Stargazing in Elanthia
Compliments of Shirkon Rockcleaver

Back in early part of the new century, the Loremasters of Silverwood invited everyone in the lands to gaze up into the heavens. This is what they saw...


Dark and distant, details of the surface of the moon Lornon are difficult to 
make out, even with the telescope's aid.  Strange dark clouds swirl over its 
surface in brooding shades of black and burnt orange and grey.  Occasional 
spots of brighter red mark active volcanoes, hundreds of tiny bright points 
scattered all over the surface in long chains.  You squint in an effort to 
learn more, but the swirling dark atmosphere shrouds Lornon in mystery.

The small red moon of Tlilok becomes much easier to see with the telescope's 
aid.  Her surface is a mottled dark red, with large patches of darker soil 
and bright white near the poles.  Strange fissures break the smooth red 
surface in the southern hemisphere, a bewildering maze of twisting cracks 
that intersect in strange patterns.  Her northern hemisphere is dominated by 
a colossal mountain range that runs diagonally from near the pole to just 
past the equator.

As you carefully adjust the telescope, the bright round globe of Liabo swings 
into the field of view.  Largest of the four moons, her white rocky surface 
is achingly bright and covered with thousands of craters, from tiny pockmarks 
to gigantic valleys.  The telescope's magnification makes it easy to pick out 
surface details, and you trace her huge mountain ranges and deep rocky chasms 
with great interest.

Tiny Makiri is difficult to see at all, showing as merely a dark speck racing 
over the brighter surface of her sister Liabo.  So fast does Makiri move that 
she completes a complete dance around her larger sister Liabo every thirty 
hours, following behind red Tlilok as they both circle their largest sister. 
But even with the telescope's aid, she is very difficult to examine, little 
more than a minute black rock.

As you adjust the telescope, the four bright stars of the Paladin 
constellation swing into view.  Guarding the cold nights from the colder 
touch of Undeath, Voln's four star shield protects the heavens from Luukos' 
corrupting fingers.

The telescope rotates smoothly on its mounts as you seek the familiar shape 
of Arachne.  Five oddly red stars shine in the sky, forming the pattern of an 
hourglass. This is the constellation Arachne, giving us the view of the 
spider's belly marking as if she hovered over the world, ready to eat us all.

Twelve stars make up the distinctive six-fingered talon commonly attributed 
to the Ur-Daemons. Oral tradition holds that the final Ur-Daemon to walk 
Elanthia was not driven back through the tear in the Veil, but was destroyed 
in a brilliant explosion, sending his hand into the heavens to remind god and 
mortal alike of the dangers beyond.

You rotate the telescope slowly from head to tail of the magnificent Unicorn 
constellation.  One of the most brilliant stars in the sky forms the tip of 
the Unicorn's horn, guiding Ronan's steed through the darkened sky.  The 
other three stars represent key points along the body, leaving the Unicorn a 
subtle but powerful symbol.

You carefully orient the telescope to examine the mysterious constellation of 
the Gates.  Glimmering in the ebon sky, eleven stars form the outline of 
Lorminstra's gates.  Beyond them is darkness, and perhaps more.

You shiver slightly as you gaze upon the awe-inspiring sight of the 
Grandfather's Eye.  As Lumnis has a constellation, Fash'lo'nae can hardly be 
outdone, seeking to know and enlighten. His slit-pupilled eye watches from 
high above the planet, formed by seven twinkling stars.

It's easy to pick out the familiar shape of the Spire in the night sky as it 
jumps into focus in the telescope.  Some legends say that the Spire, rising 
through the night sky, is where Lumnis goes to think and Fash'lo'nae goes to 
study.