Relative: -105,000 to -10,000
OC: -100,000 to -1,036
This period marks the true beginning of space travel, even though
it went in fits and starts, and with several failed attempts. It is
known that one race, the "Real Ancestors," achieved space travel
prior to any others, and appears to have made extensive use of the
technology. The period is also characterized by two other
civilizations, detailed below. It is also during this time that the
first confirmed sightings of the Spelljammer occur. Records from
this time tend to derive from mythical accounts and from artifacts.
The existence of space travel from this time, however, is a
confirmed fact.
The Migration of the "Real Ancestors."
Relative: -105,000 approx
OC: -100,036 approx
According to historical (and mythical) records, at about this time
an advanced, intelligent race achieved space travel and actively
spread primitive races around the spheres, for reasons of their
own. Exactly who these people were, what they were doing, and why
they transported intelligent races around the spheres has never
been adequately explained. However, if such events did occur, it
would explain why there are so many intelligent species in the
galaxy, and why many of them have similar characteristics. Humans
and demi-humans are the best example.
At any rate, the "Real Ancestors," whoever they were, were the first space travellers. Most records of them are from primitive art works suggest that they were humanoid, and with strong powers, either magical or telepathic. How they traveled through space is still a mystery. It is unlikely that they used spelljamming helms like the ones used today. If they had, some of the primitive races they transported would have certainly gotten a hold of them and used them. There is no evidence to suggest that this ever happened. The most likely means of transport, barring helms, would be some sort of dimensional travel.
It is assumed that this race held sway in space for about 30,000 years, but records are so sketchy that it is very difficult to give a definite time frame. It is known that by the time the Reigar rose to prominence, this race had long since faded from the picture. But again, whoever they were, they were the first space travellers.
Height of the ancient Reigar civilization
Relative: -60,000 approx
OC: -55,036 approx
The ancestors of the current day Reigar were among the first space
faring races on record, but it is also known that their command of
space (at this time) was restricted to about four spheres. They
used early versions of Esthetics for transport, and when forced to
do so, they would travel the space lanes on creatures like kindori,
while the more powerful ones travelled through the spheres via
dimensional travel. Clearly they traveled in small groups, but
there was enough communication between the reigar worlds to keep
their civilization intact.
The Reigar lost their hold fairly quickly. Artifacts suggest that a disease of some kind effected the most powerful Reigar spellcasters, including their dimensional travellers. This cut many of their communication links, thus isolating the reigar groups. The reigar civilization rapidly decayed, and the race reverted to an almost tribal status. It would remain so until the time of the Chiten, almost 50000 years later.
The Height of the Juna Civilization
Relative: -22000
OC: -17036
As with the Reigar, there is a distance gap between the ascension
of the Juna and the fall of the Reigar. Of all the Pre-Classical
civilizations, the Juna are the best documented, but the least
understood. The Juna, who ascended to space long after the Reigar,
are known to have been tri-symmetrical beings, of approximately
human height. They are also known to have used spelljamming helms
of some sort, but they were very different from any of the helms
used today, apparently telepathically based. Their ships were very
large and very durable, designed to undertake long voyages with
large numbers of passengers. The leviathan ghost ships were
probably built by the Juna, for example. It appears that the Juna
were primarily a space faring race, having little to do with the
fledgling civilizations on the hundreds of worlds seeded by the
First Ancestors.
At the same time, they are also known to have teraformed some planets in the Trulian Ring and elsewhere, apparently for colonization. Why a race whose primary interest was in space would expend so much energy in making worlds suitable for colonization is a mystery that no one has yet solved. One theory is that the Juna had two or more sub-races, or "castes," and that one of these was planet based in outlook.
The Juna civilization, thought it did not decay, became somewhat of an arrested culture about 18,000 years ago. The few records that exist suggest that the race reached a certain level of development, and simply stopped.
The First Confirmed Citing of the
Spelljammer
Relative: -21453
OC: -16489
Every race in the known spheres has claimed to be the builder of
the Spelljammer. In truth, none of them have grounds for it. The
earliest confirmed sighting of the Spelljammer is from
(interestingly) human cave paintings on Oerth, dating from this
period. Similar artwork exists on several worlds, all depicting a
huge, manta-ray shaped flying craft, about 2000 feet wide. The
ancient Reigar, oddly, have no such references. It may be that they
simply never saw it, and considering that they did not have a major
presence in space, even at their height, this is quite likely. The
role of the Juna in its creation is constantly questioned. There
are also those who say it was built by the "First Ancestors," which
is another way of saying they haven't the slightest idea who built
it. Others even go so far as to say it was built by whoever broke
the first sphere. This is one mystery that may never be totally
solved, but what can be said is that intelligent races have been
travelling in space for about 100,000 years, and that the
Spelljammer has been with them for the last 22,000.
Recent studies have suggested that the Juna were at least partially responsible for the construction of the great ship. A particular strain of humans with strong telepathic powers has also been linked to the ship, along with an insectoid-like race like the contemporary Rastepides, and a type of air-dwelling ray-like creature. It is assumed that these ray creatures served as a model for the great ship.
This theory is rapidly becoming the most widely accepted explanation for the Spelljammer's origin, but it has plenty of detractors, mainly among the elves. Simply put, they can't accept the fact that the ship is not of elven design. They assert this despite the fact that archeological evidence has proven that the Spelljammer was travelling the space lanes back when the elves were still beast-riding, cannibalistic savages.
Start of the Nivil Histories
Relative: -20000
OC: -1072
At about this time, the recorded history of Nivil began. To be more
specific, the collective historical works that are now called the
histories of Nivil were collected and their dates standardized. The
histories are still maintained today. The most reliable set can be
found in the Great Archive of Compact, on Crescent in
Heartspace.
Disappearance of the Juna
Relative: -10000
OC: -5036
At about this date, teraforming of planets by the Juna ends
abruptly, and the race vanished within less than a century. Since
no physical remains of the Juna have been found in any sphere, many
historians believe that the Juna packed up and left.
Another theory is that the Juna were somehow "lonely" and saw no change forthcoming in millennia. They then went beyond the event horizon of a black hole, or sealed themselves into a thus uncharted crystal sphere, to be recalled by the next civilized race. Unfortunately, those races that would follow have been more busy conquering planets than exploring space. If the Juna are in hiding, they remain undiscovered to this day.
Either way, where they went is anyone's guess. An interstellar "Dark Age" began after their disappearance, which lasted almost 3000 years.
