The period of time that has become called the Pre-Cataclysmic Civilizations encompasses the Fifth and Sixth Epochs.
The Fifth Epoch
The Fifth Epoch covers the emergence of hominid life on Adnati.
This Epoch is the only one in the Hominid Era (the Third Era) to not be subdivided into Ages. It marks the beginnings of intelligent hominid life. At this time, most or all hominids were believed to live in small tribes huddled in rudimentary shelters like caves and make-shift tents made of animal hides stretched over poles. During this time, they began using the most rudimentary of tools – clubs, sticks sharpened into spears, and rocks used to pound other objects or thrown as weapons. Spoken languages were developed during this period, though it’s believed that the first written languages didn’t come until the First Age at the beginning of the Sixth Epoch.
During this period, magic was abundant, as Dream Force flowed unimpeded. It is believed that everyone during this period had some form of rudimentary, instinctive magic. For some, this came from tapping into the elemental forces of nature in what sages today would consider to be a form of Druidry. For many, the source of magic was innate, manifesting in wild and often unexpected ways. Even the simplest spells often triggered surges of power disproportionate to the spell being cast.
This epoch’s end is marked by hominids developing forms of agriculture, including both cultivating crops and raising livestock, which allowed them to settle into stable communities instead of their previous “hunter/gatherer” existence that forced them to travel nomadically in search of fresh game to hunt and plant life to forage.
The Sixth Epoch
The Sixth Epoch covers the period of time when hominids began to build civilizations with the advent of agriculture up until the Great Cataclysm.
The First Hominid Age
The First Hominid Age, generally called the First Age, was marked by hominids developing forms of agriculture, including both cultivating crops and raising livestock. This allowed them to settle into stable communities and develop civilizations – towns, villages, and eventually kingdoms and empires.
Although these hominids developed tools, much of that was limited because the abundance of Dream Force allowed for the use of magic to aid in both simple and complex tasks alike. Metalworking, for example, could be done without the use of modern forges, and tools like forges wouldn’t be developed until the Seventh Epoch, when Dream Force was much less plentiful.
The Second Hominid Age
The Second Hominid Age in the Sixth Epoch of the Third Era was marked by the first studying of magic and the codification of spells. The instinctive magic used by early druids and sorcerers began to be recorded and explored through experimentation, allowing for the emergence of wizards and arcane lore.
The Third Hominid Age
The Third Hominid Age, sometimes called the Age of Mages, was marked by the emergence of spellcasters so powerful that their might can scarcely be imagined. The abundance of Dream Force allowed these mages to cast spells that were ten, maybe fifty times more potent than the most powerful modern spells.
Great wizards could create entire cities without the use of modern tools. It is believed that many of the chimeric hybrid creatures like the owlbears, perytons, and griffons – maybe even demi-hominids like centaurs, harengons, and satyrs – were created through arcane experimentation during this time. They built immense Towers that climbed hundreds, thousands of feet into the sky.
These mages grew so powerful that when they went to war, the earth itself trembled. They had the power to cleave mountains, to flatten cities thousands of miles away, to make the very rivers and oceans burn like oil. The last of these battles became known as the Great Cataclysm. As much as ninety percent of all hominid life was destroyed during this last terrible war known as the Mage Wars.
At the end of the Great Cataclysm, most of the powerful mages were destroyed and those who survived were driven from the earth. An invisible barrier of disputed origin encircled Adnati, though whether it was created or emerged through natural forces remains a matter of speculation. It kept most of the Dream Force in the heavens, with modern mages only able to tap into tiny quantities of it to weave their spells.
Less-powerful survivors were forced to hide deep in the forests or beneath the surface of the land. Every civilization on Adnati was destroyed and had to be rebuilt in the Sixth Epoch.