Pythia's Prophecies

Pythia was a human prophet who lived during the Great War, when the Gifts were first granted to mortal bearers. Although she was dismissed during her lifetime as a madwoman whose writings were little more than gibberish, later scholars determined that many of her prophecies accurately foretold events that occurred long after her death.

Pythia wrote in an ancient form of Common that was already archaic during her lifetime. Her writings were difficult to interpret, and several scholars contributed to translating the surviving prophecies, including Fulbright, Lucian, Maimon, Schuyler, Stegner, Strahan, and Virgil. Different translations of individual words sometimes produce substantially different meanings.

The surviving prophecies span multiple campaigns and historical eras. Only those whose significance has been established are recorded here.

The Fall of the Age of Wonders

The only thing that surpasses the greatness of man is his greed. It is when he is at his highest does he fall the farthest. The ascension of the son of destruction shall bring about the end of days. With him shall he bring allies who will see an end to peaceful death and who shall corrupt the purest of heart. Three shall rise to oppose them, taming the magic of the uncontrolled, bringing light to the darkness, and war shall be their shadow. The world will cry out in suffering and rapture.

This prophecy was eventually recognized as foretelling the rise of the six new gods and the Fall of the Age of Wonders.

The surviving annotated translation identified the figures within the prophecy as follows:

• Son of destruction — Correries
• End of peaceful death — Ulanthar
• Corrupt the purest of heart — Milaynee
• Taming the magic of the uncontrolled — Magerris
• Bringing light to the darkness — Tarmikos
• War shall be their shadow — Krom

The prophecy was not fully understood until the Fall had already begun. By then, the events it described could not be prevented.

The New Power

The imbalance of paradise shall herald a corruption of death. The key to salvation on earth lies in the countervail of heaven. From among the Chosen shall rise a new harmony. The suffering of the Faithful will finally be ended.

This prophecy became particularly important to The Chosen, who believed it foretold the coming of another god from among their own number.

An annotated translation contained several changes:

• rise was replaced with ascend
• harmony was replaced with power
• Faithful was replaced with Servant

The resulting interpretation suggested:

From among the Chosen shall ascend a new power. The suffering of the Servant will finally be ended.

The word translated as Chosen was itself uncertain. The translators acknowledged that it was not a standard translation of the original term. Their interpretation was derived from syntax, morphology, semantics, and pragmatics. The same root could also be translated as Anointed or Worshiped, with several much less likely derivations.

The Chosen interpreted the prophecy as meaning that one of their own would ascend and become a new god. This interpretation was ultimately incorrect.

The prophecy was fulfilled through Orinder and Kelestaria, culminating in the creation of Orin-Kel. The "new harmony" was not simply a new god arising from the ranks of the Chosen, as they had believed, but the union of Orinder and Kelestaria and the power that resulted from it.

The prophecy's references to the "imbalance of paradise," the "corruption of death," and the suffering that was to be ended encompass events surrounding the larger conflict involving Thorn Runehammer, Filtiarn, and the consequences of the Fall of the Age of Wonders.

Prophecies Yet to Be Documented

Pythia's prophecies extend across multiple campaigns. Additional prophecies whose meanings have not yet been documented will be added as their associated campaigns are reconstructed.

The prophecies associated with the Savorise Part 1 and Savorise Part 2 campaigns are intentionally not included here yet.