Nithian Meridian Project GAZ7 gives the Northern Reaches no calendar, so this one is constructed — but it is anchored to canon at the most important point of all: the GAZ7 timeline states the Northman human cultures were conquered and enslaved by the Nithian Empire in 1000 BC, the same conquest window that gave Thyatis its calendar. The Northmen therefore inherit the Nithian 12 × 28 structure exactly as Thyatis and Alphatia did, then overlay their own Norse names and local reckoning once the Spell of Oblivion erases the Nithian origin. See Calendar, Nithian Meridian (Thesis).
Design basis #
- Structure: identical to the standard (Nithian) calendar — 12 months of 28 days, four 7-day weeks per month, 336 days, one month per lunar cycle. The Northmen kept the structure of their old masters; only the names are their own.
- Names: Old Norse roots in a Mystara-Northman style. The suffix -mund denotes a month (a “watch” or span of the year).
- Heldann exception: the Hattian colonists of Heldann use the Thyatian month names over the same structure, with Vanyan holidays — a later imperial overlay rather than native Norse naming.
- Reckoning: years counted from Cnute’s founding of Ostland, 478 AC — “Cnute’s Reckoning” (CR). 1000 AC = 522 CR.
Canonical anchors (GAZ7 Historical Timeline) #
| Date | Event | Calendar relevance |
|---|---|---|
| 1000 BC | Northman human cultures conquered & enslaved by the Nithian Empire | Structure imposed here — the thesis keystone |
| 500 BC | Nithian Empire collapses | Origin memory lost (Spell of Oblivion era) |
| 0 AC | First Emperor of Thyatis crowned | Thyatian “AC” epoch begins |
| 400 AC | Ostland raiders range south to Thyatis, north to Norwold | — |
| 478 AC | Ostland united under King Cnute the Bold | Reckoning epoch — Year 1 CR |
| 500 AC | Sons of Cnute colonize the mainland | — |
| 614 AC | Otar the Just defeats Flintojd at Bridenfjord; Kingdom of Vestland founded | Vestland’s secondary reckoning |
| 950 AC | Council of Soderfjord — Nordhartar Defense League / Soderfjord Jarldoms | Soderfjord’s secondary reckoning; seat of the Great Thing |
| 1150 AC | Deaths of High King Maramet & sole heir; the Sorotna (crown of Vestland) sought | — |
| 1200 AC | Darokin & Desert Nomads court the North in the Great War (modules X4, X5) | — |
Source reading The timeline lists “First Emperor of Thyatis crowned” at 0 AC and “Ostland raiders range south” at 400 AC (chronological order). Worth a glance against your scan if you cite the exact pair.
The months (shared Northman calendar) #
| # | Standard | Northman | Old Norse root | Season / meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nuwmont | Jolmund | jól (Yule) | Deep winter; the New Year and Yule feast |
| 2 | Vatermont | Thorrmund | þorri (hard cold) | The bitter month, late winter |
| 3 | Thaumont | Goamund | góa (thaw) | The thaw; ice breaks, early spring |
| 4 | Flaurmont | Sathmund | sáð (sowing) | Seed to the thawed ground |
| 5 | Yarthmont | Lammund | lamb | Lambing; the herds birth, late spring |
| 6 | Klarmont | Solmund | sól (sun) | First day of summer |
| 7 | Felmont | Midsumund | miðsumar | Midsummer; the great summer feast |
| 8 | Fyrmont | Heymund | hey (hay) | Haymaking, high summer |
| 9 | Ambyrmont | Skurmund | skera (to reap) | Reaping; first day of autumn |
| 10 | Sviftmont | Haustmund | haust (autumn) | The harvest gathered in |
| 11 | Eirmont | Slatrmund | slátr (slaughter) | The autumn cull and salting before winter |
| 12 | Kaldmont | Myrkmund | myrkr (dark) | The long dark; winter closes in |
Sailing season: roughly Sathmund → Slatrmund (spring through late autumn). Through Myrkmund, Jolmund, Thorrmund the ice locks the fjords and the longships are beached.
Shared holidays (all three Northman realms) #
- The Hunt-Night — last night of Myrkmund into 1 Jolmund. Odin leads the host of the dead across the winter sky (the Wild Hunt). Doors are barred, iron laid over the threshold, and no oath is sworn this night, for an oath sworn under the Hunt binds the swearer to the dead. The dread “between the years” night of the North.
- 1 Jolmund — Yule / Year’s Dawning. The great midwinter feast and New Year. Fires are kept burning through the dark; the year’s oaths are sworn over the horn.
- Midsumund (mid-month) — Sunblaze / The Long Day. Midsummer bonfires on the headlands, the shortest night, and the sailors’ blessing.
Ostland (raiders; Odin & Thor; the sea) #
- Ostland Thing — late Goamund / early Sathmund, before the season’s raids. The king and jarls settle feuds and plan the voyages while the ice still holds men ashore.
- The Setting-Forth (Útsigling) — early Sathmund. The longships are blessed and launched; the raiding and trading season opens.
- Thor’s Storm — high-summer rite to the thunder-Immortal for fair winds and strong arms.
- Homecoming (Heimkváma) — Slatrmund. The fleets return before the ice; spoils are divided and the lost are honored.
Vestland (trade & law; Otar’s kingdom) #
- Vestland Allthing — Midsumund, at the height of the trade season. The great law-and-market assembly; merchants and jarls gather where the goods and the people are thickest.
- Otar’s Day — 1 Solmund (first day of summer). Honors Otar the Just and the founding of the kingdom (614 AC); a national feast.
- Harvest Fair — Skurmund. Autumn markets, as the ships and the crops both come in.
- Vestland also keeps Otar’s Reckoning from 614 AC alongside Cnute’s: 1000 AC = 386 OR.
Soderfjord (clans & jarls; the Great Council) #
- The Allthing of Soderfjord — Skurmund / Haustmund, before winter closes the passes. The grand pan-jarl assembly and the nearest thing the North has to a shared Great Thing — historically the seat of the Council of Soderfjord (950 AC) where the Nordhartar Defense League was sworn.
- Jarls’ Oath-Days — local clan moots through late summer and autumn where jarls renew or break their bonds.
- Soderfjord keeps Council Reckoning from 950 AC: 1000 AC = 50 CC.
Heldann (Hattian colonists; the Order of Vanya) #
- Uses the Thyatian month names (Nuwmont, Vatermont…) over the same 12 × 28 structure — a later imperial overlay, not native Norse naming. This is the tell: same Nithian skeleton, Thyatian skin.
- Vanya’s Triumph — high holy day of the Order of Vanya, the war-and-conquest Immortal.
- Vanya’s Muster — Heldann’s answer to the Thing: a martial muster under the Order in late summer (Heymund / Fyrmont), as much war-rally as assembly.
Reckonings at a glance (in 1000 AC) #
| Realm | Epoch | Event | Year in 1000 AC |
|---|---|---|---|
| All (shared) | 478 AC | Cnute unites Ostland | 522 CR |
| Vestland | 614 AC | Otar founds Vestland | 386 OR |
| Soderfjord | 950 AC | Council of Soderfjord | 50 CC |
| Heldann | — | (uses Thyatian AC) | 1000 AC |
Thesis hook Four realms, one 28-day skeleton. The Northmen wear Norse names on it, the Hattians of Heldann wear Thyatian ones, and every realm dates its years from its own founding — but none of them counts a Nithian year, because none of them remembers Nithia. The structure outlived both the empire and the memory of the empire. → Calendar, Nithian Meridian (Thesis)
Open threads #
- The 24 Power Runes / Oaths (GAZ7) → candidate for a standalone Language, Northern Reaches Runes note, paralleling Language, Rockhome Dwarven. Needs a clean transcription before building.
- Confirm Cnute’s founding (478 AC) and the 0 AC / 400 AC ordering against your GAZ7 scan.
- Optional: Heldann-specific month-name variants if you’d rather Hattian renamings than straight Thyatian carryover.
