150 ASF

When Starfall refugees migrated into the continent of Avelliron, they found lands unscathed by Rains and Fires. They found their home—and with it, a hopeful chance to rebuild.

The continent, however, was not empty.

Most Lorekeepers believe Avelliron was first home to the Yulekk, the horned and hoofed nomads of the far north, often called the “elkfolk”. Through their surviving oral traditions and story blankets, we know that their tribes have roamed the continent since time immemorial, predating Starfall by thousands of years or more.

Through them we know also of the Orlott, commonly known as the “otterfolk”, an empire that rose and fell long before the Broken Star did. In fact, we even know that small groups of humans had stumbled their way into Avelliron over the ages, scattering across the continent like seeds in the wind.

So, despite what some royal records and religious texts will tell you, Avelliron was decidedly not unpopulated when Starfall refugees straggled onto the scene, somewhere between 100 and 200 ASF. They flooded through the Seastone Bridge, across present-day Gaetica and Rivona, and up to the southern shores of Lake Liron. Peacefully or not, they left settlements in their wake—a disorganized array of townships, city states, and petty kingdoms.

None of these lasted awhile. Some were razed by native peoples angered at encroachment onto their land. Others were absorbed by neighbors, or trampled over by another wave of refugees. And a lucky few were obliterated by the spontaneous aftershocks of Starfall.

Indeed, even a century or two after the Broken Star fell, strange environmental phenomena continued to rock every corner of the world, including Avelliron. Over time, the aftershocks had diminished in frequency and strength—for example, a blizzard might not strike every summer, and only last a few days instead of two weeks.

For refugees trying to rebuild what they’d lost, these aftershocks were quite upsetting. They struck at random times and places, ruining settlements, spoiling crops, and upending wars. Just when an equilibrium might have been possible, an aftershock would strike, destroying what peace and power was in place.

Keep in mind that, even without the aftershocks, Avelliron held all sorts of strange new geography, flora, and fauna never before seen by the Starfall refugees. Monsters such as corvil and stormtigers stalked the wilds, agitated and displaced by Starfall and its aftershocks. They, too, had opinions on the newcomers.

All of this was in addition to the normal ways different peoples fight each other over lands, amplified tenfold by the migration en masse. It’s a small wonder, then, that Lorekeepers refer to this period as the Fractured Centuries.