Norwald

Norwald

NORWALD

Index

Introduction

Norwald is a planet that harbors life. 82% of its surface is made up of oceans and seas, finding large amounts of water in its three different forms, from bodies of water such as huge oceans, to iced regions towards the poles of the planet. The remaining 18% of Norwald’s surface is land, consisting of one major continent, three vast islands, four minor islands, a total amount of 19 smaller islands and two archipielagos, one consisting of six islands, and another one consisting of four islands.

Physical characteristics

The planet is shaped as an ellipsoid, flattening at the poles. Little is known about the materials that compose the Norwald, and there is still so much to study and learn.

Massive mountains and mountain ranges are found all across the Norwald, especially towards the interior part of the main continent. This makes the spheroid unequal in numerous points of its geography.

It is known that the Norwald orbits around two stars, a red giant star called Dasho, and a smaller, brown dwarf star called Gasha. The two of them orbit together around each other, giving the planet a wide range of colors and temperatures within the very same day.

Around the Norwald there is a natural satellite, referred as “moon”, called Nacta.

Essence

The essence is the main material with which the Norwald was created. The origin of the essence is still unknown, but it is said to be the main element to compose everything on the planet.

Everything in Norwald, from the smallest rock to the greatest God, holds an amount of essence. Some scholars affirm that there are two types of essence, the Divine Essence, coming directly from the Aithars and/or from the dagger Thekar, and the regular essence, held in every other thing. On the other hand, another trail of thought confirms that essence remains essence, no matter who is holding it, and that the actual difference between Gods and mortals is the amount of essence held within their bodies. It is still unknown whether one or the other is right, but late reports are willing to accept the second hypothesis as right.

A huge quantity of essence (still difficult to calculate) will allow its holder to be able to create from nothingness, or to use creative tools such as Thekar to create something out of nothing.

The planes of existence of the Norwald

There are six planes of existence in Norwald. Those planes have different relationships between them, but for most cases, there’s no way of transferring from one another without getting to the islands of Ahian, in the mortal realm.

The first plane is the plane of the Aithars, in which nothing is physical. They live in perfect harmony within nothingness, and it is supposed to be on top of the next plane. This plane allows watching omnisciently but doesn’t allow anything related to acting or creating.

The second plane is the plane of the Ostromthar, outside of the Norwald, in which the Ostromthar control time and lighting of the planet. Nothing else can be done from that plane aside from watching.

The third plane is the connector between all five planes. It is precisely in the Ahian archipielago, a group of islands in the middle of the ocean, protected from mortals by natural forces (thus, the gods in charge of those forces). The islands themselves have very tough nature, created specifically to be aggressive in case any mortal got to this realm. The center island holds the temple in which all the rules of the Norwald are registered, including divine, nature and death rules as well. These islands are only easily accessible by the Aithars, the Ostromthar and the Drakalien, and it contains entrances to the five realms of the afterlives, called the Theirnos.

The fourth plane is the mortal realm, in which mortals live.

The fifth plane is the one of the dead, in which the Five Theirnos are located, and the Drakalien can show themselves in a tangible form. It is all around the mortal realm, but beings from this realm and the afterlife realm cannot interact between themselves. The dead can see the living, but the living will never be able to see the dead, nor the Drakalien. There is a thin line in which they could coexist, and it is a state of quasi death.

The sixth plane is the Netherwald. It was created by Ardanthio when he threw the dagger Balrai to a portal created by the dagger Thekar. This maneuver transferred all the chaos created by the evil dagger, generating a whole underworld in which every fear could become a reality. As the Thekar portal created by Ardanthio remained open when this happened, mortals can cross this threshold to arrive to the Netherwald. The portal is located at the top of the highest mountain of Shadi. It is not accessible from any other plane of existence, it needs to be reached by crossing the portal.

Measurements

To be able to keep up with Norwald terminology, it is important to know that their measurements of time, weight and space are different from what we already know, so here are some tables comparing their measurements to ours.

Temperature

Temperature in Norwald has two scales, the Gashian scale to measure warmth and Nactarian scale to measure cold.

150º Gashian – Water boils

75º Gashian – Ice melts

0º Nactarian – Water freezes

Time

Norwald Earth Relation
Nirso
Second
1 nirso = 3,5 seconds
50 nirsos =
Soblor
Minute
1 soblor = 2 minutes and 55 seconds
50 soblor =
Harat
Hour
1 harat = 2 hours, 25 minutes and 50 seconds
50 harat =
Dahan
Day
1 dahan = 121 hours, 31 minutes, 40 seconds
5 dahan =
Mansal
Week
10 mansal =
Mais
Month
25 mais =
Aner
Year
10 aner =
Saner
Ten years
10 saner =
Kaner
Century

An aner is organized in five stations, each of them having 5 mais.

Seasons in Norwald have a name and five mais with names of their own, although it is considered the season doesn’t start until its Seasonal Rak wakes up. Once the rak is awake, most natural phenomena start to happen. There’s a concrete date in which each rak wakes up, but the seasons and mais are, although very specific, still illustrative, because they are moving with the phases of Nacta.

Mansal dahan and season organization

The dahans are named after the five Drakalien:

Aldrahan Therehan Hairhan Adohan Sorehan

 They are organized in five parts. First, Gasha appears, it is called the first dawn. When it is at the top of the sky, it is called the “lightening”. Then the second dawn happens, when Dasho appears. Last, when Dahso and Gasha hide, nighttime starts with Nacta’s rising. Nighttime has two parts, the twilight and the dream.

Moifa

Moifa is the first season of the aner. It has a chilly temperature that grows colder as the mais pass by. Moifa allows animals to create their nests and to protect themselves from the cold that is about to happen during the next season. Cold plants start getting prepared to grow and develop, while the plants that grow during other seasons finish dropping their leaves and flowers to adopt a form that will mostly allow them to survive the upcoming cold. Some species migrate somewhere where the temperature will allow them to keep functioning without having to hibernate. Nights start to grow longer by the second mais, and keep being longer and longer during all of the season.

During this season, on the first night in which Nacta doesn’t appear, the Moifa rak, called Aranfor, wakes up. It is considered this rak is the bringer of the season, and that its awakened state allows the temperature to develop during the following mais.

Fash

Fash is the second season of the aner, and the coldest of the five. Most snow storms occur during this period. Weaker non-cold plants tend to suffer more or die, while the animals have to hide in nests to wait for this season to go by. Other plants and animals, on the other hand, more prepared for the cold, have their reproducing period during Fash. Nights are the longest during these mais, occupying more than half of the harat of the dahan, but tend to be shorter towards the fourth mais of the season. There’s a dahan in which nighttime takes over completely, called the Night Tyrant, which happens during the mais Maren. After that, nights start to grow shorter, and the Gasha Queen also happens. It’s a very specific and isolated phenomena in which daytime lasts a little bit more than half of the dahan. The season goes back to nights being long, although shorter every dahan.

There’s a rak, called Dorig (on the Naithar Dorig-Nir’s glory), which wakes up during the first waning crescent of Nacta, and allows the season to go by. It is said that this rak helps Dorig-Nir to create snow storms, as this season gets busy with the cold and the Naithar needs a helping claw to be able to maintain the cold in all of the regions of the Norwald.

Emheren

Emheren is the middle season in Norwald. It is chilly during the first mais but grows warm almost instantly. During this season, there’s somewhat of an exchange between cold and warm animals and plants, in which almost all of them are awake and living, but some of them get prepared to go through the hot season unharmed whereas the others get ready to reproduce. During Emheren, most animals and plants bloom and reproduce, and daytime starts to grow longer after the first mais has passed by. It keeps being longer and longer during the rest of the mais.

The Seasonal Rak of this season is called Herion, in charge of helping the plant realm to bloom. It wakes up during the first full Nacta, and after its awakeness, the season is considered as started.

Ihash

Ihash is the warmest season of all. The temperatures can be extreme in some parts of the Norwald, killing many different species that might be caught unprotected. Some animals and plants protect themselves during the previous season in order to go through Ihash under a chill shelter. This process is the same as hibernating, during a warm season. A lot of other species migrate somewhere colder, as there are places where the heat menace their physical integrity. Daytime occupies more than half of the harat of the dahan, leaving nighttime a very short period of time. The hottest temperatures are reached during the third mais of the season. The hottest dahan usually happens at the same time as the so-called “Dasho King”, a dahan in which there is no night at all. After that, daytime grows shorter.

During this season, Volketh, its Seasonal Rak, wakes up the very same night the first first quarter of Nacta shows up in the sky.

Elkerian

Elkerian is the last season of the aner. It has a warm temperature, but cold enough for almost all the species to be functioning again. Some plants belong to this season and grow beautifully during these mais, as well as some animals start reproducing. It is the equivalent of Emheren but daytime is a little bit shorter and it develops towards a cooler temperature. This season have the most regular-timed dahans, and there is no particular date in which nighttime starts to grow longer.

Elkerian and Moifa share a particularity which is, the last dahan of the aner, and the first of the next aner, merge into a long dahan in which light is the same at all times. It is said the Ostromthar take a free dahan to rest before the next aner.

The Seasonal Rak, Keridos, wakes up during the first full Nacta of the season.

Moifa Fash Emheren Ihash Elkerian
Nared
Reni
Deran
Vair
Keri
Dorif
Maren
Firdo
Nemer
Aneka
Kalad
Kanath
Ladak
Renkan
Riaval
Thairas
Ethal
Rasthe
Tarnel
Kanthel
Dasith
Danthos
Thidas
Leidan
Minardi

Size

Norwald Earth
Deda
1,57 cm
5 dedas =
Mana
7,85 cm
10 manas =
Pirnera
78,50 cm
50 pirneras =
Medis
39,25 m
50 medis =
Medisiek
1962,50 m

A medisiek is the largest considered size. As in Norwald there are not many size units, space is calculated in time taken to go from point A to point B, or compared to beast sizes.

Weight

Norwald Earth
Dodu
72,50 gr
5 dodu =
Monu
362,50 gr
10 monu =
Purne
3,625 kg
10 purne =
Sirlis
36,25 kg
50 sirlis =
Mudusor
1812,50 kg
50 mudusor =
Mundusor
90625 kg

A mundusor is the largest considered weight. There are, as already said, not many units for measurement in Norwald, thus weight can also be compared to beast’s weights in order to give the receiver of the message.

History and Life in Norwald

Although Norwald has shown clear signs of evident evolution within most of its creatures, it is also true that its original form was created by the force of three powerful Gods, their ensemble called “the Aithars”. Those three Gods, Korpe, Neilin and Denra, created the whole planet with their united forces, transmitting their divine essence in order to shape what we know as Norwald. These Gods also created the Ostromthar, less relevant Gods, giving them the obligation and power to control time.

After creating the world, they shaped as mortals to finish the final touches in order for the Norwald to work on its own, leaving behind them a whole batch of demi-gods, called the Naithars, to control smaller but not less relevant natural forces such as wind, oceans, thunder, volcanoes, storms and every other physical activity of the planet. They created the Drakalien as well to be in control of death for the intelligent forms of life, and then disappeared to a different plane of existence, leaving behind the dagger Thekar, last connection with them, holder of an incalculable amount of divine essence within its edge.

Organization of the Eras

The essence, being the most important element of the construction of the Norwald, leads an important part in the organization of its time. The Eras are not a natural phenomena, but a built system to organize History among mortals. That is why they chose the biggest recipient of essence to divide the past times.

Thekar could be used for many purposes, but mortals (a few of them) have only been able to use it as a weapon to create portals to teleport themselves through Norwald. This, being an extremely useful tool, has led tharais from all over the Norwald to try to become the owners of it. Very few were able to wield it, and most of the time it has been kept a secret in order not to get the attention from possible thieves.

That is why the Eras are based on the owner of Thekar. Each time the dagger has been owned by a possessor or a group of possessors, History has considered that a new Era has begun.

Eras of the Tharais

The Eras might differ from one calendar to another. Not all forms of life consider the same things to divide History. Most tharais do, especially in the main continent, and that is why it is considered as the main way to organize past times.

The Era “zero”, the first of all (but not considered the first) was called the Primal Era, in which the Aithars created the Norwald, then shaped as mortals to give the final touches to their world, before leaving to another plane of existence. In order to create from the “inside”, they needed a weapon that could manifest in the mortal plane, so before getting in the Norwald, they forged Thekar, with as much essence as possible, so they could use it to finish the world. This Era lasted 19 276 aner before the three main Gods left, leaving the dagger Thekar behind them, as they couldn’t bring it to their plane. They hid it in Neilin’s favorite forest, towards the center of the main continent.

The first Era, called “The Birth” happened. It lasted 28 743 aner before a tharai called Herdalion found Thekar and kept it as his.

“The Fall” is the name tharais gave to the second Era, which lasted 4675 aner. This is the Era in which Herdalion (then the current Thekar owner) tried to wield it, in vain. In order to get as much power as possible from it, he ordered a copy of the dagger, which he called Balrai, that had similar powers, but in a destructive way. He managed to create portals with it, but those were kept not only open, but destroying the place to which he aimed to go.

Ardanthio, a noble hero, fought against him and got both daggers, planning to get rid of Balrai by throwing it into a portal created by Thekar. The evil portals disappeared, but created a whole new plane of existence, called “The Nightmare World” or “the Netherwald” from then on, where every evil thing could manifest in a physical way.

“Freedom” was the given name to the third Era. It lasted 7899 aner and is considered to be started right after Ardanthio beat Herdalion in a long and difficult mage fight. After he had thrown the evil dagger to the portal, creating the Netherwald, Ardanthio dedicated his life to protect the weapon, and to instruct other noble heroes to do the same. It is considered that Ardanthio wasn’t his sole owner. This Era ended when the community of protectors, called “The Keepers” dissolved, long after Ardanthio’s death. The stronger of them kept the dagger and promised to protect it, but it was then kept as a family treasure and not as a dangerous weapon that could call the attention of the ambitious.

The fourth Era was called “Travel and war”. It lasted 7851 aner. Thekar, considered then “family heirloom”, was less and less taken in consideration due to their inability to wield the weapon. So it was, Kajtar’s king and queen started to brag about it instead of protecting it, leading their enemies to focus their aims on getting to steal the dagger of the gods. During an assault to their castle, they managed to protect their firstborn, Khelmet, and the dagger, by giving both of them to a stranger kreg-hak who seemed to know a lot about Thekar. Still part of the family’s possessions, and most of the tharais not knowing the actual localisation of the dagger, the Era wasn’t over yet.

The dagger was used multiple times by Khelmet, who grew up to be a well-prepared Thekar wielder. His death left Re-Vek, his adoptive father, as the keeper.

“Aldraithar’s Utopy” is the last Era of the Norwald. Aldraithar, the Drakalien in charge of taking the essences of the evil dead to the Fifth Theirno, rose up against the rules of the afterlives in Norwald, and decided to change them for a better world. She needed the help of a creating tool, so after a long campaign, she managed to get Thekar to achieve her purposes. The moment in which she changed the rules separated the previous Era to this one, a Utopy meant to be eternal.

Life and evolution in Norwald

Norwald is a planet that has shown evident signs of evolution. Although, as previously mentioned, it was originally created by three main Gods, indeed it has changed as the Eras transcurred.

There are nine different natural land biomes, two water biomes, and one magical biome, located at the Ahian islands. The nine are located all across the Norwald, and they have their own rocks, plants and creatures. Those biomes are called Sihaa, Fishleri, Eskemiir, Direnia Alkerekra, Direnia Honalkerekra, Hakrhul, Noflek, Ertetsio and Redieni, and could be compared to our world’s biomes, as they are similarly located, and their creatures and plants behave in a similar way.

Norwald Earth
Sihaa
Ice
Fishleri
Tundra
Eskemiir
Savannah
Direnia Alkerekra
Deciduous Forest
Direnia Honalkerekra
Taiga
Hakrhul
Swamp
Noflek
Desert
Ertetsio
High Mountain
Redieni
Jungle
Haarlan
Sea
Haaros
Freshwater

Norwald

  • Harbors life
  • Main component: essence
  • 82% water surface, 1 major continent, 3 vast islands, 4 minor islands, 19 smaller islands and 2 archipielagos.
  • Six planes of existence
  • Five seasons per aner
  • Five (+1) Eras