Timeline

The Timeline is a summary of the history of Aurai, and the events that take place in Outward. All information on this page is directly from in-game dialogue, writing, or the events of quests. Small pieces may have been filled in from the developers.

Please be advised, this page may contain spoilers for quests, and contains information only obtained during quests.

Old Age
This part of the timeline is the most unclear. Even in-game, it seems that most of the knowledge of this era has been lost. Characters refer to it as the "Old Age". The order of this section may not be entirely accurate.

At some point (possibly hundreds or thousands of years ago):
 * The Cabal of Wind is formed, and remains the dominant religion until shortly before the present day.
 * Rune Magic and the Rune Alphabet are developed, and are commonly used by Cabal mages.
 * The Blue Chamber Collective is formed.
 * The Krypteia are formed secretly around the same time. This group enshrines their memories to an Ancestral Altar, which will be used to guide the Blue Chamber until the present day.
 * The Scarlet Lady betrays the Krypteia and siphons from the Ancestral Memories to become an immortal Lich.
 * The Ash Giants arrive in Aurai from the stars.
 * The Giants mostly keep to themselves and are not concerned with the matters of humans. They are the subject of great curiosity from human tribes.

Elatt's Ascension
A key turning point in Aurai's history was around 100 years ago.

Elatt was born in Abrassar, in what is now Ruins of Old Levant. At the time, the Abrassar desert was lush and fertile, similar to Chersonese. Much of the region was submerged by a lake, which is now the Parched Shipwrecks area. Elatt's family was closely tied to the Cabal of Wind. During Elatt's adulthood, he became a powerful mage; so powerful that the Cabal felt threatened by him. When Elatt started gaining followers, the Cabal devised a plan to put an end to him, seeing this worship as blasphemy.

The Cabal's plan was a powerful spell, one which would use Elatt's own "inside Wind" against him, fueled by an enormous source of Mana: the Leyline at the Stone Titan Caves (which is now drained by the spell). While Elatt was traveling through the Gates of Catharsis, Elatt is struck by the spell.

In an unprecedented turn of events, Elatt somehow manages to resist the spell, which tears his soul from his physical body. In Elatt's own words: "I withdrew into myself, felt myself be consumed from within by my own spirit. I meditated and stood my ground against the spell, believing that I could unite myself again. I refused to die. My mind expanded and escaped its mortal shell and I was turned into what I am now. Living Thought. My body, however... It was truly and utterly destroyed, and from it burst a flood of Corruption that devastated the land around me.".

Having survived the spell and ascended from his physical body, Elatt becomes a true God - the God of Discipline, and his following increases dramatically.

See also: Stone Tablet Transcript.

The Scourge
Following the fallout from the Cabal Spell, Aurai is overwhelmed by The Scourge: hideous beasts which are the result of Elatt's Corruption pouring from his body, magnified by the power of an entire Ley Line. These beasts have but one purpose: to destroy Elatt. Since he is immortal now, they are eternally fated to walk the lands in desperate rage, killing anything they find. However, some Immaculates also show a desire to control their will and end their incessant hatred of Elatt.

The world as everyone knows it changes forever, with The Holy Mission of Elatt forming to help protect Aurai. The Vigil Pylons are constructed in each major region which help drive back the Scourge.

In Chersonese: (order of events unclear)
 * The Chamberlady of Cierzo refuses help from the followers of Elatt. Because of her pride, dozens from the Cierzo tribe are slain by the Scourge Beasts. An enormous Blood Price is placed on the Chamberlady's bloodline in recompense for the loss of life. Her daughter, and then her grandchild (the Player) would later inherit this blood price.
 * An undead named Myriade, searching for a source of life to sustain him, discovers that the inhabitants of the fort near Ghost Pass were wiped out by Scourge Beasts. After observing that the ghostly victims of the Scourge are unable to move on, he tethers their memories to an ancestral altar in a nearby tomb, which allows the ghosts to remember who they were before death. Myriade and his undead companions begin relying on the abundant Corruption in the tomb as a food source.
 * The Montcalm Tribe begins regarding the nearby spirits as their protectors. As tribute, they begin stringing up their enemies on poles in their territory, and leaving them for their 'protectors' to feast on. Preferring the taste of dying life, the undead's appetites are no longer sufficient to stop the spread of the local Corruption.

In Abrassar:
 * Around 24 years before the events of the game, King Simeon and Queen Calixa led an army to slay a powerful Scourge beast in the desert known as The Devourer. After a hard-fought battle, the Levantine army is triumphant. Elatt declares that the region now rightfully belongs to Simeon and Calixa, overruling the Blue Chamber's laws. Since then, the Heroic Kingdom has been operating independently from the Blue Chamber. Settlers from Old Levant returned to their homeland around this time, requesting ownership of Abrassar from Heroic Kingdom. Heroic Kingdom refused this request from Old Levant, and Old Levant has been harassing Heroic Kingdom by operating as bandits around Abrassar, now going by the name of the Sand Corsairs.

Beginning of Player's Timeline
The Player has been struggling to pay Blood Price that their grandmother caused; so they join an expedition to Oroshi led by the player's friend, Yzan Argenson. During the return voyage, the expedition ship suffers a Shipwreck and much of the crew of Cierzo citizens die. After being rescued by Yzan, the player returns to Cierzo and finds themselves inside their home, the Cierzo lighthouse.

After waking up from the shipwreck, Rissa Aberdeen informs the player that they have been missing payments on Blood Price and must pay within 5 days. Rissa mentions that the shipwreck was caused by Roland Argenson, Yzan's younger brother, and as a result a Blood Price has been placed on the Argenson family as well. Enraged to find out that Roland was the one who caused the shipwreck, Yzan decides to leave Cierzo and heads to Levant for a fresh start, while Roland decides to stay with the Blue Chamber and pay off his debt. Oliele, wanting to stray from the path that Rissa is trying to lead her down, leaves Cierzo to join the Holy Mission in Monsoon.

There are two major plots which the various Main Quests and Parallel Quests are mostly connected to:
 * The tensions in Abrassar, between the Heroic Kingdom and Old Levant, and between Heroic Kingdom and the Blue Chamber
 * The Scourge, which is a threat to all of Aurai

Attack on Berg
The Sand Corsairs (Old Levant) begin formal proceedings through the Blue Chamber to make a claim to Abrassar. The Old Levant chamberlord, Alda, has important information which is likely to result in a successful claim.

Prince Pietro (son of Simeon and Calixa) along with Baron Montgomery catch wind of this information and are frustrated by the fact that Simeon and Calixa are agreeing to negotiations. They devise a plot to overthrow Heroic Kingdom and simultaneously stop the threat of Old Levant from claiming the region; their plan is to disrupt the proceedings and send a message to Old Levant that they will not negotiate with them.

Regardless of the player's choices, some form of the attack will play out, resulting in war being declared between the Blue Chamber and the Heroic Kingdom.

Consistent Quest Events
Following the Attack on Berg, the story can diverge in many different ways depending on the player's choices in quests.

However, there are many consistent events which will take place regardless of your choices. Some of these events include:
 * Upon joining a faction:
 * The Vendavel begin planning an attack on Cierzo (see Vendavel Quest)
 * The events of Purifier begin taking place
 * By the time of the Attack on Berg, Oliele has received a blessing of light from Elatt, following the events at Corrupted Tombs
 * Prince Jaden, Alda and Balthazar Berthelot are killed during the Attack on Berg
 * Prince Jaden's murder begins the events of Blood Under The Sun
 * After the Attack on Berg, Zephyrien is killed by Cyrene
 * After the player's 2nd faction quest:
 * The Sand Corsairs are dealt with and the leader Zagis is either killed or imprisoned at Hive Prison.
 * Ruins of Old Levant's main gate opens.
 * After the player's 3rd faction quest:
 * The lower area of the Necropolis opens
 * Roland Argenson can no longer be found in the game (if you are in the Blue Chamber, he may have become a Lich).
 * After the player's 4th faction quest:
 * The war between the Blue Chamber and the Heroic Kingdom has ended
 * Calixa has become Living Thought like Elatt
 * Many characters may have died, including Cyrene, Ellinara, and many more.

The Soroboreans
In The Soroboreans DLC, players experience a slightly disconnected set of events. The timeline for the four major quests is more or less the same as the other factions.

Similar to the Holy Mission quests, the story is focused on The Scourge.

Some of the consistent quest events include:
 * During the third quest (Cloak and Dagger), Headmaster Raul Salaberry is in Berg for the Blue Chamber meeting (where the Attack on Berg happened)
 * After the third quest, the player has caught up with the other factions (Necropolis and Ruins of Old Levant are open, etc).