Year in Avernum 6?

[Arch-Mage Solberg]

Does anyone happpen to know the year/s that Avernum 6 takes place? It would be really helpful.

 

Post # 462

[Tirien]

I think there was a thread a while back that had the dates, but im not sure. I believe that it was on the Avernum Series threads.

[Earth]

http://encyclopedia.ermarian.net/wiki/Timeline_of_Ermarian

 

that could help a bit.

[ex post slarto]

That hasn't been updated since Avernum 5. The way to get a date for 6 would be to exhaustively check all references to time relative to older events, mentioned in A6, however brief or vague, and then figure out what best fits everything.

[Arch-Mage Solberg]

Originally Posted By: CRISIS on INFINITE SLARTIES

That hasn't been updated since Avernum 5. The way to get a date for 6 would be to exhaustively check all references to time relative to older events, mentioned in A6, however brief or vague, and then figure out what best fits everything.

Thank you Slarty! Looks like I got some work to do ahead of me.

Originally Posted By: Earth Empires

http://encyclopedia.ermarian.net/wiki/Timeline_of_Ermarian

that could help a bit.

Great minds think alike. It is that very thread that I intend to update as I have been updating some other pages as well.

Post #464

[Earth]

I guess so much time has passed that heroes of A5 have retired so 20-30 years.

[ex post slarto]

Ballpark guesses, unfortunately, are not your friends. For both A4 and A5, there were lots of obscure but specific references that demolished the timespans most people guessed.

[Sss-Chah]

i think i remember guessing 870 for avernum 5

[Arch-Mage Solberg]

I know that the last post for this thread was a few days ago. I'm not attempting to SPAM, I have an update I would like to share on this subject.

Originally Posted By: CRISIS on INFINITE SLARTIES

The way to get a date for 6 would be to exhaustively check all references to time relative to older events, mentioned in A6, however brief or vague, and then figure out what best fits everything.

 

I believe that I have all of the relevant references (there actually aren't that many)! The best evidence I have for a year is from #4 since it is not vague at all! I've copied and pasted from the A6 Scripts.

1. Ghall-Ihrno's Intro-

Quote:

"You get a closer look at the vahnatai, who has made the Castle his home for over twenty years.

2. Commander Castrone, of Fort Remote, when asked about the caves to the west

Quote:

-"_Well, twenty or so years ago, we thought everything out there was quiet. But it turns out, Rentar-Ihrno, that mad old vahnatai, was out there plotting against Avernum._";

3. Commander Melo, of Fort Saffron, talking about the old Darkside Loyalists fort-

Quote:

"_I was never able to find out much. They were built over twenty years ago. There were brigands or something hiding up there until adventurers cleared them out._"

4. Gless-Thsss, Chieftain of Gnass, when asked how long he was Chieftain-

Quote:

"_Twenty-five long years._"

 

As I said earlier, #4 is our best evidence for a year for A6. In A4, when you speak to Gless-Thsss, he tells you that he has been the Chieftain for only several months when the Shade appeared in Dharmon.

According to the Encyclopedia Ermariana Timeline, this happened in the year 855 IE. Now, we add Gless-Thsss' 25 years and we have our A6 starting year of 880 IE.

I've never been a big fan of saying that all of these events took place in one year. So, I'm also gonna say that the events of A6 took about 2 years to complete. Which will end us with 882 IE.

If this is true (and I believe that it is), then the following is also true.

1. Rone of The Castle died around 875 IE. Corelea says the Rone died 5 years previously.

2. Pathass of Gnass died around 870 IE. Seleeass of Gnass tells you that Pathass died 10 years previously.

3. Commander Matos joined the Army around 850 IE. Commander Matos tells you that he was made Commander after 30 years.

 

These are the only absolutes that I have right now. Obviously my word can not stand alone. I have only presented these facts (as I believe them to be) to be discussed by our community. You're imput on this (and every other) thread is greatly admired.

 

Post # 465

[ex post slarto]

Looks like you pulled up some good stuff!

 

Did we ever set an approximate date for A5? I can't remember.

 

Given that previous games have all been assumed to (or maybe there's evidence to say so - I think for X2 there was) take place during just one year, we should probably continue that if we are using the same timeline. I don't see anything about the in-game part of A6's story that would require more than a year. Obviously, the Blight and the Slith invasion span longer timeframes.

[Earth]

I remember vaguely some1 saying something about time what blight has been curse at Avernum and probably same applies to Slith-invasion.

[Arch-Mage Solberg]

Originally Posted By: CRISIS on INFINITE SLARTIES

Looks like you pulled up some good stuff!

Thanks Slarty.

Originally Posted By: CRISIS on INFINITE SLARTIES

Did we ever set an approximate date for A5? I can't remember.

We did. The Timeline of Ermarian was last updated sometime after A5 came out. The year was 870 IE, 10 years before the events of A6.

Originally Posted By: CRISIS on INFINITE SLARTIES

Given that previous games have all been assumed to (or maybe there's evidence to say so - I think for X2 there was) take place during just one year, we should probably continue that if we are using the same timeline. I don't see anything about the in-game part of A6's story that would require more than a year.

I know that previous games had a set period of one year from beginning to end. To me this makes no sense. These characters do a lot of running around, and are also supposed to rest a lot more than we allow them on the games. I know that the games are fictional, but if we are gonna try to come up with dates and stuff that make sense, then we need to start thinking about the characters in a more realistic sense.

Originally Posted By: CRISIS on INFINITE SLARTIES

Obviously, the Blight and the Slith invasion span longer timeframes.

According to the starting dialogue of A6, the Blight came first and then the Slith Horde (sensing weakness) attacked. I would put a date of 878 on the Blight and 879 on the Slith Horde's attack.

Post #467

[ex post slarto]

Well, X3 tracks the number of days that go by. Maybe the counter isn't 100% realistic, but completing most of the game content typically takes less than 360 days. So I dunno.

 

If this stuff happened in real life it would take longer -- but most of this stuff would never happen in real life in the first place.

[Triumph]

Just one more time-relevant quote, from talking to Commander Melo in Ft. Saffron, confirming A6 is about ten years after A5:

 

Quote:

question = "Who are the Darkside Loyalists?";

text1 = "_Oh. They might be from before your time. They are rebels against the Empire. They hate Avernum, and they want the Empire to return to the cruel days of old. They even assassinated Empress Prazac._";

text2 = "_They were mostly wiped out a decade ago, but a few dangerous pockets of them might remain. The Empire will appreciate it if we locate and deal with them._";

[The Mystic]

Originally Posted By: CRISIS on INFINITE SLARTIES

Well, X3 tracks the number of days that go by. Maybe the counter isn't 100% realistic, but completing most of the game content typically takes less than 360 days. So I dunno.

Yeah, there's not much (if any) realism to X3's day counter, especially since X3 usually takes me 90 game days or less. It always seems like the clock should tick just a tiny bit faster...

Quote:

If this stuff happened in real life it would take longer -- but most of this stuff would never happen in real life in the first place.

Agreed, the time frames appear to be compressed, sometimes severely so. In the unlikely event that the games could happen in real life, they would each take years to go from start to finish.

From what I can tell from playing the games, X1 would take about a decade; X2 would take about 2-3 years; X3 would take about 4-5 years; and A4 would take about 3-4 years. I haven't done enough with A5 and A6 to venture a guess.

[ex post slarto]

The whole point of this is that it's a timeline of the games. It doesn't matter if we think something isn't the most sensible option; if the games are quite clear that that's what happens, well, that's how it is. Time passing within each game goes in that category.

[So Much Killing]

Still, going from a wet-behind-the-ears private in the food depot to death-dealing super-ninja captain entrusted with the fate of the kingdom seems like it should take more than a few months.

[Alorael at Large]

Since in real life people don't gain levels, it's not really relevant. Soldiers are expected to be effective out of relatively little training, and it's not as though the most elite military forces are also really old.

 

My feelings about the lengths of games are all very different. A1 could take any length of time. A2 can't: the battle lines don't move and Avernum isn't overrun by the Empire. Since the Empire has brought overwhelming force to bear against the Avernites, and it's not until you bring the Vahnatai on board, kill Garzahd, and prevent endless reinforcements from pouring in that the tide can turn. If you don't do that quickly, Avernum should be wiped out. A3 is similar: I get the sense that the dates were chosen to make the urgency apparent. You don't have years, you have a few months before monsters obliterate the surface.

 

—Alorael, who is a firm believer in the punctuated equilibrium model of Avernite history.

[Arch-Mage Solberg]

Originally Posted By: Triumph

Just one more time-relevant quote, from talking to Commander Melo in Ft. Saffron, confirming A6 is about ten years after A5:

Quote:

question = "Who are the Darkside Loyalists?";
text1 = "_Oh. They might be from before your time. They are rebels against the Empire. They hate Avernum, and they want the Empire to return to the cruel days of old. They even assassinated Empress Prazac._";
text2 = "_They were mostly wiped out a decade ago, but a few dangerous pockets of them might remain. The Empire will appreciate it if we locate and deal with them._";

Thanks Triumph! I had that on my list but for some stupid reason, I didn't list it. But it does confirm that A5 and A6 are 10 years apart.

As for time in the games, all I was saying was that although the games and the world of Ermarian are fictional...there still needs to be something realistic about it. There's no such thing as magic but J.K. Rowling put such descriptive acts in her books that it made magic seem real. That's the same way for the Avernum games. Jeff describes the caves of Avernum and the surface of Ermarian with such detail, that it's hard not to be drawn in.

Even if the games don't come right out and tell us how long it took those adventurers to complete all the missions, I believe that's where we come in to put everything together and come up with the years.

Post #468

[Dikiyoba]

Originally Posted By: Archmage Solberg

There's no such thing as magic but J.K. Rowling put such descriptive acts in her books that it made magic seem real.

Didn't Rowling have quite a few issues with timekeeping as well?

Dikiyoba.