Thalmaris currently exists in a turbulent era known as The Age of Sail & Steel, a time defined by exploration, conflict, technological advancement, and magical volatility. The world is still recovering from The Shattering, and every culture is fighting to carve out its place in a landscape that refuses to stay still.
This age is marked by:
Drifting continents
Expanding empires
Rogue pirate coalitions
Stormforged warrior orders
Tidecaller priesthoods
Deep‑cult enclaves
Skyfarer cliff‑cities
Leviathan worship
Magical instability
Naval warfare
Relic hunting
Cartographic races
The Age of Sail & Steel is not peaceful. It is not stable. It is not predictable.
It is alive, dangerous, and full of opportunity.
The world is in a period of Late High Tide, meaning magic is strong, storms are violent, and the ocean is shifting rapidly. Landmasses drift faster than usual. Storms form more frequently. Deep Magic rises from trenches. Celestial anomalies increase.
Strong magical surges
Unstable weather
Increased leviathan migration
Awakening ancient ruins
Expanding Stormwall
Chaotic Starflow
Rising Deep currents
Shifting trade routes
Growing political tension
The world is on the brink of a major transformation.
Three global powers dominate the current age, each representing one of the primordial forces.
A rising northern empire built on stormforging, naval strength, and martial discipline. The Stormforged Kingdom seeks to unify the northern lands and control the Stormwall.
Goals:
Expand territory
Control stormforging traditions
Dominate naval warfare
Harness Varkuun’s power
Threat Level: High
Stability: Strong
Magic Alignment: Storm Magic
A mystical coalition of Tidecallers, scholars, navigators, and ocean‑aligned cultures. The Tide Council seeks to stabilize the Tidal Cycle and prevent a Second Shattering.
Goals:
Maintain magical balance
Protect tide‑engines
Stabilize ocean currents
Prevent magical collapse
Threat Level: Moderate
Stability: Fragile
Magic Alignment: Tide Magic
A secretive, abyssal cult dedicated to awakening something ancient beneath the waves. They believe the world must return to its pre‑tide state.
Goals:
Awaken abyssal entities
Expand Deep Magic
Destabilize surface nations
Prepare for “The Return”
Threat Level: Extreme
Stability: Unknown
Magic Alignment: Deep Magic
Beyond the three major powers, dozens of factions fight for influence.
Pirate coalition controlling the Blackwater Expanse.
Cliff‑city alliance dominating sky routes.
Engineers and smiths advancing storm‑steel and tide‑tech.
Nomadic island‑clans forming a mobile nation.
Desert island empire expanding through trade and conquest.
Abyssal ritualists seeking ancient truth.
Global criminal network manipulating trade and politics.
The world is politically fractured and constantly shifting.
Technology in the Current Age blends early‑industrial engineering with unstable magic.
Storm‑steel weapons
Tide‑engines
Deep‑bone relics
Skybridges
Wind‑skiffs
Pressure‑forges
Storm‑sails
Leviathan‑bone armor
Celestial compasses
Drift‑anchors
Technology is advancing rapidly, but magic often destabilizes it.
Magic is powerful but unpredictable.
Strong but volatile due to Late High Tide.
Aggressive and amplified by Varkuun’s unstable orbit.
Rising from trenches, awakening ruins and relics.
Chaotic due to Starflow acceleration.
Magic users are respected, feared, or hunted depending on culture.
The world’s geography is unstable.
Drifting continents
Migrating islands
Expanding trenches
Shifting coastlines
Volcanic eruptions
Stormwall movement
Abyssal rise
Exploration is constant because the world changes every decade.
Trade is dangerous but profitable.
Storm‑steel
Tide‑crystals
Leviathan bone
Abyssal relics
Skyfarer tech
Driftwood lumber
Coralstone
Blackwater spices
Rogue storms
Corsair raids
Shifting routes
Magical anomalies
Leviathan migration
Economies rise and fall with the tides.
Warfare is primarily naval, with land battles occurring on contested islands.
Storm‑charged warships
Tide‑engine cruisers
Wind‑skiff raiders
Leviathan‑bone dreadnoughts
Corsair boarding fleets
Stormforged infantry
Tidecaller support units
Deep‑Priest ritual squads
Skyfarer cliff‑fighters
Ironbound siege engineers
Warfare is brutal, magical, and constant.
Exploration is the lifeblood of Thalmaris.
New islands appear
Old islands vanish
Ruins awaken
Relics surface
Leviathans migrate
Stormwall shifts
Abyssal zones expand
Explorers are heroes, legends, and fools.
Religion is diverse and often conflicting.
Focuses on cycles and rebirth.
Focuses on strength and transformation.
Focus on truth and inevitability.
Focus on balance and prophecy.
Religious conflict is common.
Scholars believe the world is approaching a critical point.
Strong magical surges
Rising Deep Magic
Chaotic Starflow
Intensifying storms
Expanding trenches
Leviathan agitation
Awakening ruins
Some believe a Second Shattering is inevitable.
Others believe the Tide Council can prevent it.
Others believe the Leviathan Order will cause it.
The world stands at the edge of a new era.
The Current Age is unstable, dangerous, and full of potential.
Global war
Magical collapse
Leviathan rise
Stormmother awakening
Tidefather rebirth
Abyssal ascension
Mortal evolution
Second Shattering
Whatever the future holds, Thalmaris is ready — and so are its people.