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{{Canon}}
 
==Overview==
Also known popularly as [[the Great Upheaval]], the Grand Conjunction is perhaps the most famous and influential [[conjunction]] the [[Land of Mists]] has ever experienced. Foretold by the [[dukkar]] [[Hyskosa]] and triggered by the machinations of [[Azalin]]<ref name="Red Box CS Realm of Terror p.18">[[Ravenloft Campaign Setting: Realm of Terror]] ([[Red Box]]) p. 18</ref>, the Grand Conjunction rocked the [[Demiplane of Dread]] to its foundations. For a brief time, the [[domain]]s of Ravenloft (and [[the Misty Border]] itself) were busted open, allowing [[darklord]]s and other [[evil]]s to spill through into the Material Plane. However, [[Azalin]] proved to be his undoing, for his impatience caused his minions to fulfill the last two couplets of the [[Hyskosa's Hexad]]. This caused the Conjunction to collapse and the domains to reform, drawing back in their former [[prisoner]]s.<ref name="Red Box CS Realm of Terror p.19">[[Ravenloft Campaign Setting: Realm of Terror]] ([[Red Box]]) p. 19</ref>
 
==Background==
The [[event]]s of the Grand Conjunction and those building up to it were a series of [[module]]s (see below) that were self-contained but could, with some work, be played together as a campaign. Each of the modules was associated with a particular couplet in they Hyskoska Prophecy.<ref name="Red Box CS Realm of Terror p.19">[[Ravenloft Campaign Setting: Realm of Terror]] ([[Red Box]]) p. 19</ref>
 
The dukkar Hyskosa wrote a prophecy and hexad that consisted of six couplets in [[735 BC]]. They are as follows<ref name="Red Box CS Realm of Terror p.18">[[Ravenloft Campaign Setting: Realm of Terror]] ([[Red Box]]) p. 18</ref>:
*"In the house of Daegon the sorcerer born, Though life, unlife, unliving shall scorn."        [[1st Verse of Hyskosa's Hexad comes to pass]]
*"The lifeless child of stern mother found. Heralds a time, night of evil unbound."            [[2nd Verse of Hyskosa's Hexad comes to pass]]
*"Seventh time the son of suns doth rise, To send the knave to an eternity of cries."          [[3rd Verse of Hyskosa's Hexad comes to pass]]
*"The light of the sky shining over the dead, Shall gutter and fail, turning all to red."      [[4th Verse of Hyskosa's Hexad comes to pass]]
*"Inajira will make his fortunes reverse, Dooming all to live with the dreaded curse."          [[5th Verse of Hyskosa's Hexad comes to pass]]
*"The bodiless shall journey to the time before, Where happiness to hate creates land and lore."[[6th Verse of Hyskosa's Hexad comes to pass]]
 
Each of the signs of the Hexad corresponded with the following modules as follows<ref name="Red Box CS Realm of Terror p.13>[[Ravenloft Campaign Setting: Realm of Terror]] ([[Red Box]]) p. 13</ref>:
*[[1st Verse of Hyskosa's Hexad comes to pass]] [[Feast of Goblyns]]
*[[2nd Verse of Hyskosa's Hexad comes to pass]] [[Ship of Horror]]
*[[3rd Verse of Hyskosa's Hexad comes to pass]] [[Touch of Death]]
*[[4th Verse of Hyskosa's Hexad comes to pass]] [[Night of the Walking Dead]]
*[[6th Verse of Hyskosa's Hexad comes to pass]] [[From the Shadows]]
*[[5th Verse of Hyskosa's Hexad comes to pass]] [[Roots of Evil]]
 
The only two explicitly linked modules were from the Shadows and Roots of Evil, which put the 6th and 5th couplets out of order.
 
Soon after [[Azalin]] discovered the prophecy, he sought to force it to occur and hit two birds with one stone. First, he would be able to escape his hated [[prison]].<ref name="Red Box CS Realm of Terror p.18">[[Ravenloft Campaign Setting: Realm of Terror]] ([[Red Box]]) p. 18</ref> Second, as [[Strahd]] was a "linchpin" to the Demiplane's existence, it would result in the vampire's ultimate destruction.<ref>[[Roots of Evil]]</ref> This was to Azalin a bonus because they have been hated enemies for hundreds of years.
 
As mentioned previously, Azalin's impatience caused his dupes to fulfill the fifth and sixth signs out of order, thereby undoing the Conjunction. However, that is not to say that it did not have dramatic effects within the Demiplane and without.
 
==Geographical Effects of the Grand Conjunction==
 
Despite the closure of the Grand Conjunction, it still reshaped [[the Core]]'s [[geography]]. Some domains "merely" had their shape, borders, and even neighboring domains changed. For example, [[Valachan]] rotated 90 degrees during the [[Grand Conjunction]].<ref name="Gaz IV p. 88">[[Gazetteer IV]] p.88</ref> and gained access to the [[Sea of Sorrows]] for the very first time. The Sea of Sorrows itself got its own [[darklord]] for the first time.<ref name="Red Box CS Realm of Terror p.19">[[Ravenloft Campaign Setting: Realm of Terror]] ([[Red Box]]) p. 19</ref>
 
For other domains, the changes were more drastic. [[Arak]], [[Arkandale]], [[Dorvinia]], and [[Gundarak]], ceased to be, their [[land]]s absorbed into or merged with neighboring domains. [[Bluetspur]], [[G'Henna]], and [[the Nightmare Lands]] were thrown from [[the Core]] and became [[Islands of Terror]]. [[Markovia]] was displaced but eventually rediscovered as an [[island]] in the [[Sea of Sorrows]]<ref name="Red Box CS Realm of Terror p.19">[[Ravenloft Campaign Setting: Realm of Terror]] ([[Red Box]]) p. 19</ref>, its [[climate]] and [[flora]] visibly changing from temperate to tropical.<ref name="Neither Man Nor Beast p. ">[[Neither Man Nor Beast]] p.</ref>
Perhaps the greatest damage to the Core was the gaping, shadow8y abyss appeared where G'Henna and Markovia formerly were. It is known as [[the Shadow Rift]].<ref name="Red Box CS Realm of Terror p.19">[[Ravenloft Campaign Setting: Realm of Terror]] ([[Red Box]]) p. 19</ref>
 
The [[Islands of Terror]] did not go without their own changes. [[Farelle]], [[Sanguinia]], and [[Vechor]] all [[disappeared]], seemingly destroyed.<ref name="Red Box CS Realm of Terror p.19">[[Ravenloft Campaign Setting: Realm of Terror]] ([[Red Box]]) p. 19</ref> (However, they would return in later [[Ravenloft]] products.) [[Rokushima Taiyoo]] and [[Dominia]] were formed as a result of the Grand Conjunction.<ref name="Red Box CS Realm of Terror p.19">[[Ravenloft Campaign Setting: Realm of Terror]] ([[Red Box]]) p. 19</ref>
 
Some changes wrought (or possibly wrought) by the Grand Conjunction have taken more time. The formation of the [[Nocturnal Sea]] from [[Nebligtode]] was one such delayed effect.<ref name="Domains of Dread p. 24">[[Domains of Dread]] p.24</ref>  In addition, many of its [[island]]s were previously [[Islands of Terror]].<ref name="Domains of Dread p. 18">[[Domains of Dread]] p.18</ref> The formation of the [[clusters]] from initially separate islands of terror seem to indicate new trend for the Demiplane, but the exact meaning of that trend is a [[mystery]]. Even whether they are true aftereffects of the the Grand Conjunction remain elusive.<ref name="Domains of Dread p. 102">[[Domains of Dread]] p.102</ref>
 
==Reaction to the Grand Conjunction==
*The chaos convinced [[Teodorus Raines]] that the end is nigh. After several years of failure spreading the Faith in Darkon<ref>[[Gazetteer II]] p. 30</ref>, Raines established the [[Nevuchar Springs Sect]] of the [[Church of Ezra]] in [[751 BC]].<ref name="RLCS p.18">[[Ravenloft Third Edition]] p.18</ref><ref name="RLPHB p.20">[[Ravenloft Player's Handbook]] p.20</ref>
*[[Wyan]] becomes convinced the Grand Conjunction was the work of the malign [[Fey]]. Alarmed by what happened to [[Markovia]] and [[G'Henna]] and to the existence of [[the Shadow Rift]], Wyan organizes the [[Tepestani Inquisition]] to fight off the threats the Fey bear upon humanity. Meanwhile, the [[Tepestani]] people turn more inward and less friendly to [[foreigner]]s or foreign ideas.
*Once close when they were apart, close proximity makes [[Ivana Boritsi]] and [[Ivan Dilisnya]] bitter enemies.
*The [[Annexation of Gundarak]] commences as the forces of [[Strahd]] and later [[Gabrielle Aderre]] move in to conquer the territory formerly belonging to Gundarak.
*After briefly seeing old enemies thrive back in [[Thay]] but being unable to punish them<ref name="Domains of Dread p. 68">[[Domains of Dread]] p.68</ref>, [[Hazlik]] performed an about-face on his views of [[magic]]. He now condoned it and began taking apprentices.<ref name="Gazetteer I p.51">[[Gazetteer I]] p.51</ref> Furthermore, Hazlik traveled to [[Ramulai]] and created [[the Red Academy]].<ref name="Gazetteer I p.60">[[Gazetteer I]] p.60</ref>
*The Grand Conjunction left a mark on Azalin's ego, turning his attention away from his domain and onto developing [[the Doomsday Device]]. While he was distracted, his carefully crafted network of power started to become unglued. This set a precedence that continued into and through [[the Shrouded Years]].<ref>[[Gazetteer II]] p. 22-23</ref>
*The Grand Conjunction is commonly referred to by the people of [[Sri Raji]] as the "Rebirth of Kali", a time when [[Kali]] annihilated the old world and birthed it anew.<ref name="R3E p. 53">[[Ravenloft Third Edition]] p. 53</ref><ref name="RLPHB p. 68">[[Ravenloft Player's Handbook]] p. 68</ref> Since the Grand Conjunction, Kali has seen an upsurge in worship, both within Sri Raji and even sometimes without.<ref name="Champions of Darkness p. 39-40">[[Champions of Darkness]] p. 39-40</ref>
 
==Summary of Effects==
===Major Geographical Effects===
====Absorbed Domains====
*'''[[Arak]]''' was absorbed into [[Darkon]], its [[the Arak|"drow"]] seemingly gone.
*'''[[Arkandale]]''' was absorbed into [[Verbrek]].
*'''[[Dorvinia]]''' Due to the close proximity of [[Ivana Boritsi]] and [[Ivan Dilisnya]] at the time the Conjunction concluded, [[Dorvinia]] merged into [[Borca]], making both Ivan and Ivana co-darklords.
*'''[[Gundarak]]''' was absorbed by [[Barovia]] and [[Invidia]]. (See [[Dominia]], below for [[Dr. Dominiani]]'s fate.)
 
====Displaced Domains====
*[[Bluetspur]] becomes Island of Terror.
*[[G'Henna]] becomes an Island of Terror.
*[[Markovia]] becomes an island in the [[Sea of Sorrows]].
*[[the Nightmare Lands]] becomes an island of terror (or perhaps an island reachable by the [[Nocturnal Sea]]).
 
====New Domains====
*[[Dominia]], initially an island of terror but later becomes an island in the Sea of Sorrows
*[[the Nocturnal Sea]], expanded from [[Nebligtode]]
**[[Isle of the Ravens]], unseen until the formation of the Nocturnal Sea
**[[L'île de la Tempête]], new to the Core only, previously an Isle of Terror
**[[Liffe]], composed of [[Armeikos]], [[Claveria]], and [[Moondale]], previously [[unplaced location]]s in the [[Book of Crypts]]
*[[Rokushima Taiyoo]], new Island of Terror
*[[the Shadow Rift]], new domain in [[the Core]] where [[G'Henna]] and [[Markovia]] once were
 
====Vanished Domains====
*[[Farelle]]
*[[Sanguinia]] (Eventually joins into the [[Frozen Reaches]] [[cluster]] with [[Vorostokov]])
*[[Vechor]]  (Eventually joins [[the Core]] as the eastern shore of the [[Nocturnal Sea]])
 
{{ref}}
 
==Data from the Ravenloft Catalogue==
 
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{|
{|
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- pp18-19<br />
- pp18-19<br />
''[[The Ravenloft Campaign Setting:Domains and Denizens]]'' - pp4-5,10,12,21,23,31,34-35,37<br />
''[[The Ravenloft Campaign Setting:Domains and Denizens]]'' - pp4-5,10,12,21,23,31,34-35,37<br />
''[[Roots of Evil]]'' - pp8-9,11,40 [http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dnd/downloads Download Now! ]<br />
''[[Roots of Evil]]'' - pp8-9,11,40 [http://web.archive.org/web/20100329193632/http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dnd/downloads Download Now! ]<br />
''[[From the Shadows]]'' - p4,19-20 [http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dnd/downloads Download Now! ]<br />
''[[From the Shadows]]'' - p4,19-20 [http://web.archive.org/web/20100329193632/http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dnd/downloads Download Now! ]<br />
''[[Servants of Darkness]]'' - pp3,8,12
''[[Servants of Darkness]]'' - pp3,8,12
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The Great Upheaval
The Great Upheaval<br />
Grand Conjunction, The
Great Upheaval<br />
Grand Conjunction
Great Upheaval, The<br />
Grand Conjunction, The<br />
Grand Conjunction<br />
|-valign="top"
|-valign="top"
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|}


[[Category:event]]
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----
 
[[category:event]]
[[category:The Hyskosa Prophecy]]
[[category:History]]
[[category:Disaster]]
[[category:Catastrophe]]
[[category:Spatial Distortion]]
[[category:Ravenloft Lore]]
[[category:Apocalypse]]
[[category:Conjunction]]

Latest revision as of 05:44, 4 June 2023

Overview

Also known popularly as the Great Upheaval, the Grand Conjunction is perhaps the most famous and influential conjunction the Land of Mists has ever experienced. Foretold by the dukkar Hyskosa and triggered by the machinations of Azalin[1], the Grand Conjunction rocked the Demiplane of Dread to its foundations. For a brief time, the domains of Ravenloft (and the Misty Border itself) were busted open, allowing darklords and other evils to spill through into the Material Plane. However, Azalin proved to be his undoing, for his impatience caused his minions to fulfill the last two couplets of the Hyskosa's Hexad. This caused the Conjunction to collapse and the domains to reform, drawing back in their former prisoners.[2]

Background

The events of the Grand Conjunction and those building up to it were a series of modules (see below) that were self-contained but could, with some work, be played together as a campaign. Each of the modules was associated with a particular couplet in they Hyskoska Prophecy.[2]

The dukkar Hyskosa wrote a prophecy and hexad that consisted of six couplets in 735 BC. They are as follows[1]:

Each of the signs of the Hexad corresponded with the following modules as follows[3]:

The only two explicitly linked modules were from the Shadows and Roots of Evil, which put the 6th and 5th couplets out of order.

Soon after Azalin discovered the prophecy, he sought to force it to occur and hit two birds with one stone. First, he would be able to escape his hated prison.[1] Second, as Strahd was a "linchpin" to the Demiplane's existence, it would result in the vampire's ultimate destruction.[4] This was to Azalin a bonus because they have been hated enemies for hundreds of years.

As mentioned previously, Azalin's impatience caused his dupes to fulfill the fifth and sixth signs out of order, thereby undoing the Conjunction. However, that is not to say that it did not have dramatic effects within the Demiplane and without.

Geographical Effects of the Grand Conjunction

Despite the closure of the Grand Conjunction, it still reshaped the Core's geography. Some domains "merely" had their shape, borders, and even neighboring domains changed. For example, Valachan rotated 90 degrees during the Grand Conjunction.[5] and gained access to the Sea of Sorrows for the very first time. The Sea of Sorrows itself got its own darklord for the first time.[2]

For other domains, the changes were more drastic. Arak, Arkandale, Dorvinia, and Gundarak, ceased to be, their lands absorbed into or merged with neighboring domains. Bluetspur, G'Henna, and the Nightmare Lands were thrown from the Core and became Islands of Terror. Markovia was displaced but eventually rediscovered as an island in the Sea of Sorrows[2], its climate and flora visibly changing from temperate to tropical.[6] Perhaps the greatest damage to the Core was the gaping, shadow8y abyss appeared where G'Henna and Markovia formerly were. It is known as the Shadow Rift.[2]

The Islands of Terror did not go without their own changes. Farelle, Sanguinia, and Vechor all disappeared, seemingly destroyed.[2] (However, they would return in later Ravenloft products.) Rokushima Taiyoo and Dominia were formed as a result of the Grand Conjunction.[2]

Some changes wrought (or possibly wrought) by the Grand Conjunction have taken more time. The formation of the Nocturnal Sea from Nebligtode was one such delayed effect.[7] In addition, many of its islands were previously Islands of Terror.[8] The formation of the clusters from initially separate islands of terror seem to indicate new trend for the Demiplane, but the exact meaning of that trend is a mystery. Even whether they are true aftereffects of the the Grand Conjunction remain elusive.[9]

Reaction to the Grand Conjunction

  • The chaos convinced Teodorus Raines that the end is nigh. After several years of failure spreading the Faith in Darkon[10], Raines established the Nevuchar Springs Sect of the Church of Ezra in 751 BC.[11][12]
  • Wyan becomes convinced the Grand Conjunction was the work of the malign Fey. Alarmed by what happened to Markovia and G'Henna and to the existence of the Shadow Rift, Wyan organizes the Tepestani Inquisition to fight off the threats the Fey bear upon humanity. Meanwhile, the Tepestani people turn more inward and less friendly to foreigners or foreign ideas.
  • Once close when they were apart, close proximity makes Ivana Boritsi and Ivan Dilisnya bitter enemies.
  • The Annexation of Gundarak commences as the forces of Strahd and later Gabrielle Aderre move in to conquer the territory formerly belonging to Gundarak.
  • After briefly seeing old enemies thrive back in Thay but being unable to punish them[13], Hazlik performed an about-face on his views of magic. He now condoned it and began taking apprentices.[14] Furthermore, Hazlik traveled to Ramulai and created the Red Academy.[15]
  • The Grand Conjunction left a mark on Azalin's ego, turning his attention away from his domain and onto developing the Doomsday Device. While he was distracted, his carefully crafted network of power started to become unglued. This set a precedence that continued into and through the Shrouded Years.[16]
  • The Grand Conjunction is commonly referred to by the people of Sri Raji as the "Rebirth of Kali", a time when Kali annihilated the old world and birthed it anew.[17][18] Since the Grand Conjunction, Kali has seen an upsurge in worship, both within Sri Raji and even sometimes without.[19]

Summary of Effects

Major Geographical Effects

Absorbed Domains

Displaced Domains

New Domains

Vanished Domains

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Ravenloft Campaign Setting: Realm of Terror (Red Box) p. 18
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 Ravenloft Campaign Setting: Realm of Terror (Red Box) p. 19
  3. ↑ Ravenloft Campaign Setting: Realm of Terror (Red Box) p. 13
  4. ↑ Roots of Evil
  5. ↑ Gazetteer IV p.88
  6. ↑ Neither Man Nor Beast p.
  7. ↑ Domains of Dread p.24
  8. ↑ Domains of Dread p.18
  9. ↑ Domains of Dread p.102
  10. ↑ Gazetteer II p. 30
  11. ↑ Ravenloft Third Edition p.18
  12. ↑ Ravenloft Player's Handbook p.20
  13. ↑ Domains of Dread p.68
  14. ↑ Gazetteer I p.51
  15. ↑ Gazetteer I p.60
  16. ↑ Gazetteer II p. 22-23
  17. ↑ Ravenloft Third Edition p. 53
  18. ↑ Ravenloft Player's Handbook p. 68
  19. ↑ Champions of Darkness p. 39-40

Data from the Ravenloft Catalogue

The Ravenloft Campaign Setting
Domains of Dread

Secrets of the Dread Realms - pp13,15,19,50,61
Ravenloft Third Edition - pp14-15,18,19,25
Domains of Dread - pp15, 18, 39
Ravenloft Campaign Setting:Realm of Terror - pp18-19
The Ravenloft Campaign Setting:Domains and Denizens - pp4-5,10,12,21,23,31,34-35,37
Roots of Evil - pp8-9,11,40 Download Now!
From the Shadows - p4,19-20 Download Now!
Servants of Darkness - pp3,8,12

The Great Upheaval
Great Upheaval
Great Upheaval, The
Grand Conjunction, The
Grand Conjunction

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