The Tear

Nearly 600 years ago, the great wizard Kowyn the Knowledgeable sought to unravel the mysteries of The Weave. Instead, he unraveled The Weave itself. His magic sliced into the fabric of The Weave, leaving a massive tear in its wake that would forever alter the world of Tandreal. The world before had been one of magic and wonder, but in the wake of this cataclysmic event, a lack of magic has caused death, destruction, and a permeant, negative effect on the climate and environment. Because of this tear in The Weave, the majority of Tandreans lost their ability to wield magic. Although its not uncommon to know of a spellcaster in the present day, the majority of civilians are incapable of calling upon the arcane arts, and even talented magic-users struggle to master them.
The tear caused a level of destruction never before seen by Tandreal. Cities fell out of the sky, natural disasters abounded and rampant famine and illness ravaged the land. In less than a year after the tear, the whole population of Tandreal would be reduced to 1/3rd of its original splendor. Although these disasters would not remain in full force, they would also not fully disappear. It is not uncommon for a wild tornado to tear the grounds of Alcask, or for a volcano to erupt in Fonterelle. Disease is east to catch and hard to get rid of, famines are expected every few years, and the number of births that survive into children -- and even more difficult, into adulthood -- is not a sustainable or optimistic number.
In addition to being ravaged by natural disaster, it seems that the world of Tandreal has also started to simply die. As the years go on, it is harder to determine if the lack of crop is due to famine or because the soil simply has nothing left to give. Fauna lives shorter lives and produces more deformities, flora decays at a rapid rate and leaves swaths of fungi in its wake. More than almost anywhere else, on the continent of Alcask these fungi are especially abundant. Without magic to perform the alchemical feats required to make potions, many practitioners of medicine who are not granted the divine power of a god turn to more homeopathic traditions and use the many fungi to create salves, potions and poultices.
With the weave torn, magic runs wild and untamed. Those who manage to wield it may still struggle with stray spells, limited capabilities and unforeseen effects. Much to the frustration of many accomplished casters, this magic becomes more uncontrollable the deeper their connection with it, making even the most powerful of them prone to arcane mishap. Because of how difficult magic is to grasp, most spellcasters are bound to a single school of magic. This is primarily because the study of such schools is so tedious that learning enough about another to properly cast spells from it can be nearly impossible -- especially for those starting out. More accomplished mages may dip into other schools of magic, especially those that share similar tenants, but rarely devote as much practice and use to them.