Aki'Vao

The Shards of the Cataclysm

Saleh'Alire » Autonomous Regions ⭲ Tolara

The region now known as Aki'Vao is a large chain of islands in the Léna'thová Ocean just off the southeastern coast of Tolara, consisting of two large islands, three medium islands, and an unknown number of smaller ones. Despite the calm nature of the Léna'thová Ocean, however, shipwrecks in the region near Aki'Vao are far more common than anywhere else in Saleh'Alire.
What little is known about the region is based predominantly on observable data from those in the bordering region of Talaina'Vao, on Tolara's southern peninsula. Additional information comes from records recovered from the ruins of several ancient cultures that used to inhabit Saleh'Alire- predominantly the Sa'avi and Nom'yth.

Several expeditions have been launched into the region. To date, however, none of these expeditions have ever returned; it's unknown what actually causes their disappearance, but interest in exploring the region of Aki'Vao has slowly dwindled over the centuries due to the staggering loss of so many expedition teams.

Collected data points to extreme instability within the region on every front, both Arcane and Natural- and weather patterns observable from a distance reflects this instability; large thunderstorms and planar phenomenon such as Ethereal Storms are visible above the region with regular frequency. Even areas of Tolara bordering it are subject to increased Wild Magic Flares, and the occurence of Dead Magic Zones and Extraplanar Portals are twice as common. Several earthquakes that have rocked Talaina'Vao have also originated from the Aki'Vao region.

The Cataclysm

Based on what little archival data remains, Arcanists believe that the Aki'Vao region was originally a part of the Tolaran continent, and was separated during the events of the Cataclysm. Archival data further suggests that Spellfire- an unstable magical energy highly coveted by the ancient Sa'avi- is believed to have played a key role in its separation.
Spellfire easily becomes corrupted and unstable if not properly maintained, and even with proper maintenance, it still corrodes over time. The results have been seen at least twice in known history: Once with the destruction of Mai-Ben'hat Palace in the Nisaba Pass, and again at Kuai’ain Palace near modern day Chara'Huyan.
In addition to causing the destruction of both the Sa'avi and Tolara's southern landmass, the ongoing corruption of Sa'avian Spellfire technology is believed to have eventually resulted in the collapse of the entire Weave itself- causing the loss of Arcana across the realms. It's unknown how long the collapse lasted, but evidence suggests the Weave was almost fully repaired by the 4000's, when normal historical records appear to resume.