21 Grand Creators arrived in the Void to realize the 'One Vision' concept. They began their work by experimenting with protomatter to create the first worlds, implementing the laws of physics, and establishing a time continuum.
One of the Creators, dissatisfied with the progress, reached for the power of True Destruction to erase the new universe. He was named the Destroyer, and the others had to stop him. Although the Creators were eternal and could not be completely annihilated, one could break the will of another, condemning him to eternal inertia and a permanent loss of consciousness. This is what happened to the Destroyer, who was plunged into eternal lethargy as a result of the clash. The others sealed his 'body' to prevent it from affecting the universe.



Successive worlds were created according to the applicable laws of physics. Life emerged, including several conscious species later called precursors or pioneers. However, the Creators did not agree on everything. Some believed that the 'One Vision' concept was flawed since only 20 Creators were working on it instead of the originally planned 21. There was also a dispute over the use of protomatter, which some considered an insufficient substance.
Some argued that the current universe should be rebooted and built from scratch with better material, just as the Destroyer had wanted. The dispute escalated into a war between the Creators, resulting in three more losing consciousness and plunging into a state of perpetual inactivity. Some of the Creators went into exile to the edge of the universe or even beyond it. The 'One Vision' concept fell.
The war had major consequences for the universe. Most worlds and precursors were destroyed, and the flow of time ceased to be uniform.



The bodies of the three Creators remained in eternal inertia, slowly dispersing their essence by emitting magical radiation. Along with the magic, the last conscious thoughts of the Creators escaped, from which gods were formed. The first among them are today called the Elders, or the First Generation, and constitute the most powerful force in the universe (apart from the Creators themselves).
Most gods inherited the powers of True Creation and True Destruction, but unlike the Creators, these powers are limited and can be exhausted. Yet, they are sufficient to create species, individual worlds, or even their systems. The gods are also not equal; the powers of some are fragmentary and almost negligible. In such cases, they are called minor deities, often leading the lives of space wanderers, serving more powerful gods, or building their own small empires on the worlds they found or conquered. Even minor deities have sufficient power to impose their will on lower beings.
It was decided that the gods would be in charge of creating life and new species (called lower beings), while the Creators would concentrate on the next galaxies and other matters known only to themselves. Officially, the gods were left free to act, with one exception: no time travel. Although the Creators were lenient when someone moved into the future, any being who intentionally went back in time was immediately annihilated.



The Creators were still engaged in forming new cosmic structures, using various substances** for this purpose. They did not hesitate to destroy what did not meet their expectations; their attention was also absorbed by other matters that even the gods did not understand. In our part of the universe, no new signs of the Creators' activity had been observed for a long time, so naturally, the gods came to the forefront.
Some gods wanted to follow in the footsteps of the Creators and indeed took up creation, but many were more interested in power and domination. They preferred to take over someone else's work rather than use their power resources to create something of their own. Worlds and many diverse species of lower beings were created as experiments, servants, slaves, or soldiers. Some of them were highly specialized or endowed with exceptional abilities. There were also species that could naturally use magic, which is the radiation emanating from the bodies of the inactive Creators.
Some gods forced their creations to compete or wage large-scale wars with beings controlled by other gods. Thus, the great divine game unfolded, in which deities pursued their ambitions and goals, trying to gain an advantage over others by using their powers, servants, and manipulation.


* - The nomenclature of eras comes from Magnum Arcaneum.
** - Each substance was shifted relative to the others, forming the building blocks for separate planes of reality, and their interactions were limited. The substance from which Earth was created is called matter.

Our world was created by one of the Creators, probably as a by-product of some other project. For a long time, it remained empty.
Many aeons later, when the rivalry between the gods reached its peak, one of them sent his servants to colonize the Earth. His rivals, however, did not remain passive and sent their own subordinate species to start a series of wars over our world.
These wars were never definitively resolved, and the gods lost interest in Earth, absorbed in other fronts of competition. Their servants slaughtered each other, with only a few remaining alive. Eventually, one of the Elder Gods took an interest in Earth and decided that it would become part of his empire.



This god has many names in our culture, often simply called God, although the Creators knew him as X117, and the rest of the deities called him something else. His realm consisted of about a hundred different worlds, each of which he populated with or created intelligent species that worshipped him or served his purposes. On Earth, he removed the remnants of previous inhabitants (though those at the bottom of the ocean or deep underground escaped his notice) and created humans - a short-lived species without magical talent but endowed with creativity and a strong will to survive.
There might have been a greater plan related to the use of humans, but God did not manage to realize it. Thirteen of the worlds in his empire rebelled against his will; these were worlds where he bred soldiers, servants endowed with strength, cunning, and magical abilities. These beings are known today as demons*.
God immediately destroyed four of these worlds, leaving nine rebellious ones, which we now call the Nine Circles of Hell, the Abyss, or simply Hell. Then he realized that some of the rebels had infiltrated his other worlds. Their purification became a priority, so destroying Hell would have to wait - he just surrounded it with a barrier so no more demons could get out, at least without outside help. On Earth, a great flood and several cataclysms were enough to cleanse the world of demons and their henchmen - other worlds were less fortunate.
God became so focused on exterminating the demons that he did not notice the growing threat from outside. A coalition of other deities struck at his empire, tearing it apart. Earth was left without divine supervision, and it remains so to this day.



Deep underground, there were still terrifying dormant beings that remembered the days of our world's youth. One of the ancient deities, who once fought for supremacy over the Earth, sleeps at the bottom of the ocean. Thanks to hibernation, he has managed to remain hidden all these centuries, even from the ruler of the Empire of the Hundred Worlds. For the time being, however, Earth has become a peaceful world.
Just before the empire fell, God sent his most faithful servants to his worlds to ensure they would not rebel like Hell. One of the so-called archangels was assigned to Earth to take care of it, and he did not abandon his mission even after the fall of the Empire. He bonded with a human woman, and some of his offspring possessed magical talent, thus initiating one of the first lines of mages.
But there were others too - descendants of the few surviving demons, as well as some priests who gathered knowledge and artifacts such as the magical catalyst, which originated from the times of Earth's youth and its first inhabitants. The latter group, however, was despised and sometimes suppressed because, although they understood magic, they had to compensate for their lack of talent with filthy rituals and often human sacrifices.
One day, from a lineage that had nothing to do with supernatural beings or magic, a child with exceptional talents was born. It was an anomaly, something that shouldn't have happened - but it did. The girl surpassed angels and powerful mages in power, and her understanding of magic and the universe shamed the sages. Others tried to manipulate or use her, but all they achieved was to arouse her distrust and aversion to the world.
The girl became a woman, and her abilities developed even further. Perhaps due to the pressure from her surroundings, or perhaps due to the power she wielded, her mind began to wobble. Madness took hold of her, and she became a threat to Earth. Many mages and even the archangel himself tried to stop her - all fell in battle, unable to resist the power of the chosen one. After this event, the woman disappeared, and no one heard of her again - she likely left Earth or took her own life.
In the future, a few more chosen ones were born, and although each seemed a bit weaker than the previous one, the world generally suffered because of it. The question of whether these anomalies were an oversight by God who created humans, or perhaps his deliberate action, will likely remain unanswered forever.



* - The term 'demon' is quite imprecise, as sages and priests often use it to refer to all beings of an evil nature that do not come from our world; sometimes it also refers to lesser deities.

Magic did not develop in the same way as other fields because wizards did not trust each other, and due to its nature - many mages had to discover individual powers and spells on their own. But this changed with the arrival of Thoth.
Minor deities occasionally visited Earth, although usually for a short time, and none of them had ambitions to take over the world. Thoth was a god who sought information related to the times before the Empire of a Hundred Worlds, and in return, he was willing to share his own knowledge. The wizard-priests wrote down this information on stone tablets later known as the Magnum Arcaneum. This included not only information about the history of the universe and some of its worlds, but above all, many spells, secrets of high magic, metamagic, demonology, portals, astral travel, and more.
The tablets were placed in a special sanctuary, and a city was quickly built around it, called Erum, Babel, or Troy by various cultures. Thoth was fascinated by humans, their resourcefulness, and their respect for accumulated knowledge. He left two more gifts to the humans, or rather to the city governor, the first archmage: the ability to see the future and a casket with a small amount of his True Creation power. He allegedly said afterward, 'Now the fate will be fulfilled', and walked away towards other worlds.
The mages combined the knowledge from the Magnum Arcaneum with the information they gained from the summoned demons, and their power increased even more. Those most skilled were able to create artifacts such as the Ancient Singularities, which were fearsome weapons. However, it was these latest gifts of Thoth that were to prove to be the greatest curse for Earth.



The gift of seeing the future was unstable, and the archmage was descending into growing madness. In an enigmatic vision, he saw that the next summoned demon would bring doom to the entire world. In his final edict, he banned the summoning of demons; then he appointed a successor, resigned from his position, and left the city forever.
This ban was respected, but many mages believed it wouldn't solve the problem, as sooner or later someone would surely break it. A group of demonologists decided to summon a demon that would not be able to threaten the world. They chose a very unique inhabitant of Hell - Pandora. The demoness was not very powerful, but she possessed a morality unheard of in the average inhabitant of Hell. She had been summoned a few times before and sympathized with humans. The demonologists brought Pandora and, just in case, locked her in a magical dungeon where she was to remain until the end of the world.
However, they did not know that Pandora was particularly valuable to Lucifer, who had a soft spot for her. The king of demons had always been disgusted by the fact that humans (whom he considered an inferior species) were capable of using his subordinates for their own purposes with their clumsy magic. When he saw that the kind-hearted Pandora had been betrayed and imprisoned by them, he concluded that Earth's perversity matched Hell's. He began to see humans as rivals who needed to be destroyed.
Leaving Hell was difficult, however, because the Abyss was still surrounded by a barrier from the times of the Empire of a Hundred Worlds, so Lucifer managed to send only a small army to Earth. Human mages were at the peak of their magical power at that time, so with the help of powerful spells and artifacts, they managed to repel the invasion.
The defeat humiliated and angered Lucifer, who called a council. Asmodeus proposed awakening a deity from the ocean's depths, but it was deemed that the result would be unpredictable (however, a few demons were sent to investigate this possibility, including one named Leviathan... but that's another story).
Hecate noted that it would actually be enough to destroy the Magnum Arcaneum, which is the source of human knowledge but also an important symbol. The human race would degenerate within a few centuries or millennia, which for immortal demons is just a moment. Lucifer agreed to this idea and decided to send his champion - the demoness Kali, also known as Kali 'The God-Slayer.' She was so cruel and powerful that even the ruler of Hell feared her, so he considered sending her to Earth a brilliant solution - either the Magnum Arcaneum would be destroyed, or he would get rid of a potential rival.



Kali was something we can call a hellish chosen one. As one of the few, she was able to leave Hell on her own, visiting other worlds to prey on the souls of other beings, which increased her power even more. 'The God-Slayer'... that was the nickname she desired. When she found traces of a minor deity, Thoth, she decided to track him down and defeat him, thus proving her power. Thoth was not very powerful, but he excelled in clairvoyance. He knew the future and the outcome of this clash. When Kali found him, his resistance was symbolic. 'My power will defeat you anyway,' he said just before his destruction, as he had already put his plan of revenge into action.
When Kali received the official mission to destroy the Magnum Arcaneum, she saw it as an opportunity. After such a triumph, she would have the right to challenge Lucifer, who might even step down without a fight.
As she faced the army of human mages at the walls of their city, she felt confident. She mocked the pathetic spells meant to banish her to Hell. It was only when the mages used the Ancient Singularity that she felt pain - and fury overtook her. Wizards died one by one, in a rain of fire and magic, by her claws or turned against each other by her will. Meanwhile, fear spread within the city, as there were few wizards left capable of fighting. They decided to use the ultimate weapon, the casket left by Thoth. The power of True Creation could shape a weapon or being capable of confronting Kali.
There was only one problem - the protective spell prevented any human except archmages from using the casket, and the current archmage had just been torn to pieces by Kali. No human could use the casket... but there was someone in the city who could easily bypass this safeguard.
Pandora was an opponent of violence in any form, but she was eventually convinced to use the casket. When she lifted the lid, it turned out that Thoth had lied - there was no power of True Creation in the casket. The box contained the power of True Destruction, which was immediately unleashed. Pandora suddenly realized she was levitating in the middle of a huge, symmetrical, perfectly hemispherical crater. The city had disappeared along with the Magnum Arcaneum, its inhabitants, and Kali. Lucifer was pleased enough to postpone the destruction of Earth, at least for a while.

There were not many skilled mages left; only a few possessed the necessary gift or artifacts essential for understanding magic. Many of these artifacts were lost, along with the knowledge of ancient powers. Mages mostly preferred to hide in the shadows and study magic in secrecy. There were also those who consciously renounced their power when they realized that its use came at too high a price. However, certain cults and secret societies passed down some secrets of the past from generation to generation - these were the first witches.
The Magnum Arcaneum was lost, but some of the information survived, having been previously transcribed onto scrolls, to which only a few had access. It is known that one of the last copies of these scrolls was lost in 47 B.C. due to the fire at the Library of Alexandria. Another copy was kept in secret and closely guarded; it was located in Damascus and survived there for several more centuries until one day the local masters decided to show it to a very talented young man.
His name was Abdul Al-Hazred. He was considered a miracle worker, mystic, and perhaps a prophet, but in reality, he was a natural talent, a chosen one with incredible power. Despite his high intelligence and inquisitive nature, he lacked the knowledge to fully explain his supernatural abilities. The scrolls he received shed new light on both the history of the world and his own life. Al-Hazred traveled extensively, filling gaps in his knowledge by conversing with sages, priests, and witches. Eventually, he managed to summon a demon who answered many of his pressing questions.
Abdul finally became a true mage, developing complex spells and conducting advanced research, including those that made him immortal. At some point, he also began working on his greatest work: Al Azif, later translated as the Necronomicon. In this book, he included much information about the universe, descriptions of magical mechanisms, and studies on the fate of the Earth, particularly related to the Age of Myths, but he also included many notes on his own endeavors. The secrets he uncovered left a mark on his psyche, as can be seen in some of the chaotic chapters of the Necronomicon. However, Abdul did not cease his research; on the contrary, he even traveled to other worlds to discover new secrets. The book itself became increasingly imbued with his magic, to the point where it eventually gained the characteristics of a magical artifact.
Abdul was always eccentric, but over time he became unstable and mad, intoxicated by his own power. He began to treat ordinary people with contempt, capable of casting a deadly curse on someone on a whim. He had no qualms about experimenting on humans, and when summoning demons, he didn't worry about protective circles or sending them back to Hell. He particularly enjoyed showing his superiority over the few who also wielded magic. He considered himself the ruler of the Earth, although he never cared to have his position officially recognized by the powerful of this world - interacting with people didn't interest him much, unlike delving into mysteries, developing magnificent projects, and occasionally proving his power. His fits of anger alternated with periods of calm or feverish work, making him unpredictable.
According to one legend, a local ruler once came to Al-Hazred, begging for protection of the city against an approaching army. Abdul, without taking his eyes off the book he was studying, cast a spell that destroyed the enemy army, then said he would also kill the ruler if he ever bothered him again. Such stories and others circulated about this undoubtedly great, though mad, sorcerer, and many of them were true.
Eventually, Al-Hazred left the Earth, leaving behind only the Necronomicon, which for many would be a future source of power, but sometimes also madness.
Merlin was born 100 years before Al-Hazred, as the child of a human woman and a demon. For some reasons, I don't want to delve into his history, especially since many facts from Arthurian legends coincide with the truth. I will only mention that he never met Abdul directly, although they heard of each other and sensed each other's spells. Al-Hazred several times considered meeting the legendary mage, and perhaps challenging him to a duel. Fortunately for Merlin, this never happened.



Few mages remain on the sidelines, while witches secretly perform dark rituals inspired by ancient spells. Although these rituals mostly no longer hold true power, many religions consider such actions contrary to the doctrine of God. Witches are persecuted or exterminated, either spontaneously or in an organized manner by hunters. However, this leads to those who survive becoming even more ruthless and power-hungry.
It seems that the times of powerful magic are gone forever... but are they really? Many of the lost magical artifacts have recently been found, almost simultaneously in different places around the Earth, and with them, many secrets and magic may be rediscovered. Is it a lucky coincidence? Or is there some mysterious force with unknown motives behind it?



The universe is filled with movement and energy. Galaxies constantly move in great cosmic cycles and go through successive stages of their evolution, either on their own or with the help of the Grand Creators and gods. However, there are objects that remain in eternal stillness - these are the unconscious and inactive bodies of defeated Grand Creators. It is the emanations of their power that provide the ability to use magic in many worlds.
Between the 16th and 18th centuries, Earth temporarily will leave the range of these emanations, and the use of magic won't be possible, at least until the 21st century, and perhaps much longer. Some speculate that it is precisely then that the ancient and elder beings will begin to awaken. Or perhaps our god-creator, the ruler of the Empire of a Hundred Worlds, whose fate remains unknown, will return? Or maybe Lucifer will decide to bring doom to Earth, as he once planned? Or will humans embark on a journey to the stars to take their place alongside the gods themselves?
I do not know this, for the gift of clairvoyance, which I once received from Thoth, left me many centuries ago, thus restoring my clarity of thought. But now I must return to where I belong, which is the pages of history. The mysteries of the past and what lies ahead will remain to be discovered by my apprentice Merlin and the future generations of mages.
- Balaam Harut, the first archmage of Earth

did u come up with all of this yourself? if you did this is pretty dope!!!

Thanks ;) I didn't come up with anything, my friend Balaam Harut dictated everything to me :D

Wow. Thank you very much very interesting and informative!

I wanted to show that this world is not young, it has its own depth and history, it is a slice of a larger whole. There are very powerful beings in the universe for whom humans are just a speck not worthy of attention. Mages may always run into something more powerful than themselves, there is always another challenge and danger to overcome ;)

I noticed that baba yaga is in your mod but she isn't in your lore. What would be her backstory? within the context of your mod

I haven't included information about Baba Yaga here, because basically her story is briefly mentioned in the mod itself. If you invite her regularly to Mage Summit, she will eventually tell you about herself ;)

Omg the twist at the end where the history is written by a clairvoyant! Sick lore and amazingly made mod!

;)

WHO IS BAEL, WHY DID HE TAKE ALL MY ARTIFACTS AND MY SON'S EMPIRE

@xiChann
He is one of the more powerful demons of hell. He did what most strong demons do - he took what he wanted to take. The more artefacts you had, the stronger he became...
This crisis can be turned off in the game rules if you consider it too onerous. I'll hint that Bael is quite vulnerable to schemes (or at least it was before the DLC).

Excellent lore - great story so far. Much more complex what I have expected - but in a positive way. I would also buy a book with this content inside. Wow!!!
Now it would be a good time with next new updates to pour some lore inside the game.

From my side I have finished a complete run with only one ruler (female)...from childhood onwards and with support of the ring artifact I was able to live forever.
And with the support of the mage summits I achieved the chosen one status after 150 years. I was able to summon a lot of minor demons and also gave birth to my own demon siblings. I've hybridized a new demon species on the whole world.
And I created a new dark religion...
Great stuff. Many thanks for this great mod.
Playing evil is much more fun now.

I thought I was a god.

If only I had known that I am only a tiny light in the world.