A.D. 1200-1300

The history of Alder from 1200-1300

1216 AD: Innocentius III first encounters the elusive Aile in the mountains of Umbria and spends a month living with the mythical ‘winged ones’, marveling at their fascinating, yet alien, CRY technology. He convinces a handful of these exotic folk to return with him to Leoness to share their knowledge with the Church. The inventor Lilicia Lune Livest and her lover Rook are among their number.
1217 AD: The first of several underground facilities are established to plumb the depths of Aile knowledge, and to develop a powerful magic exclusive to the faith.; In the same year, adventurers discover a hulking, undersea vessel floating off the coast of Genoa. In this submerged wreck are several curious devices and the First Fragment, a manuscript filled with unusual schematics and esoteric formulae.; The merchant families squabble over salvage rights, eventually agreeing to pool their resources to study their finds. This Cartel is headed by the influential Medici family of Firenza.
1219 AD: Cartel explorers salvage the remains of several Balkan armor suits from the mountain range of the same name.; Two months later, Cartel engineers begin work on a steam powered engine.
1220 AD: Lilicia posits that humans, though inherently non-magical, were latent wellsprings of CRY. She constructs a Capacitor capable of siphoning this wondrous energy but a fire breaks out, ruining the device and destroying her research notes before it can be tested, temporarily halting the experiment.
1222 AD: The Cartel’s first steam powered train makes its inaugural run between Pisa and Genoa, marking the dawn of Alder’s Industrial age.
1223 AD: Lilicia rebuilds her Capacitor. A test is conducted in secret under the Cathedral de Rheims, with its subject a criminal on death row. It ends in failure, with the criminal biting his tongue and bleeding to death during the experiment. The machine is dismantled soon after.
1226 AD: A shaken Lilicia returns alone to the Aile enclave in Umbria.; Work begins on a rail service to join Cartel holdings to capital cities along its Alder trade route. The project is met with harsh opposition by Alder’s provincial nobility, who fear for their autonomy.
1227 AD: The Church signs a pact with the Cartel to set up 12 rail stations in Leoness. The Aile of Leoness and Cartel engineers work together to design a self sustaining rail carriage system.
1230 AD: Using knowledge gleaned from the Aile, Cartel engineers invent the steam powered generator, but the dangerous and unpredictable device remains little more than a means for heating the bath waters of the ultra-rich.; In Jedah, Cartel explorers uncover a Second Fragment hidden in an expansive network of tunnels beneath the desert. There, they encounter the Ash Tribe, nomadic Aile who revere the Old Ways and regard technology as anathema. The expedition barely escapes with their lives.
1231 AD: A chemist synthesizes gunpowder using knowledge gleaned from the Second Fragment. The first handheld gunpowder bombard is invented shortly after, marking the end of the age of swordsmanship and chivalrous warfare.; The steam powered generator is perfected, and becomes a comforting source of constant light and warmth in Cartel lands, at least for those who can afford its exorbitant fee.
1236 AD: The Church attempts to recreate Lilicia’s experiment. It is a phenomenal success, though the subject dies in the process, a withered husk. The energy generated is used to maintain the lights of the Cathedral de Rheims for a fortnight.; The Aile quit the project, appalled by the Church’s disregard for human life. They depart for Umbria, but perish in a tragic rail accident en route.; A heartbroken Lilicia returns to Leoness to collect Rook’s remains. She is convinced by the Church to stay, and throws herself into research, focusing on practical applications of CRY technology to rejuvenate wounded tissue and revive the dead.
1237 AD: A succession dispute plunges Germania into civil war that would last some 40 years.; In the same year, Albion commissions a steam powered warship. Its maiden voyage takes it to the port of Avalon, where it becomes the first in the seafaring nation’s new fleet.; Albion invades Erin, annexing the island state.; A contingent of Church knights enters Jedah, but the party is accosted by the Ash Tribe and slain. The lone survivor, a page boy, returns to Leoness raving about these white haired, dark skinned ‘devils of the desert’.
1240 AD: The Church acquires the Third and Fourth Fragments through independent sources. Cartel engineers and Aile scientists are engaged to decipher the texts, and their collaboration results in the creation of a working CRY engine.; Following the success of its Erin campaign, Albion hires Cartel engineers to create a system of transport, irrigation and sanitation using steam technology and electricity. The result is the rapid modernization of one of Alder’s strongest military powers.
1241 AD: The Cartel attempts to replicate the Church’s CRY engine, but is unable to do so without the fundamental knowledge of the Aile.; The Church begins phasing out the Cartel’s steam powered engines and rail carriages, replacing them with CRY powered equivalents.; Fearing the burgeoning power of Albion, the Church begins its CRY empowered weapons program.
1242 AD: Cartel spies discover the whereabouts of the Aile and proceed to court them for their knowledge.; No longer able to keep the existence of its benefactors a secret, the Church hails the Aile of Umbria as ‘angels unto God’, and invites them to live in Leoness. Many take up the offer, and the kingdom thrives.
1245 AD: After close to 30 years of research and experimentation, the Church pioneers its own brand of sorcery, fueled by CRY stored in rosary beads. Though the miracles are few, they prove enough to win the hearts of the masses, and there is a revival of deeply religious fervor and faith in Leoness.
1246 AD: Armed with newfound magic, Church forces enter Jedah, intent to reclaim the Holy Land and to plumb the desert depths for knowledge. They encounter a mythical, slumbering Behemoth, and are routed when their priestly prayers fail them.; The contingent is rescued by Moorish pilgrims, and survivors return to Leoness, disgraced. The Cardinal leading the expedition commits suicide shortly after.
1247 AD: The Erin revolt, having sharpened their weapons for a decade, but spell and steel proves no match against Albion’s trained fusiliers.; A truce is signed, and the Erin grudgingly pledge their support to the Albion crown.; The Church acquires an intact Balkan suit. Restoration work on it begins.
1248 AD: The Church establishes the Order of the Knights Balkan, warriors of the faith girded in suits of CRY empowered armor. Due to their prohibitive costs, only 30 such suits are produced.
1250 AD: Church forces invade Jedah, marking the beginning of a hundred year campaign of attrition that serves only to erode the Church’s coffers and the goodwill of its neighbors.
1273 AD: The zauberer Reihart I ascends the throne of Germania, putting an end to decades of civil war. The shattered kingdom is rebuilt with arcane arts and lavish contributions from the Medici Cartel, eager to establish ties with the court of the newly crowned ‘Faerie Monarch’.
1274 AD: Reihart I declares Germania a sanctuary for those who practice the mystical arts. The magier and zauberer of the continent flock to his banner. Germania, already famed for its skilled swordsmen, swells in its military might.
1277 AD: Anton di Firenza, a priest turned political dissident, flees Leoness with his family. He is granted asylum in Germania, and the defection sours relations between the Church and Reihart I’s fledgling government.
1278 AD: The Firenza Incident escalates into the One Day War between Leoness and Germania.; The Balkan Knights suffer a crushing defeat at the hands of Germania’s wizards, and the Church is forced to relinquish its claim on the heretic priest for now.; A commission is convened by the College of Cardinals to study the workings of ‘base’ magic, previously a taboo subject.
1280 AD: Church forces in Jedah capture several members of the Ash Tribe. These feral Aile are transported back to Leoness in secret for study and experimentation.; The convent at Dom de la Pucelle is established to train the Church’s agents in assassination techniques and methods to combat spell casters. The first 13 of these become founding members of the Order Misericordia.
1281 AD: An assassination attempt on Reihart I ends in spectacular failure. The Church is implicated in the crime, but denies evidence of wrongdoing.
1284 AD: The ruling houses of Albion and Erin marry, joining the two island states into one empire.; Albion colonizes the north western tip of Jedah, opening channels for trade, diplomacy and cultural exchange.
1292 AD: Anton di Firenza is found dead, drowned in his bath water. He is survived by a wife and son.; Albion and Leoness come into direct conflict in Jedah. Albion’s steam bike dragoons and Church soldiers clash at Al da-ka’an, with heavy losses on both sides.
1293 AD: The Church closes its doors to secular politics, focusing instead on CRY research.; Lilicia discovers Ash Tribe remains in one of the Church’s laboratories, the remnants of a gruesome experiment. Appalled, she leaves Leoness, vowing never to return.
1294 AD: Education is made compulsory in Germania. The especially gifted are invited to study at the University of Koenig, where they are tutored in the ways of magic.