The world is divided into three parts: Siberys, The Dragon Above; Eberron, The Dragon Between; and Khyber, The Dragon Below. Legend has it that these are the three progenitor dragons of the world. Khyber and Siberys were locked in battle when Khyber finally was able to kill (or at least seriously wound) Siberys. In order to protect Siberys, Eberron used its own body to envelop Khyber. Now, the skies and the heavens are referred to as Siberys, the world people walk on is Eberron, and Khyber is a version of the Underdark.

Siberys is a streak of golden dust crossing the sky, barely visible in the day, but brilliant and beautiful at night. There are also 12 moons, some huge and others tiny. Myth also tells of a 13th moon that no longer exists. Beyond Siberys is the Astral Sea. Dragons are said to be born of Siberys.

Eberron is the world of mortals. Unlike Siberys and Khyber, it is not inherently good or evil, but a mixture of the two. There are six major continents: Khorvaire, home of most humanoid races; Aerenal, home of the elves currently live; Xen'drik, home of the giants and the drow; Argonnessen, home of the Dragons; Sarlona, birthplace of humankind and home of the Kalashtar; and Everice, a frozen and empty continent near the south pole. Khorvaire is the primary location of adventurers, although they often will travel to Xen'drik in search of ancient giant artifacts. Eberron also has three echo planes, the Feywild, the Shadowfell, and Dal Quor, the plane of dreams. Mortals are the progeny of Eberron.

Khyber is the Underdark. It is an expansive labyrinth that houses ancient demons and aberrations. Beyond Khyber lies the Elemental Chaos. Demons are the children of Khyber.

Draconic Prophecy and Dragonmarks

The Dragons of Eberron study what is called Draconic Prophecy. They believe the Prophecy tells history, both past and future and spend their lifetimes trying to decipher it. They can see the signs of Prophecy in almost anything, but the most recent large scale manifestation of this has been dragonmarks appearing on the humanoid races.

The first dragonmarks appeared as the Mark of Hospitality on the halflings of the Talenta Planes 3200 years ago. Shortly after, the Mark of Shadow and the Mark of Death appeared on the elves of Aerenal. Over the next 2000 years, 10 more regular dragonmarks and thousands of aberrant ones appeared. The Mark of Death was completely wiped out, leading House Phiarlan (Mark of Shadow) to relocate to Khorvaire because of their fear they might be next. Since then, dragonmarks have only appeared in Khorvaire.

About 1500 years ago, the War of the Mark was fought between the dragonmarked Houses and people with aberrant marks. The Houses won the war and established The Twelve, a sort of council of the dragonmarked Houses. They agreed to hunt prevent the rise of aberrant dragonmarks and prevent intermarriage of the houses, among other things.

About 1000 years ago, King Galifar of Karrnath waged a war to unite Khorvaire and received the help of The Twelve in exchange for their permanent neutrality. Once the Kingdom of Galifar was created, rules were put in place preventing the Houses from owning land other than their enclaves and limiting the size of their enclaves. In addition, King Galifar established the Arcane Congress as a counterweight to The Twelve. In 894 YK, King Jarot died and Galifar was plunged into a 100 year long civil war called The Last War. The Twelve was convinced to support Karrnath for a time, but the Houses individually tried to maintain a semblance of neutrality. In 972 YK, House Thuranni split off from House Phiarlan (Mark of Shadow) due to irreconcilable differences. In 994 YK, Cyre was destroyed by The Mourning, as was much of House Cannith's (Mark of Making) holdings.

It is as of yet unknown what the dragonmarks have to do with Draconic Prophecy.

The Calendar of Eberron

The campaign starts in the year 998 YK. YK means "years of the kingdom," with the first year, being 1 YK, when the Kingdom of Galifar was established. The Kingdom of Galifar controlled all of Khorvaire, at least nominally, except for the Demon Wastes and most of Q'barra. Because of this, this year convention is used throughout Khorvaire and anywhere with significant influence from Khorvaire.

Eberron has 12 months of 28 days each. The year, is therefore, 336 days long. Each month is also associated with a dragonmark.

Month          Season             Dragonmark (House)
Zarantyr       Mid-Winter         Storm (Lyrandar)
Olarune        Late Winter        Sentinel (Deneith)
Therendor      Early Spring       Healing (Jorasco)
Eyre           Mid-Spring         Making (Cannith)
Dravago        Late Spring        Handling (Vadalis)
Nymm           Early Summer       Hospitality (Ghallanda)
Lharvion       Mid-Summer         Detection (Medani)
Barrakas       Late Summer        Finding (Tharashk)
Rhaan          Early Autumn       Scribing (Sivis)
Sypheros       Mid-Autumn         Shadow (Phiarlan, Thuranni)
Aryth          Late Autumn        Passage (Orien)
Vult           Early Winter       Warding (Kundarak)

The days of the week are as follows:

Sol     Mol     Zol     Wir     Zor     Far      Sar

The Last War

894 YK - King Jarot dies. Mishann of Cyre claims the throne. Thalin of Thrane, Kaius of Karrnath and Wroann of Aundair reject this succession. Wrogar of Aundair backs Mishann.
896 YK - Karrnath faces famine and plague, turns to using undead soldiers.
910 YK - King Kaius I dies. His son, King Kaius II takes the throne of Karrnath.
914 YK - Mror Holds declares independence of Karrnath. Thalin of Thrane dies, Prince Daslin renounces the throne, and the Church of the Silver Flame takes over the government of Thrane.
918 YK - The Glass Tower of Sharn is destroyed.
928 YK - Duke Ven ir'Kesslen of Cyre settles land now called Q'barra.
956 YK - The elf mercenaries of Valaes Tairn turn against Cyre and take land in the southwest of that nation now called Valenar.
958 YK - The Wardens of the Wood declare the Eldeen Reaches an independent nation from Aundair.
961 YK - Boranel succeeds his father as King of Breland.
962 YK - Zilargo and Breland form a strong alliance.
965 YK - House Cannith creates the first warforged.
969 YK - Hobgoblin mercenaries led by the Lhesh Haruuc turn on Cyre and claim land now known as Darguun.
972 YK - House Thuranni declares itself formally separate from House Phiarlan.
976 YK - Regent Moranna of Karrnath outlaws the Order of the Emerald Claw.
980 YK - Queen Aurala of Aundair begins her reign.
986 YK - The Daughters of Sora Kell invade Breland with a monstrous army.
987 YK - King Boranel of Breland rescues settlers west of the Graywall Mountains and leaves the land now known as Droaam to the Daughters of Sora Kell.
990 YK - House Lyrandar and the gnomes of Zilargo put the first elemental airships into service.
991 YK - King Kaius III comes of age and replaces Regent Moranna as ruler of Karrnath.
994 YK - The Mourning occurs. Cyre is destroyed. Feyspires appear and do not return to the feywild.
996 YK - The Treaty of Thronehold is signed. There are 12 recognized nations: Aundair, Breland, Darguun, the Eldeen Reaches, Karrnath, the Lhazaar Principalities, the Mror Holds, Q'barra, the Talenta Plains, Thrane, Valenar, and Zilargo. House Cannith is ordered to destroy the creation forges. Warforged are recognized as sentient beings.

Places of Learning

Khorvaire has many places of learning, from large universities to specialized training centers.

Morgrave University in Sharn - The premier university on research into ancient artifacts, Morgrave University often sends expeditions to Xen'drik. Being located in Sharn gives Morgrave University great advantages in students and employees.

University of Wynarn in Fairhaven, Aundair - The University of Wynarn was the first major university in Khorvaire and is still the most respected. During the Last War, enrollment dropped sharply, but it is currently recovering

Arcanix in Aundair - The Arcane Congress is located above a small town in Aundair. It was during King Galifar I's reign as a counter to The Twelve. The Arcane Congress is headquartered and teaches new students the arcane arts in Arcanix.

The Ziggurat of the Twelve in Korth, Karrnath - The Ziggurat houses the headquarters of the Twelve. The Twelve studies the arcane arts here and educates students. During the Last War, the Twelve sided with Karrnath and has seen its standing in the populace of Khorvaire drop.

Rekkenmark Academy in Karrnath - Rekkenmark Academy was the premier military school in Khorvaire. During the Last War, Rekkenmark became isolated and the Academy was nearly destroyed. It has not recovered.

The Library of Korranberg in Zilargo - The Library of Korranberg is a huge university made up of 8 college that specialize in law and oratory, natural sciences, alchemy, engineering, art and literature, mathematics, history, and religion and philosophy.

The Planes

Outside of Eberron, many planes exist. These planes orbit the world of Eberron and can spend time coterminus (near Eberron) or remote (far from Eberron) in which they either influence the world of Eberron more or less. Some planes also have manifest zones in Eberron, where they have strong influences and a single step can take you from Eberron to that plane (or vice versa).

There are three major regions in which the planes exist: Siberys, The Dragon Above (The Astral Sea); Eberron, The Dragon Between; and Khyber, The Dragon Below (The Elemental Chaos).

Eberron, The Dragon Between

Eberron - The material world
Dolurrh - The shadowfell
Thelanis - The Feywild
Dal Quor - The Region of Dreams

Siberys, The Dragon Above (The Astral Sea)

Daanvi - The Perfect Order
Irian - The Eternal Day
Syrania - The Azure Sky
Lamannia - The Twilight Forest
Mabar - The Endless Night
Baator - The Nine Hells
Shavarath - Battleground

Khyber, The Dragon Below (The Elemental Chaos)

Fernia - The Sea of Fire
Risia - The Plain of Ice
Kythri - The Churning Chaos
The Abyss

Xoriat - The Realm of Madness (this is separated from the three major areas that contain the planes)