Netherese

The Netherese were a human ethnic group that were dominant in Faerûn prior to Dalereckoning. The Netherese are most closely associated with the empire of Netheril, which was founded in -3856 DR by Nether the Elder. The defining feature of Netheril was its flying enclaves, cities that floated high in the air over the land for thousands of years.

History

The Netherese began south of a body of water called the Narrow Sea, which has since been replaced by the High Ice and the Frozen Sea. They existed in a multitude of small fishing communities in the shadow of Eaerlann, a wood and moon elf kingdom. The human villages eventually formed a confederation in -3859 DR named the Alliance of Seventon, but this was renamed to Netheril (meaning Nether's Land) a few years later at the demand of the shaman king Nether the Elder. Two decades later, the elves of Eaerlann formally established diplomatic relations with Netheril, and offered to instruct its inhabitants in the Art. This began the Netherese tradition of magical ability. Every citizen was taught at least the basics of magic, and even commoners widely knew cantrips.

Nether Scrolls

Three hundred years after contact with the Eaerlanni, a group of Netherese researchers discovered the Nether Scrolls within the ruins of Aryvandaar. While there are a number of competing theories on the origins of the Scrolls, the most common theory is that they were created by the Sarrukh; a reptilian creator race that existed over thirty millennia ago during the Days of Thunder. The sheer amount of magical knowledge and theories contained within the Scrolls caused a drastic upheaval within Netherese society, and they abandoned elvish magic in favour of the new kind detailed in the Nether Scrolls. The Nether Scrolls form the basis of modern magical tradition, carried down through practices created by the Netherese.

Mythallars and Enclaves

The invention of the first mythallar by the archwizard Ioulaum in -3014 DR heralded another drastic change in Netherese society. Quasi-magical items could be created at a tenth the cost of traditional magic items. While quasi-magical items only functioned in the radius of a mythallar, they did not require the sacrifice of life-force to create. The creation of mythallars led to a burgeoning middle class focused on crafting and trading quasi-magical items. However, sixty years later, the first enclave was raised with the aid of a mythallar - a flying city, hovering high above the ground. Over the next several centuries, hundreds of flying Netherese enclaves were raised. This led to the split of the Netherese culture into High Netherese (those living in luxury and safety in flying enclaves) and Low Netherese (those living in the demesnes below).

Over the course of millennia, the Netherese came to dominate human society in Faerûn. Their incredible magical advancements, life extension, exploration, and architecture were (and continue to be) widely renowed. However, the amount of magic that Netheril tapped into came with a price. The magical residue left over from Netherese magic seeped into the ground, causing great harm to subterranean creatures called the phaerimm. In -461 DR, the phaerimm began casting a spell that drained the life and magic from Netherese lands and enclaves in an attempt to save themselves. This magic created barren wastelands from lush fields, and in at least two cases caused the mythallars of enclaves to fail, dropping the cities from the sky.

Karsus' Folly

As the effects of the phaerimm spell worsened, many Netherese fled for other lands. In a last-ditch effort to save his people and empire, the archwizard Karsus developed a spell called karsus' avatar in -340 DR. Using this spell the following year, he attempted to wrest divinity from the goddess of magic herself, Mystryl. However, as the six-hour long ritual finished and the spell was cast, the Weave was thrown into chaos. Mystryl, unable to prevent the Weave from tearing itself apart, sacrificed herself and blocked the connection between Karsus and the Weave. This momentarily caused all magic within Realmspace to cease functioning - including the mythallars that kept the Netherese enclaves aloft. In his last moments, as he turned to stone, Karsus witnessed almost every Netherese enclave plumment from the sky.

In the immediate aftermath of the destruction of Netheril, there still remained many Netherese survivors. Even though Mystryl died, she was almost instantly replaced by Mystra, the new goddess of magic, who was able to save three Netherese enclaves. One group from these enclaves would head south, eventually founding the nation of Halruaa. Another group, guided by the dwarves of Ascore, went on to settle in the dwarven realm of Delzoun. One of the first acts of the new goddess of magic was to enact Mystra's Ban - preventing mortals from casting any spell higher than 9th level, and preventing the tragedy of Karsus' Folly from ever happening again.

Legacy

The legacy of Netheril and its people can be felt all across Faerûn. The phaerimm spell continued until it drained all the life from the old empire, creating the Anauroch Desert. However, they were eventually defeated by the mysterious sharn, trapped behind a shimmering magic wall. The magic developed from the Nether Scrolls continues to be the basis of most modern magic in Faerûn and most of Realmspace. Many magic items, such as the ioun stones, have been left behind in fallen enclaves and later discovered by intrepid explorers - either to be used or replicated.

The Netherese themselves, for the most part, ceased to exist. Most of the High Netherese were killed as their cities were destroyed, with the few survivor states falling to outside invasion. The High Netherese people eventually were absorbed into the Chondathan and Vaasan ethnic groups. While the Low Netherese mostly survived Karsus' Folly, they had their life force drained by the phaerimm spell. As such, in the 5th century DR, they departed from their homelands. One group went west, merging with the Illuskan people. Another group traveled southwest, being absorbed by the Tethyrians.

Empire of Shadows

In the days before the casting of karsus' avatar, Lord Shadow, leader of the enclave of Thultanthar, successfully shifted his city into the Shadowfell. However, the city was unable to return for several weeks. When it reappeared back in the Material Plane, its inhabitants found their empire completely destroyed. Although plans were made to exact vengeance on the phaerimm, who were assumed to be responsible, they were abandoned and the city transported back into the Shadowfell. Over the course of nearly two millennia, the people of Thultanthar fought the denizens of the Shadowfell and became infused by its energy, becoming known as the Shadovar.

The city returned to the Material Plane once more on 1 Hammer 1372 DR, appearing above the High Forest. It repositioned itself to over the Anauroch Desert shortly after it appeared. In 1374 DR, the nation of Sembia became a vassal of the newly-restored empire of Netheril, also known as the Empire of Shadows. The Shade Princes expanded their empire, with Sembia becoming a protectorate by the start of the 15th century DR. A number of annexations in the Dalelands in the following decades further expanded Netheril. In 1484 DR, as the Second Sundering struck Faerûn, Sembia took the opportunity to invade the Dalelands. Cormyr came to their ally's aid, and Netheril invaded Cormyr in return. Although Shadovar forces came to the gates of Suzail, the empire was defeated and withdrew from Cormyr.

Having been defeated in Cormyr, the Empire of Shadows instead turned its attention to the city of Myth Drannor and its powerful mythal. The ruler of Thultanthar, Telamont Thanthul, intended to use it to allow Shar to usurp Mystra as the goddess of magic. However, his plans were foiled by the Netherese lich and arcanist Larloch, who instead intended to become the new god of magic himself. Larloch in turn was foiled by Elminster Aumar, who disabled Thultanthar's mythallar and brought it down atop the now-evacuated Myth Drannor, destroying both cities and the empire of Netheril for good.

Encompassed species

• Human