The Magical Apocalypse

The Meteor Strike

“The world ended on a Monday.”

Overview

The Meteor Strike occurred on January 18th, 1886, marking the end of the old world and the beginning of the modern era. The impact of the celestial object—later associated with the origin of Shardisite—obliterated multiple regions of the Earth and triggered a chain reaction that reshaped the planet’s geography, climate, and metaphysical laws. It is universally recognized as the foundational event of the timeline now measured in Anno Meteorum (A.M.), beginning the very next year.

The object was not an ordinary meteor. Survivors of the event recorded vivid accounts of the sky burning green for hours before impact. When it struck, it did not simply destroy—it transformed. The blast site became ground zero for the release of Shardisite, a pale green, radiant crystal that would go on to define the new age. Unlike traditional meteoric iron, Shardisite hummed with arcane energy and emitted transformative radiation. Its influence has been documented in every region of the known world.

The strike drastically altered the Earth’s axial rotation. From that moment forward, the planet no longer rotated as it once had. The poles shifted, plunging former equatorial zones into glaciation and flooding temperate regions beneath torrential oceans. Entire continents reformed, and with them, the political and biological order of the world collapsed. This cataclysm was not merely geological or climatological—it was magical. Magic, once myth, erupted into daily reality. Spells, mutations, and divine visions swept across the surviving population.

During this chaotic aftermath, entire societies fell into famine, madness, or supernatural terror. Records from survivors of the western frontier, later chronicled during the Origins – The Wendigo campaign, describe how the winters deepened into endless frozen seasons and how belief itself shaped survival. Communities that clung to traditional faiths saw miracles—or horrors—manifest around them. New legends like the Black Dog and the Two-Faced Woman first arose from this desperate, early struggle.

Speculative Accounts

Some scholars and arcane researchers believe the meteor was not natural at all. Arcane scholars and other magical institutions have speculated that it may have been a fragment of another world, possibly even another plane of existence. Those in religious circles claim it to possibly have been a divine punishment. Others argue that the meteor's timing aligned too precisely with the rise of pre-apocalyptic spiritual extremism.

While much about the meteor’s origin remains contested, its effects are undisputed: it ended one world and gave rise to another. Entire races, new forms of magic, and the metaphysical framework of both The Choir and The Legion can trace their origins to this singular, apocalyptic event.

In certain shamanic traditions recorded by the surviving Lakota and Plains tribes, the meteor is not seen as a random occurrence but as the physical hand of Íŋyaŋ—the primordial stone spirit—breaking through the world's thin veil. These beliefs, though suppressed by rising industrial powers, continue to influence isolated communities who view Shardisite not merely as a resource, but as a fragment of creation itself.

Legacy

Every calendar, religion, and civilization that rose from the ashes of the old world is marked by the Meteor Strike. It is referenced in sacred texts, scientific treatises, and common language alike. The world before the meteor is called simply "the Beforetimes" by most, a vague and mythologized echo of what was lost.

The crater itself—located beneath the Sea of Ghosts (formerly the arctic sea)—has never been documented. Expeditions sent there often vanish or return half-mad, if at all. As such, the truth of what lies at the epicenter remains one of the most powerful and dangerous secrets in the world of *Apocalyptica Arcanum*.

Notably, early naval explorers attempting to chart the Sea of Ghosts reported ghostly lights shimmering beneath the waters, storms of emerald rain, and monstrous sea creatures twisted by Shardisite's influence. At the heart of the Sea of Ghosts lies the Maelstrom, a permanent, raging magical storm that has existed since the Meteor Strike itself. No vessel that has entered the Maelstrom has ever returned. Throughout history, rare instances have been recorded where the Maelstrom's chaotic edge reached the coastlines, unleashing devastating floods, magical phenomena, and widespread destruction on nearby settlements.