N goddess of birth, death, fate, prophecy, and time
• Callistria - The Saovred Sting - CN goddess of lust, revenge, and trickery
• Gorum - Our Lord in Iron - CN god of battle, strength, and weapons

Gods of Evil

• Asmodeus - The Prince of Darkness - LE god of contracts, pride, slavery, and tyranny
• Zon Kuthon - The Midnight Lord - LE god of darkness, envy, loss, and pain
• Norgorber - Blackfingers, Father Skinsaw, The Gray Master, Reaper of Reputation - NE god of greed, murder, poison, and secrets
• Uragotha - The Pallid Princess - NE goddess of disease, gluttony, and undeath
• Rovagug - The Rough Beast - CE god of destruction, disaster, and wrath
• Lamashtu - Mother of Monsters - CE goddess of aberrance, monsters, and nightmares