Dark Sun Calendar
ToC
Calendar - Weather - Sunrise & Sunset
Every city state has its own calendar, but that most commonly used is the Calendar of Kings or Tyr.
Ages and the Calendar of Kings
Every city-state and merchant house has its own calendar, but the most commonly used is the Calendar of Kings. In the Calendar of Kings, years are counted off using a pair of concurrently running cycles: one of eleven parts, the other of seven. The eleven-part, or Endlean cycle, is counted and spoken first, in the order presented below. The seven-part, or Seofean cycle, is counted and spoken second. The Endlean cycle is complete when Athas’ two moons, Ral and Guthay, meet in the heavens, resulting in a major eclipse that occurs every 11 years. The Seofean cycle is more abstract, occurring after Agitation has led back to Fury in the cosmos. Every 77 years the cycle repeats itself, ending with a year of Guthay’s Agitation and starting again with a new year of Ral’s Fury. Each 77-year cycle is called a King’s Age. There have been 189 complete King’s Ages since this calendar was adopted more than 14,500 years ago. So, the first year of each King’s Age is a year of Ral’s Fury. The next year is a year of Friend’s Contemplation, etc. The 76th year of each King’s Age is a year of Enemy’s Reverence, followed by the 77th year, a year of Guthay’s Agitation.
Years
Year names are determined the same way in all three calendars. In addition, the Merchant’s Calendar format that is being used in Adventure Logs abbreviates the year as “K.A. 190.26”, meaning the 26th year of the 190th King’s Age, that year being the year of Priest’s Defiance. Phases
There are three ‘seasons’ in an Athasian year (which is exactly 375 days long, by the way), which are known as ‘phases’: High Sun, Sun Descending, and Sun Ascending, each phase being exactly 125 days long (which comes out to four 30-day months and one five day festival in each phase). Each year is 365 days long. Each month has 30 days, and every season has a 5-day festival at its heart. Months
Athasian ‘months’ are not related to the periods of Ral and Guthay. Instead, they are associated with the constellations of the Athasian zodiac. Weeks
There are five weeks of six days in each month, and five days in each festival. Days
The days are named simply for their position in the week: 1day, 2day, 3day, etc., or their position in the month: Morrow 3rd, Hoard 27th, etc. Hours
There are 24 hours in each day. Presumably, an Athasian ‘hour’ is not the exact same length as ours, but it’s close enough to be treated as the same for campaign purposes.
Celestial Bodies
The Sun travels once around Oerth in 364 days, visiting the 12 Lairs of the Zodiac in an appointed round that never varies. Ral, a mottled green in color, is the closer of the two. Sages who have scried Ral report that it is covered in great green seas and mountain-islands of dizzying heights. Guthay, the smaller and more distant moon, is a golden orb mantled in steaming mists beneath which lie scarlet jungles and marshy seas. Stories tell of ancient moongates on Athas that lead to both Ral and Guthay, but they function only at unpredictable intervals.
Every city-state and merchant house has its own calendar, but the most commonly used is the Calendar of Kings. In the Calendar of Kings, years are counted off using a pair of concurrently running cycles: one of eleven parts, the other of seven. The eleven-part, or Endlean cycle, is counted and spoken first, in the order presented below. The seven-part, or Seofean cycle, is counted and spoken second. The Endlean cycle is complete when Athas’ two moons, Ral and Guthay, meet in the heavens, resulting in a major eclipse that occurs every 11 years. The Seofean cycle is more abstract, occurring after Agitation has led back to Fury in the cosmos. Every 77 years the cycle repeats itself, ending with a year of Guthay’s Agitation and starting again with a new year of Ral’s Fury. Each 77-year cycle is called a King’s Age. There have been 189 complete King’s Ages since this calendar was adopted more than 14,500 years ago. So, the first year of each King’s Age is a year of Ral’s Fury. The next year is a year of Friend’s Contemplation, etc. The 76th year of each King’s Age is a year of Enemy’s Reverence, followed by the 77th year, a year of Guthay’s Agitation.
| The Endlean Cycle | The Seofean Cycle |
|---|---|
| Ral | Fury |
| Friend | Contemplation |
| Desert | Vengeance |
| Priest | Slumber |
| Wind | Defiance |
| Dragon | Reverence |
| Mountain | Agitation |
| King | |
| Silt | |
| Enemy | |
| Guthay |
Year names are determined the same way in all three calendars. In addition, the Merchant’s Calendar format that is being used in Adventure Logs abbreviates the year as “K.A. 190.26”, meaning the 26th year of the 190th King’s Age, that year being the year of Priest’s Defiance. Phases
There are three ‘seasons’ in an Athasian year (which is exactly 375 days long, by the way), which are known as ‘phases’: High Sun, Sun Descending, and Sun Ascending, each phase being exactly 125 days long (which comes out to four 30-day months and one five day festival in each phase). Each year is 365 days long. Each month has 30 days, and every season has a 5-day festival at its heart. Months
Athasian ‘months’ are not related to the periods of Ral and Guthay. Instead, they are associated with the constellations of the Athasian zodiac. Weeks
There are five weeks of six days in each month, and five days in each festival. Days
The days are named simply for their position in the week: 1day, 2day, 3day, etc., or their position in the month: Morrow 3rd, Hoard 27th, etc. Hours
There are 24 hours in each day. Presumably, an Athasian ‘hour’ is not the exact same length as ours, but it’s close enough to be treated as the same for campaign purposes.
Celestial Bodies
The Sun travels once around Oerth in 364 days, visiting the 12 Lairs of the Zodiac in an appointed round that never varies. Ral, a mottled green in color, is the closer of the two. Sages who have scried Ral report that it is covered in great green seas and mountain-islands of dizzying heights. Guthay, the smaller and more distant moon, is a golden orb mantled in steaming mists beneath which lie scarlet jungles and marshy seas. Stories tell of ancient moongates on Athas that lead to both Ral and Guthay, but they function only at unpredictable intervals.
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