Erathia is the second planet from the sun and is orbiting further away from the sun than [[Mereshwan]], the first planet of the planetary system. Erathia possesses one natural satellite, [[Chaur]]. It is the only known celestial object known to harbor life. The planet was created by the [[Aspects]] at an unknown time before the [[Age of Creation]]. The planet is mostly covered in water, with the vast majority being salt water contained in its global ocean. People from Erathia are referred to as [[Erathi]]. # Planetary Characteristics Erathia was built by the [[Aspects]] as mentioned in the [[Retelling]] at the onset of the [[Age of Creation]]. It is unkown if the Aspects had created other planets in the universe before creating Erathia. The planet's most important characteristic are probably the [[Momentstorm|momentstorms]] sweeping Erathia on a regular basis. These storms carry an energy, named the [[Moment]], which once released in the environment, forces it to undergo through change. This change manifests in an infinite number of different ways depending on the organism it enters in contact with. Momentstorms are an important aspect of Erathia's development and heavily impact the locations of cities, trade routes, as well as the infrastructures developed to reduce its impact on civilisation. The release of Moment on the [[Fauna and Flora]] of Erathia is studied with a great interest as it shows that the species that adapted the best to the presence of Moment fare better than those that showcase a rejection of the energy. ## Physical and Orbital Characteristics Measures made by the greatest minds of the [[High Reign of Blood]] confirm the writings from the [[Age of Knowledge]] that estimated Erathia's radius to be approximately 6500 kilometers, and its circumference approaching the 40840 kilometers. It's since at least the same period that Erathia's axial tilt has been calculated at about 24.96°. As a result, the planet has a seasonal cycle, with [[Aspectdom Calendar|Excess]] occurring in the Southern Hemisphere while [[Aspectdom Calendar|Ruin]] is occurring in the Northern Hemisphere. A day on Erathia is 28 hours, and there are 803 days in a year. The four Erathi seasons are each 5 months long and provide the rhythm of Erathia's life alongside the momentstorms, even though most of Erathia's population lives near the equator and experience little seasonal variation. ## Surface Most of Erathia's surface is water. Its hydrosphere is separated into several oceans and seas known as the [[Great Ocean]], the [[Shivering Ocean]], the [[Grey Depths]], the [[Uncrossable Sea]], the [[Ovgenian Sea]] and the [[Adamant Waters]]. As far as explorers have been able to confirm it, Erathia is made of four continents of varying surface areas. They make up 32% of the planet's surface, and are distributed across both southern and northern hemispheres, and covering the entirety of the planet's poles. # Atmosphere ## Climate As mentioned before, and to no regional exceptions, Erathis is frequently swept by [[Momentstorm|momentstorms]] which while they are not directly associated to climate are considered an entire part of weather patterns. Surface air temperature can rise to around 59°C in hot deserts such as the [[Solitude]], and can probably fall well below -50°C in polar areas. This last statement would need clarification as neither polar zones have been explored and studied to this day. # Ecology Erathi's lifeforms are influenced by a major factor we have already mentioned: Momentstorms. The presence of Moment has had an accelerating effect on the evolution of the species on Erathia - to the exception of a few notable creatures such as [[Skahns]] and Humans. Multiple species of both flora and fauna have adapted to the presence of Moment at a faster pace than their fellow members, making many a scholar wonder about the reason of this sudden - across the past 1500 years - acceleration of the evolutionary process. Some thesis point out that should the Moment have always been present in the atmosphere of Erathia, all the species would be totally accustomed to its presence and records would mention this process across several hundreds of years. Furthermore, the absence of evolutionary reaction on the human body, which is replaced by a much more insidious progressive poisoning, seems to indicate that [[Humans]] did not evolve in the constant presence of Moment. Hence why most scholars will mention pre-Moment and post-Moment periods when discussing lifeforms. This evolutionary gap is at times hard to bridge for scholars located away from centres of knowledge for whom the acquisition of documents predating the [[Reign of Blood]] might be difficult. Despite the mention of an evolutionary line in lifeforms, it seems important to mention that most sources link the emergence of [[Humankind]] not as a serendipitous event, but to an act of creation from the [[Aspects]], and more specifically from the [[Celestial Architect]]. This following sentence is complex to form, so bear with me. It is unclear whether the rest of Erathi lifeforms were created by the Aspects *long before* the creation of Humankind and then left to their own evolutionary self, or if they were created concurrently to Humans. This question is at the core of both biological and theological studies, and is one of the most heatedly debated topics. ## Flora Erathi flora seems to have been forced to adapt to the relative recency - at least from an evolutionary standpoint - of the Momentstorms and their impact on organisms. Due to this, their development seems to have shifted to embrace the ebb and flow of Moment loads across a [[Moment Cycle]], with traits such as roots capable of detecting the arrival of a Momentstorm, or the ability to extend and waft tendrils in the air to absorb Moment. In this regard, many plants, trees and herbs will have what is commonly defined as Moment rich and Moment poor characteristics reflecting how dense their Moment load is. It is supposed that prior to the global apparition of Moment, plant life was predominantly obtaining their energy from sunlight. They did so using a green-blue pigment capable to absorb the energy from the sun. This evolutionary advantage is still observed in many species through the presence of atrophied leaves. Old herbariums show larger leaves associated to the ancestors of these species. This leads most experts to speculate that the massive influx of Moment has led plants to prefer this rich but more spaced out source of energy to the more steady but perhaps less intense output provided by our star. Repartition of plants varieties across Erathia is mostly organised based on temperature and precipitations, with certain species having developed idiosyncratic traits to survive in their local environment. This observation is however contradicted by Stipan Endlikher who noticed the propagation of several plants beyond their original observed zones of growth. His hypothesis states that some Moment-modified species have been trying to get closer to the richer winds to help with their development. Even going as far as dubbing them "Moment-craving species". Humans have developed a co-dependent relationship with some subsets of plants, cultivating them for the nourishment they provide, the medicinal benefits, or sometimes for their observed chemical traits. ## Fauna Erathia contains a wide variety of fauna, the majority of which appears to possess a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body and at least three pairs of jointed legs. Like Erathi flora, the animals of Erathia have also adapted to their changing environment and the active impact of Momentstorms. The apparition of the Momentstorms seems to have led to the accentuation of some pre-existing traits, most notably among the creatures that seem to be more resilient to the Moment's impact. Some of the members of the Skahns family have shown a high tolerance to Moment, which is theorised to be linked to the thickness and insulating abilities of their chitin. On the contrary, many species have developed a quasi-symbiotic relationship to the Moment, through the growth of Moment-storing pouches and the consumption of the energy to fuel temporary biological modifications. This evolution has made Erathia's wilds a far less safer place than records seems to indicate. It is considered highly risky to travel during a High Moment period without a proper escort. ### Production of Brilliance Some creatures on Erathia have developed the ability to produce [[Brilliance]], the most famous and commonly domesticated of them being the Skahns. The reason for these specific animals' ability is unclear, except for the evolutionary advantage their relationship with humans has provided them. Skahns are the only notable herbivorous species capable of producing Brilliance, while the rest of them are their predators. It is understood that skahns' predators are capable of processing the highly Brilliance infused flesh in their bodies and then excreting it in a richer form of Brilliance with a brown tint ingenuously named "Brown Brilliance". Due to the central position of Brilliance in Erathi culture and especially amongst [[Iconurgy|Iconurgist]], the breeding of Skahns and hunting of their predators has been an extremely lucrative activity. This has led to highly specialised Skahns being bred over generations, separating them from the rest of their species. In the Aspectdom, [[Skahn breeders]] are amongst the wealthiest individuals of the nation and their flocks are ### Moment-Affected Fauna *This section is currently under peer-review.* ### Non-Moment Affected Fauna *This section is currently lacking verified information and will be completed when a consensus is achieved.* # History *For a more detailed view of Erathi events and eras, see [[History and Myths]].* ## Pre-Age of Creation It is unclear, and mostly unexplained, what existed before the [[Age of Creation]], where the [[Aspects]] came from, and how they gathered to create Erathia. It is currently accepted that the Aspects have existed for far longer than Erathia and Humankind, and that time was somewhat different before they decided to shape our world. No consensus has been reached on deciding whether the Age of Creation starts with the Creation of Erathia, or with the birth of the first Humans. This uncertainty ties back to the discovery of ancestors of several contemporary lifeforms that seem to predate the currently accepted date of birth of Humankind some fourteen thousand years ago. These fossilized remains, seem to show that the planet has sustained life for at least a |REDACTED| of years. ## Age of Creation *This sections is currently under writing.* ## Age of Insurrection *This sections is currently under writing.* ## The Fall *This sections is currently under writing.* ## Age of Knowledge *This sections is currently under writing.* ## Reign of Blood *This sections is currently under writing.* # Culture and Society Erathia is inhabited by a single sapient genus, the Humans, even though there has been several species living alongside Humans during the past fourteen thousand years. Humanity has developed diverse and complex societies that rose and fell over this long period of time. The total human population of Erathia is numbered at several millions of individuals, even though there is no one census allowing a proper count. ### Nations Erathi history is marked by the birth and crumbling of nations ever since the Age of Insurrection to which the first signs of civilisations have been traced back. In the [[Contemporary Reign of Blood]], the current division of known countries and Regions in Erathia are as follow, by geographical regions : - Northern Ibune - [[Anhur]] - [[Eshanaedor]] - [[Faelgarde]] - [[Ferisbarkat]] - [[Sunken Kingdom of Herrenfal|Herrenfal]] - [[Lasuvia]] - [[Black City of Lirveg|Lirveg]] - [[Lennalis]] - [[Nthumeria]] - [[Orlath]] - [[Osha]] - [[Aspectdom of Ovgena|Western Ovgena]] - [[Syr]] - [[Ühr]] - Central Ibune - [[Carnach]] - [[Herdeven]] - [[Arz]] - [[Meidugeri]] - [[Sukur]] - Hehikren - [[Bal Zafren]] - [[Jadeth]] - [[Nirim]] - [[Imperial Republic of Ovgena|Eastern Ovgena]] - Jressar - [[Dael Orros]] - [[Kasiba]] ## Calendar *For more information on the different calendars used on Erathia, see [[Calendar & Festivities]]* ## Currency The primary form of currency on Erathia is the [[Brilliance]], a dust made from Skahns' secretions. Its use is a remnant of a period when Iconurgy was far more common and the consumption of Brilliance by Iconurgists far exceeded that of today. While this tradition remains in most nations, it is slowly being replaced by the use of Skahns shells. Skahns shells have the advantage of being easier to carry than bags of Brilliance, and give and advantage to [[Skahn breeders]] who can still keep their place in the economy. Additionally, economists have theorised that the replacement of Brilliance by [[Shells]] will reduce the inflation observed in the past decades linked to the steadily slowing consumption of Brilliance by practitioners which, while this is not the topic of this article, is a [[Iconurgists Rarefaction|phenomenon]] whose causes are not understood. Shells are often pierced and worn on a string for ease of carrying. ## Food and Drink ## Languages