The Chronicles of Norrath
The history of the world of EverQuest — its gods, dragons, races, and cities — told in the order the ages unfolded.
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Era I · Before Recorded Time
Before Norrath had name or form, there was only The Nameless — a consciousness without shape, also known as The All-Father or The Faceless One. From The Nameless all things were born. The Primal Gods emerged from this formless void: beings of immense power drawn to the newly-formed world hanging in the heavens like a jewel. They quarreled over dominion before the first mortal had ever drawn breath. The Nameless set no rules, only one certainty: power would be contested, and Norrath would be its arena.
Era II · ~4500 Years Before the Current Age
The great crystalline dragon Veeshan, mother of all dragonkind and keeper of the northern sky, descended on the frozen continent later called Velious and raked it with her massive claws. This act — the Scar of Veeshan — was her claim: Norrath belonged to the dragons. The Ring of Scale formed, an ancient conclave governing dragon affairs. Mighty wyrms spread across the continents: fire dragons to the volcanic reaches, ice dragons to the polar north, sea serpents to the deeps. No mortal race yet walked the land — only the ancient, immortal scaled ones ruled.
Era III · ~3500–2000 Years Before the Current Age
The Gods of Norrath descended from the Planes to shape mortal races in their own image and to challenge the dragons' dominion. Brell Serilis burrowed into the earth and seeded the deep places with dwarves, gnomes, and halflings. Tunare breathed life into the forests and elves walked beneath the great boughs of Faydwer. Rallos Zek forged the ogres and giants as weapons of war. Cazic-Thule filled the swamps with trolls and lizardmen, servants of fear. Innoruuk, consumed with hatred, kidnapped the elf-queen Peregrine and her mate and tortured them for four hundred years, twisting their offspring into the dark elves — the Teir'Dal. The age ended in conflict as Rallos Zek's armies marched upon the Planes themselves.
Era IV · ~2000–500 Years Before the Current Age
Mortal civilizations rose to great heights. The Iksar of Kunark built the Sebilisan Empire, the grandest mortal kingdom Norrath had seen, stretching across the entire continent of Kunark. The Iksar enslaved the Frogloks and waged war with the Ring of Scale. On Antonica, the Combine Empire united many mortal races under one banner — an age of art, magic, and monument-building. The Combine eventually collapsed into the fractured city states recognized today. Rallos Zek's assault on the Planes of Power failed catastrophically; the gods cursed the ogres with diminished intellect as punishment. The Erudites split from humanity and sailed to the continent of Odus.
Era V · The Current Age
The present era is one of fragile balance. Qeynos and Freeport stand as twin pillars of human civilization, often at odds. The dark elves scheme from Neriak. Adventurers rediscovered the lost continent of Kunark, uncovering the Iksar ruins and awakening Trakanon. Velious, the ancient home of dragonkind, was reached by sea. The Sleeper — Kerafyrm, the imprisoned prismatic dragon — was awakened and escaped beyond the known planes. The moon Luclin was reached and found to harbor entire civilizations. Then the Planes of Power themselves were invaded, and the god Quarm was defeated at the height of power. The Chosen guild walks in this age, writing its own chapters.
Goddess of nature, life, and growth. She created the elves — High Elves (Koada'Dal) and Wood Elves (Feir'Dal) — in her image and breathed awareness into the forests of Faydwer.
Domain: Nature, Life, Forests
Patron races: High Elves, Wood Elves
Realm: The Plane of Growth
God of valor, truth, and honor. He and his twin sister Erollisi were the children of Tarew Marr, blessed with mortal forms to walk Norrath. Patron of Paladins.
Domain: Valor, Truth, Honor
Patron races: Humans (Paladins)
Realm: The Plane of Valor
Twin sister of Mithaniel Marr. Goddess of love, compassion, and empathy. Patron of Rangers and Bards who carry her spirit into the world.
Domain: Love, Compassion
Patron races: Humans, Half Elves
Realm: The Plane of Love
God of health, healing, and the preservation of life. The nemesis of Bertoxxulous, the Plaguebringer. Patron of Clerics devoted to pure healing arts.
Domain: Healing, Health
Patron races: Humans
Realm: The Plane of Health
Goddess of peace and serenity, depicted as a young girl to represent the innocence of pure thought. Patron of Monks who seek harmony between mind and body.
Domain: Peace, Serenity, Harmony
Patron races: Humans (Monks)
Realm: The Plane of Tranquility
God of the storms, sky, and weather. He blesses farmers and sailors alike. His fists are the thunderclaps, his breath the wind. Patron of Barbarian Shamans.
Domain: Weather, Storms, Sky
Patron races: Barbarians, Humans
Realm: The Plane of Sky
God of mischief, tricks, and luck. Patron of Halflings, Rogues, and all who value a good jest over grim solemnity. Known to tip the scales of fate with a wink.
Domain: Mischief, Luck, Tricks
Patron races: Halflings, Gnomes
Realm: The Plane of Mischief
God of the underworld, earth, and stone. He created dwarves, gnomes, halflings, and countless underground creatures by breathing life into clay and rock deep beneath Norrath.
Domain: Earth, Underground, Crafting
Patron races: Dwarves, Gnomes, Halflings
Realm: The Plane of Underfoot
God of fire and arcane magic. Son of Fennin Ro, lord of the Plane of Fire. He raised the Serpent Spine mountains to block the sun from Tunare's elves — an act that created the great deserts of Norrath.
Domain: Fire, Magic
Patron races: Dark Elves, Gnomes (Wizards)
Realm: The Plane of Sun
Six impassive god-judges who maintain the balance of justice in Norrath. They do not act in mortal affairs except to weigh deeds and pass judgment. Patron of Barbarian warriors who seek fair law.
Domain: Justice, Law, Balance
Patron races: Barbarians
Realm: The Plane of Justice
God of the oceans, seas, and all waters. He gave life to the Kedge — ancient, powerful underwater beings — and claims the vast ocean depths as his domain. Patron of sailors and aquatic races.
Domain: Oceans, Water, Seas
Patron races: Kedge
Realm: The Plane of Water
God of hatred, malice, and corruption. He kidnapped the elf-queen Peregrine and her consort, subjecting them to four centuries of torture until their twisted offspring became the first Teir'Dal — the dark elves.
Domain: Hatred, Malice, Corruption
Patron races: Dark Elves (Teir'Dal)
Realm: The Plane of Hate
God of war, combat, and destruction. He created the ogres and giants as instruments of conquest. His armies once dared assault the Planes of the Gods themselves — and failed. The gods cursed his ogre children with stupidity for their hubris.
Domain: War, Combat, Conquest
Patron races: Ogres, Giants, Orcs
Realm: The Plane of War
God of fear, terror, and anxiety. He filled the dark swamps and jungle ruins of Norrath with his servants — trolls, lizardmen, and the undead. His temples are places of sacrifice and dread.
Domain: Fear, Terror, Death
Patron races: Trolls, Lizardmen
Realm: The Plane of Fear
God of disease, decay, and pestilence. The eternal enemy of Rodcet Nife. His followers among the Erudites formed the heretical Paineel faction that broke from Erudin.
Domain: Disease, Decay, Plague
Patron races: Erudites (heretics), Undead
Realm: The Plane of Disease
Goddess of torment and suffering. Said to be one of the most powerful denizens of the Plane of Torment, she delights in the harvest of anguish from mortal souls. Consort of Bertoxxulous.
Domain: Torment, Suffering, Pain
Patron races: None (worshipped by cultists)
Realm: The Plane of Torment
Mother of all dragonkind and mistress of the northern sky. She scratched the continent of Velious with her massive claws during the Age of Scale, marking Norrath as dragon territory.
Type: Crystal / Sky Dragon
Domain: Velious, Plane of Sky
Status: Divine — rarely manifests
The only offspring of two pure dragon bloodlines — half chromatic, half white — Kerafyrm was the most powerful being ever created on Norrath. His power was deemed too great; the Ring of Scale and the gods conspired to imprison him in the Sleeper's Tomb on Velious.
Type: Prismatic (unique)
Domain: Sleeper's Tomb, Velious
Status: Awakened by adventurers; escaped beyond the planes
One of Norrath's oldest and most feared dragons. The ancient Iksar poisoner who now haunts the ruins of Sebilis in undead form. Once a powerful member of the Ring of Scale, his venom slew many Iksar emperors.
Type: Poison / Undead Dragon
Domain: Sebilis, Kunark
Status: Undead — lurks in the old Iksar capital
A mighty fire dragon imprisoned deep within Solusek's Eye (Nagafen's Lair) as punishment for his liaison with the ice dragon Lady Vox — a taboo union that could have produced an uncontrollable hybrid dragon.
Type: Fire Dragon
Domain: Nagafen's Lair, Lavastorm
Status: Imprisoned — sought by adventurers for his hoard
A powerful white dragon imprisoned in the Permafrost Caverns of Everfrost as punishment for her forbidden relationship with Lord Nagafen. Her lair is a palace of ice and treasure deep beneath the frozen wastes.
Type: Ice / White Dragon
Domain: Permafrost Caverns, Everfrost
Status: Imprisoned — surrounded by undead guardians
The ancient governing body of dragonkind, created under Veeshan's mandate to maintain order among the scaled races. Based in Kunark, the Ring of Scale wars with mortals and maintains the laws of the dragon society.
Type: Organization
Domain: Kunark (Veeshan's Peak)
Status: Active — still governs surviving dragons
The most adaptable race of Norrath, found across all continents. Humans built the twin cities of Qeynos and Freeport and once formed the Combine Empire that united much of the world.
Home cities: Qeynos, Freeport
Patron deity: Various
Available classes: All
The eldest and most magically gifted of Tunare's elven children. They dwell in the alabaster city of Felwithe in Faydwer, dedicated to scholarship, arcane mastery, and the service of Tunare.
Home city: Felwithe, Faydwer
Patron deity: Tunare
Lifespan: Centuries to millennia
Nature-bound elves who dwell in the great tree city of Kelethin, built among the canopy of Greater Faydark. Masters of archery and woodcraft, deeply bonded to the forests of Faydwer.
Home city: Kelethin, Greater Faydark
Patron deity: Tunare
Available classes: Ranger, Druid, Warrior, Bard
Born of Innoruuk's hatred and the torture of captured elven royalty. The Teir'Dal dwell in the underground city of Neriak, three separate districts carved into solid rock. Masters of shadow magic and deceit.
Home city: Neriak, Antonica
Patron deity: Innoruuk
Available classes: Necromancer, Enchanter, Shadow Knight, Rogue
Created by Brell Serilis from the stone of the deep earth, dwarves are stout, resilient craftsmen and warriors. They dwell in the great underground city of Kaladim in the Butcherblock Mountains of Faydwer.
Home city: Kaladim, Faydwer
Patron deity: Brell Serilis
Available classes: Warrior, Cleric, Paladin, Rogue
The ingenious inventors of Norrath, created by Brell Serilis from spark and stone. They built the city of Ak'Anon in Faydwer, a marvel of clockwork machinery where tinkering is both art and religion.
Home city: Ak'Anon, Faydwer
Patron deity: Brell Serilis
Available classes: Wizard, Magician, Necromancer, Cleric
Small, nimble, and cheerful folk created by Brell Serilis. They make their home in the peaceful Rivervale, nestled in the Misty Thicket. Renowned for quick fingers and quicker feet.
Home city: Rivervale, Antonica
Patron deity: Bristlebane Fizzlethorpe
Available classes: Druid, Rogue, Warrior, Cleric
Large, fierce humans descended from a northern bloodline. They dwell in the frozen city of Halas in Everfrost Peaks, surviving through strength, martial prowess, and shamanistic tradition.
Home city: Halas, Everfrost Peaks
Patron deity: The Tribunal, Karana
Available classes: Warrior, Shaman, Rogue
Created by Cazic-Thule to spread fear through the swamps. Trolls are powerful, regenerative creatures with low cunning but tremendous strength. They dwell in the festering city of Grobb in Innothule Swamp.
Home city: Grobb, Innothule Swamp
Patron deity: Cazic-Thule
Available classes: Warrior, Shadow Knight, Shaman
Once powerful, intelligent warriors of Rallos Zek, the ogres were cursed with drastically diminished intellect after their march on the Planes of the Gods failed. Now they are hulking but dim, dwelling in Oggok.
Home city: Oggok
Patron deity: Rallos Zek
Available classes: Warrior, Shadow Knight, Shaman
The offspring of humans and elves, half elves inherit some traits from each parent but are fully accepted by neither culture. They are versatile wanderers found in cities across Antonica and Faydwer.
Home city: Qeynos, Freeport, Kelethin
Patron deity: Varies
Available classes: Paladin, Ranger, Bard, Rogue
A human offshoot who sailed to the continent of Odus and developed extraordinary magical intellect over generations. The Erudites built the library city of Erudin, a center of arcane learning — until heretical factions split off to found the dark city of Paineel.
Home city: Erudin (good) / Paineel (evil)
Patron deity: Quellious (good), Bertoxxulous (evil)
Available classes: Wizard, Enchanter, Cleric, Necromancer
A proud reptilian race that built the Sebilisan Empire, the greatest mortal civilization Norrath has known. Defeated by the Ring of Scale after millennia of war, the Iksar survive in the ruins of their former glory, dwelling in Cabilis.
Home city: Cabilis, Kunark
Patron deity: Cazic-Thule
Available classes: Warrior, Monk, Shadow Knight, Necromancer, Shaman
Frog-like humanoids long enslaved by the Iksar. After the empire's fall they founded their own settlements. Frogloks are blessed by Mithaniel Marr and later seized Grobb from the trolls, renaming it Gukta.
Home city: Gukta (formerly Grobb)
Patron deity: Mithaniel Marr
Available classes: Paladin, Warrior, Cleric, Shaman
A feline race stranded on the moon of Luclin after a magical catastrophe banished them from Norrath. They built the city of Shar Vahl and developed their own distinct culture of honor and the hunt.
Home city: Shar Vahl, Luclin
Patron deity: Luclin (the goddess)
Available classes: Warrior, Bard, Rogue, Shaman, Beastlord
The premiere good-aligned human city of Norrath, set on the western coast of Antonica. Home to the Knights of Thunder and ruled by the Antonius Bayle dynasty. Qeynos represents order, law, and the light against the encroaching evil of the continent.
Alignment: Good
Notable ruler: Antonius Bayle IV
Districts: North and South Qeynos, Qeynos Hills
The largest city in Norrath, situated on the eastern coast of Antonica at the mouth of the Serpent River. A city of commerce and corruption in equal measure, where the Freeport Militia maintains brutal order and the Freeport Merchants grow rich from trade with all factions.
Alignment: Neutral / Evil (under Sir Lucan D'Lere)
Notable ruler: Sir Lucan D'Lere
Districts: East, West, North Freeport; The Commonlands
The underground city of the Teir'Dal, carved deep beneath the Nektulos Forest. Divided into three gates — Neriak Foreign Quarter, Commons, and Third Gate — each reflecting the rigid social hierarchy of dark elven society under Innoruuk's shadow.
Alignment: Evil
Notable ruler: King Naythox Thex
Districts: Foreign Quarter, Commons, Third Gate
A fortified village of the Northmen deep in the Everfrost Peaks. Halas is an isolated community of fierce warriors and shamans who survive the brutal cold through strength of will. Only essential traders venture this far north.
Alignment: Neutral / Good
Notable guilds: Warriors of the North, Shaman of Justice
Region: Everfrost Peaks
A peaceful community of halflings nestled in the Misty Thicket, pressed against the great wall that holds back the danger of the Plains of Karana. Life in Rivervale revolves around harvests, cooking, and the occasional theft.
Alignment: Good
Notable guilds: The Guardians of the Vale, Priests of Mischief
Region: Misty Thicket
Originally Grobb, the brutal troll city in Innothule Swamp, it was later conquered by the Frogloks and renamed Gukta — an Outpost of Marr. The transition is a pivotal moment in Norrathian history: good overcoming fear.
Alignment: Evil (Grobb) → Good (Gukta)
Patron deity: Cazic-Thule → Mithaniel Marr
Region: Innothule Swamp
The Wood Elf city built among the towering boughs of the great trees of Greater Faydark. Kelethin is a series of interconnected platforms high above the forest floor, defended by Faydark's Champions against the orcs below.
Alignment: Good
Notable guilds: Faydark's Champions, Scouts of Tunare
Region: Greater Faydark
The alabaster city of the Koada'Dal, a masterwork of elven architecture nestled in the southern reaches of Greater Faydark. Felwithe is home to the great wizard and cleric guilds of the High Elves and the palace of the Elven King.
Alignment: Good
Notable guilds: Clerics of Tunare, Felwithe Mages
Region: Greater Faydark
The great underground dwarven city, hewn from the living rock of the Butcherblock Mountains. Kaladim is divided into North and South Kaladim, with vast forges, alehouses, and the treasury of King Kazon Stormhammer.
Alignment: Good
Notable ruler: King Kazon Stormhammer
Region: Butcherblock Mountains
The gnomish city-state in the Steamfont Mountains, a marvel of engineering where clockwork automatons serve as guards and servants. The Gem Choppers mining guild and the Eldritch Collective mages both call it home — as does the sinister Clan Runnyeye.
Alignment: Neutral (mixed factions)
Notable guilds: Gem Choppers, Eldritch Collective
Region: Steamfont Mountains
The gleaming Erudite city of Odus, a center of magical scholarship unrivaled in Norrath. The High Council governs here and jealously protects the vast libraries of arcane knowledge from lesser-minded races and heretics alike.
Alignment: Good / Neutral
Notable guilds: Gatecallers, Crimson Hands
Region: Odus
Built at the edge of a catastrophic magical rift known as "The Hole," Paineel is the city of Erudite heretics who worship Bertoxxulous. They were expelled from Erudin for practicing forbidden magic and necromancy.
Alignment: Evil
Notable guilds: Craftkeepers, Crimson Hands
Region: Odus, above The Hole
The surviving remnant of Iksar civilization, split between East and West Cabilis on the Field of Bone. Cabilis preserves the traditions of the old Sebilisan Empire — including Necromancy, martial arts, and rigid caste hierarchy.
Alignment: Evil
Notable guilds: Legion of Cabilis, Swiftail Caste
Region: Kunark
The great walled city of the Vah Shir on the moon of Luclin, built after their exile from Norrath. Shar Vahl is a city of honor, music, and the hunt, presided over by the Sajrin — the ruling monarch of the Vah Shir.
Alignment: Neutral / Good
Notable guilds: The Hunters of Shar Vahl, Spiritists
Region: Luclin — Shadeweaver's Thicket
The massive citadel of the Kromzek giants on the frozen continent of Velious. It is carved into the icy mountains and ruled by King Tormax. The giants worship Rallos Zek and are perpetually at war with the dragons of Velious.
Alignment: Evil
Notable ruler: King Tormax
Region: Velious — Western Wastes
The dwarven city on the frozen continent of Velious, built by Coldain — the Velious branch of the dwarven race separated from Faydwer. They wage an endless war against the Kromzek giants and maintain an uneasy truce with the dragons of the Claws of Veeshan.
Alignment: Good
Notable ruler: King Dain Frostreaver IV
Region: Velious — Great Divide
All dates given relative to the Reckoning of Combine (RC), the standard calendar adopted by scholars of Norrath. Negative values are years Before Combine (BC). Positive values are After Combine (AC).
Before Time (Primordial)
The consciousness without form — The Nameless — wills the universe into existence. Energy and matter coalesce; primal forces emerge. The first gods draw their substance from this act.
~4500 BC
The crystalline dragon-goddess Veeshan descends from the heavens and drags her claws across the frozen continent of Velious, leaving three enormous scars. This act declares Norrath as dragon territory. The Ring of Scale is formed and the Age of Scale begins.
~4500–3500 BC
Dragonkind spreads across all continents. Fire dragons claim the volcanic regions; ice dragons the polar north; sea serpents the deep oceans. No mortal race yet exists. Trakanon and other great wyrms establish their domains in what will become Kunark.
~3500 BC
The primal gods descend from the Planes to Norrath and begin shaping mortal races. Brell Serilis seeds the underground with dwarves, gnomes, and halflings. Tunare breathes life into the first elves. Rallos Zek forges the ogres and giants. Cazic-Thule creates the trolls. Prexus gives life to the Kedge. The Elder Age begins.
~3200 BC
Tunare, Mother of All, shapes the first High Elves (Koada'Dal) from the light of the moon and the living wood of the great forests. Later, she breathes a second gift — the Wood Elves (Feir'Dal), more in tune with the wild. Both are given Faydwer as their home.
~2900 BC
Filled with hatred for Tunare's creation, Innoruuk kidnaps the High Elf king and queen — Peregrine and her consort — and subjects them to 400 years of torture in the Plane of Hate. Their degraded, corrupted offspring become the first Teir'Dal (dark elves), shaped entirely by hatred. They are cast back onto Norrath to spread that hatred.
~2000 BC
Rallos Zek, drunk on the military power of his ogre and giant creations, launches an assault on the Planes of the Gods. The assault fails. In punishment, the assembled gods curse the ogre race with drastically reduced intelligence — ensuring they can never again be used as tools of conquest. The giants are similarly weakened.
~1800–700 BC
The Iksar of Kunark rise to dominance, building the Sebilisan Empire — the greatest mortal civilization in Norrathian history. They enslave the Frogloks and other races, build the great city of Sebilis, and wage continuous war with the Ring of Scale. Trakanon and other elder dragons ultimately break the empire, leaving Kunark a continent of ruins and survival.
~1200 BC
A group of magically gifted humans, dissatisfied with the political limitations of Qeynos and Freeport, sail to the continent of Odus. Over generations their magical studies transform them into a physically distinct race — the Erudites — taller, with enlarged craniums, utterly devoted to arcane knowledge. They build the great city of Erudin.
~700 BC
A faction of Erudites practicing necromancy and worshipping Bertoxxulous is expelled from Erudin. After a devastating civil war that tears a rift in the ground (The Hole), the heretics retreat to the edge of the abyss and found Paineel — city of the damned.
~600–200 BC
An ambitious union of mortal races under one banner, the Combine Empire builds great monuments and achieves diplomatic feats thought impossible. At its height the Combine stretches across much of Antonica. Its collapse fractures into the independent city-states of the modern era: Qeynos, Freeport, and others.
~Year 0 AC (Approx.)
The current age. Adventurers from every race and class emerge, venturing into the dungeons and ruins of Norrath. The barriers between continents begin to fall as sailors reach Kunark. The ancient world opens again.
~Year 2 AC
Adventurers cross the great ocean and rediscover Kunark, the lost continent. The Iksar Empire's ruins are explored; Trakanon is awakened in undead form beneath Sebilis; the Ring of Scale mounts defenses. The Iksar race, long isolated, encounters outsiders for the first time in millennia.
~Year 4 AC
Ships reach Velious — the frozen continent scratched by Veeshan. Three factions contend for supremacy: the Coldain dwarves, the Kromzek giants of Kael Drakkal, and the dragons of the Claws of Veeshan. The Sleeper's Tomb is found — and eventually, the imprisoned Kerafyrm is woken.
~Year 6 AC
Arcane teleportation spires make travel to the moon of Luclin possible. Entire civilizations are found there: the Vah Shir in Shar Vahl; the Shissar ruins; and the vast underground realm of Ssraeshza Temple. The moon has its own ecosystem, politics, and horrors.
~Year 8 AC
Mortals gain the power to assault the divine planes directly. Heroes storm the Plane of Fear, the Plane of Hate, the Plane of Growth, the Plane of War and others. At last they reach the Plane of Time, where the god Quarm — the four-headed nightmare — is defeated, and balance is restored. It is the greatest mortal achievement in Norrathian history.