World Timeline
This is an abridged timeline of the world, as discovered by adventurers from The Valley. The timeline uses Year Zero as a reference point, which was the year the inhabitants of the valley discovered a dwarven map deep underground and decided to leave the safety of their home village and explore the world. Dates before Year Zero are prefixed with a minus sign.
-1800 to -1500
The elf queen Moranna leads her people from the lands across the southern sea to the plains, and establishes a settlement at Klippika
-15 to -10
The Quiet Wood is suddenly infested by giant spiders and a small woodland village of Melora worshippers is overran and left to ruin.
Year Zero
The dwarven map is discovered deep in the mines in the west of the valley. Treasure hunters and explorers begin to plan expeditions over drinks in The Lakeside Inn
Early spring
The first expedition leaves the valley. Bran, Briar, Kallista, Sariel and Torvar follow a tunnel from the valley down to The Plains and follow the river down to a sandy bluff three days south, where they find a gnome village called Riverglade and a mysterious tower at a place called Entatratashan. Along the way they are ambushed by a bear while camping in the woods and attacked by giant frogs in swamps north of Entatratashan. See https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/thevalleyrpg/0FI4nEcJ730
A second expedition leaves the following day, heading out to a mysterious location in low hills a few days south of the valley. The five adventurers who undertook that journey were Alagos, Helgrethe, Maiva, Whisper and Yirisel. When the five never returned home, a rescue party made up of Aila, Briar, Dramble, Sariel and Torvar was sent out after them and discovered The Temple of Healing, where they were ambushed by a band of kenku. After defeating the kenku, the rescue party found the bodies of the missing adventurers and three fallen kenku set out for a sky burial at the top of the hill above the Temple of Healing. See https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/thevalleyrpg/qN4TKTcNJQQ
After returning back to the valley, Torvar the druid decides to preserve Maiva's cottage as a place of healing and rest in remembrance of her and the other fallen adventurers - see https://groups.google.com/forum/#!msg/thevalleyrpg/qN4TKTcNJQQ/bMz52S0ABQAJ
Late spring
Birel, Bran, Dramble, Tagariel and Taika took a short journey west into The Quiet Wood, where they find evidence of an overgrown path which hasn't been maintained in between ten and fifteen years, judging by the size of the young trees growing on it. Pressing further into the woods they discover a ruined village, The Temple of Power and a nest of giant spiders. The nest is sealed, the party activate the power systems at the temple and discover a Remote Working Station which allows operators to inhabit the stone bodies of nearby Waldo Statues.
See https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/thevalleyrpg/dee8Lw4UkLU and https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/thevalleyrpg/BlYPEm9TvQY At around the same time the explorers activate the temple of power, strange lights are seen beaming up into the sky from Entatratashan - see https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/thevalleyrpg/060XPwYkw10
Following the sighting of lights in the sky, a group of valley residents walk to Kazkan's Farm to take a proper survey of the plains, to work out what else might be out in the world. See https://groups.google.com/forum/m/#!topic/thevalleyrpg/Fsz-7u1Fb8c
A month later, a fifth expedition made up of Aila, Bran, Birel and Newt venture out into the plains once more, this time leaving the path of the river and striking out across the grasslands to a distant ring of six crags. Stopping overnight on the edge of The Blight Wood, they are attacked by vine blights but fend them off. The next day they reach the ring of crags and find that it is an elven settlement and holy site known as Klippika. See https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/thevalleyrpg/i4WOZO_0yQ0 While this is going on, Tagariel the wizard is spending time in meditation at Kazkan's farm and sees strange luminous smoke on the Black Path. See https://groups.google.com/d/msg/thevalleyrpg/i4WOZO_0yQ0/2eT1yS7KBAAJ