Lohwand: The Year of the Comet

Animation of the path of the Neowise Comet

Created by Phoenix7777

(Source: Wikipedia)

Last night I came up with a timeline for the Tharkallan Empire. Of course, I hadn't really considered a dating system or calendar for the Lohwand Campaign, but last night the "Year of the Comet" came to me - inspired by the old movie of the same name, I suppose. I had "Year 0" - the current year, the starting year of the campaign. Only "Year 0" is useless for relating to all the nations. However, a significant event that applies to all, that would work. And so campaign year 0 is now "The Year of the Comet".

The Year of the Comet

By Tharkallan reckoning the Cometes Draconis was first observed during the Summer Solstice of the 605th year of Imperial Splendor. The Court Magisters could find no record of the celestial body in the Imperial Library in Thark, and nor could the Magisterial Council of Arolanit, though their records purportedly go back over two thousand years. As such, its appearance in the heavens was taken as a momentous event. The Imperial Astrologers declared that the comet, with its long red tail, foretold an era of great prosperity and wealth. The Emperor himself pronounced its name: the Cometes Draconis.

The siting of the comet was not restricted to the Tharkallan Empire, of course, as it was visible all across Lohwand, both in the North and in the Southlands. Each nation observed its approach with wonder or fear in accordance with their own legends and culture. Each nation was affected in a different way as a result; for one, each giving the comet a different name. How the phenomena affected the nations of Lohwand will be explored in detail as each nation is fleshed out more fully.

In the Empire, despite the celebrations in Thark and the buoyant spirits of the Imperial Court, in the provinces of Voria and Bisset, less than 500 tsan* distant, people were looking skyward and making very different prophecies!

* a tsan is approximately 1.33 km. Its actually a Tsolyani unit of measure, from the Empire of the Petal Throne (Tekumel). I've decided to use it rather than miles or kilometers. For one thing, nobody on Lohwand has heard of Napoleon!