The Wave of Collapse

The Wave of Collapse was an event which occurred as a result of the meddling of wizards with the overall climate of Ard’renn. The first council of Malyzur convened in Mizos in the year of 0PC, representing mages, sorcerers, sages and mystics from across Ard’renn. High Seer Corgus of Norus suggested a drastic system of climate restructuring, taking place in all areas of the world which would benefit the lives of all people. As an ice mage, Corgus had a limited perspective into the intricacies of the global climate and the dependencies of the world system. Any change to the intricate environmental balance would lead to catastrophic results. Representatives of other magical schools would put counter-arguments in place in order to sway Corgus’ doctrine, but mages who had close ties or economic interests around the world, particularly in Northern Illitaj, would be blinded by the prospect of economic gain from the mitigation of climate events such as great waves, damaging winds, floods and heatwaves. The council’s vote was split on lines mostly to do with regional politics. Ice Seers who’s nations wealth depended on their ability to thrive in colder climates wished for a colder North, voting in favour of the change. Court summoners in the Eastern Northalos Kingdoms voted in opposition due to their understanding of the effects of the Northern temperatures on river flow into prominent cities from glaciers. Mages in the Heartland voted unanimously against any changes to the global climate, due to their favourable geographic location prior to the collapse. Mages from the southern Heartlands and Illitaj would vote in favour of climate changing reforms, as the cities and trade networks were being intensely affected by strong winds of the dividing sea. Ultimately, the deciding votes on the council would come from representatives from independent nations. Cooler heads from Strangalor natives and Aranese druids who had a deep connection with the magics of Ard’renn understood the immense effects that any changes to a regional climate would have on the environment and the denizens of Ard’renn.

The Transposition Accord
Following the decision, most mages retreated to their home regions, except for those who voted in opposition. The Transposition Accord would meet in private, with representatives from Northern Ice Seers and Illitaji Windcallers agreeing to disperse throughout Ard’renn to hijack sacred magical infused lodestones in order to bring about the changes they wanted.

The Collapse
The first great changes to the world would take place on the Northern Shores of Illitaj. After shattering lodestones which brought wind to the dividing sea, the cities in the Oceanic League were quickly faced by extreme waves and rising sea levels. The great cities of Northern Illitaj were submerged in weeks where in the evenings, the sea would rise to tremendous heights, never before experienced. Refugees would be sent across the plains, which would quickly experience desertification as a result of the absence of the cooling winds from the North and the Western Sea, leading to the lush trading port of Zahara being overflowing with new populations. Following the collapse of Alataj, the administrative capitol of the Oceanic league, the sea states that remained in the divide secured their independence in the short-term, creating a power vacuum in the region which the city of Novumius republic would seek to fill in the coming decades.

The Northern Shores of the Divide would face similarly scaring effects. The floodplains of the southern heartland would quickly become inundated with sea water, leading huge waves of refugees to the now warming central heartlands. The denizens of the Nova peninsula would be largely unaffected by the change, as their settlements were often miles inland. The Andalusian string, a geographic landbridge between Illitaj and the Heartland would be shattered in several locations, leading to the Dividing Sea and the Great Ocean to meet. The chokehold cities of Akavar and Morbos would maintain their status as important military forts, but would also become hubs for future trade between the remaining inner sea states and the ports of the Great Ocean.