Plane of Time

Overview

The Plane of Time is culmination of an epic conquest through the planes of the demigods, the planes of nature and influence, and the planes of power. It is here where the "ungod" Zebuxoruk has been imprisoned by the pantheon of gods and goddesses, and where they argue over what to ultimately do with him. For it was Zebuxoruk who attempted to pass the powers of the gods themselves into the hands of the mortals by opening the door to the astral manifestations of the divine beings of the universe. The Plane of Time is not governed by any one god, unless one were to refer to The Nameless, creator of all, who ultimately governs all existence. It is a manifestation of history itself. The first portion of the plane is divided into five areas by rifts in time itself. Clockwise from northwest are areas devoted to Undead, Fire, Earth, Water, and Air.

Phase One consists of entering the five separate worlds manifested by the gods and defeating servitors of Earth, Fire, Wind, Water, and Undead. After the fifth defender falls, adventurers will witness a meeting between Fennin Ro, Xegony, The Rathe, Rallos Zek, and Solusek Ro as they argue over what they must do to stop the advancement of the mortals. Zek and Solusek are of the mind that the mortals but destroyed outright, but Fennin warns that doing so would disrupt the balance of power within the universe, and without mortals, their power would fade. The Rathe, neutral in all things, interjects by revealing that if the mortals were to translate the language of the divine as Zebuxoruk wishes, the fabric of time would unravel. Solusek storms out of the meeting disappointed in his father. The Rathe attempts to calm Zek's wrath by suggesting Zebuxoruk be put in a stasis which can never be broken. The Rathe's request of Zek's help should demonstrate how dire the situation is. Xegony requests that Mithaniel Marr and Karana record this meeting, for their good nature will ensure that history remembers this time without bias. She admits that allowing Zebuxoruk to gain so much power was the true failure of the gods.

Phase Two begins by adding an additional hour to the sands of time. The enormous clocks at the rear of each of the five worlds will open, revealing a new trial. Fire and Water become connected, as do Earth and Air, while the Undead world remains alone. Adventurers must once again battle a small army of creatures devoted to each region before time elapses. This time the attacks come in waves, so coordination between all fronts is key. Upon the death of the fifth servitor, the clock gates will reopen, allowing the groups of adventurers to return to each other. An ethereal mist gathers at the far wall, giving the adventurers another vision of the gods. The Triumvirate of Water speaks as one being as it requests the other gods to step up and sacrifice part of their power to bind Zebuxoruk in an eternal stasis. Saryrn and Terris-Thule are wary of what may happen to them in their weakened state, but Cazic-Thule ensures his daughter that they will stay within the Plane of Time until recovering from the event. Rallos Zek and Bertoxxulous agree, and add that their minions will regenerate their power. Innoruuk, always the spiteful one, calls out The Tribunal for not helping their cause. The Seventh Hammer responds by blaming Innoruuk for the countless trials the Tribunal is tasked with. He argues it is the hate that Innoruuk instills in all the creatures of Norrath that lead to the crimes the preoccupy The Six Hammers. Innoruuk threatens to seek the Seventh Hammer after his powers recover. The vision then fades from the minds of the adventurers.

Phase Three begins by adding yet another 75 minutes to the hourglass. The gods have now sents waves of denizens from each of their planes to slow the advancement of the mortals. The waves come in the order of Tactics, Disease, Tactics, Fear, Tactics, Hate, Nightmare, and Torment. When the eighth wave falls, two powerful golems will enter the fray. They are the Supernatural Guardian and the Avatar of the Elements. When the avatar crashes to the floor, it as if the entire plane shakes. Another vision appears and Terris-Thule doubts the might of the other gods armies. Tallon Zek laughs and assures that the armies of War and Tactics will be the backbone of the coalition. Saryrn naively believes that the mortals will never make it this far and that bringing their minions to the Plane of Time was unnecessary.

Phase Four begins by dumping another four hours worth of sand into the proverbial hourglass. Upon passing through the portal from the phase three chamber, adventurers will arrive in the halls of the gods, much to Saryrn's dismay. Terris-Thule is also present here, as well as Tallon and Vallon Zek who stand together. They can all be challenged separately, though if adventurers are not careful, they could end up fighting the Zek twins simultaneously. No matter what order they fall, once the fourth deity topples, another vision will rush through the minds of the mortals. Rallos Zek is immediately aware of his sons' defeat. Innoruuk foolishly tells Rallos that what Rallos senses is just an affect of the stasis they placed on Zebuxoruk. Cazic-Thule interjects when suddenly realizing that his daughter has fallen to the mortals as well. Bertoxxulous begins to worry and summons an army from the Crypt of Decay to defend him. Innoruuk blames the incompetency of the others and their children for what he fears could be his demise. Rallos puts everyone in check by pointing out that they must combine their might in their weakened state to put a stop to the mortals. They all follow Bertoxxulous' lead by summoning armies from each of their planes.

Phase Five begins by tacking on another four hours. After touching the artifact in front of the Zek brother's room, the adventurers are transported to another pantheon of gods. A sizable army representing each of the four gods in the room must be defeated first. For all his talking, Innoruuk still puts up one of the toughest fights of the four, which will bring back vivid memories of the Plane of Hate for the older adventurers. Cazic-Thule will recall memories in much the same way. Bertoxxulous has a few new tricks up his sleeve from the last battle in the Ruins of Lxanvom. And Rallos Zek will hold nothing back after being defeated in his own fortress, Drunder. Once the fourth god falls, a final vision is presented to the mortals. Fennin Ro is in disbelief. Xegony regrets that it has come to this and appears to be realizing that Solusek's original plan may have been the best. The Triumvirate of Water and The Rathe decide that it is time to infuse their powers and call forth the beast that they swore would never be necessary. The Rathe believes this beast to be the final wall standing between them and non-existence. Before the beast is revealed, the vision fades.

Phase Six is the final phase and consists of a single enemy, Quarm. Quarm is an enormous, four-headed dragon comprises of the four elements. He is the embodiment of the Planes of Power themselves and wields eight divine spells that will rain down upon everything within his chamber affecting virtually every status possible. As the battle progresses, Quarm will first lose his red head as it explodes into a shower of flaming ethereal energy. Next, his blue head will combust, eliminating his power over water. Third, is his white head bursts into a swirling vortex, costing him his command over the element of air. Once the earthen head falls, Quarm has obviously been defeated. Shortly afterward, a black box appears. Once it is broken open, Zebuxoruk emerges and staggers about. He thanks the mortals for freeing him and is surprised they made it this far. He advises that he and the mortals must return to Norrath quickly, for something is coming that threatens them all. Zebuxoruk is shocked that the gods took such drastic measures to imprison him, knowing full well they would leave themselves vulnerable. He chalks it up to the fact that all of The Nameless' creations are capable of poor judgment and irrational behavior. The gods are burdened with powers beyond mortal comprehension, but even the gods get lost within their might occasionally. Zebuxoruk explains that the gods do not understand that without the mortals worshipping them, the gods cease to exist and an age of darkness will wash over all existence. He says he did not do what he did to interfere with the gods or their realms, but only to free them from the fate that awaits everyone. A fate that waits greedily on the edge of The Void, ready to test the will of all mortals.

Before Zebuxoruk can finish his thoughts, Druzzil Ro appears beside him after a blinding flash of light. Druzzil Ro is the goddess of magic and typically manifests herself as a youthful Erudite woman with stark white hair and a platinum crown. Aside from being the goddess of magic, she is also the patron deity of art, the daughter of Fennin Ro, the sister of Solusek Ro, and mother of Ayonae Ro. She speaks telepathically in a way that soothes the mind. She advises that she cannot allow Zebuxoruk to escape to Norrath. Zebuxoruk is confused, for it is Druzzil Ro herself who taught him to seek knowledge and to share it in all forms. Druzzil Ro corrects him by stating that she advised only to share it if it did not affect the fate of others. She explains that she must reorder the weave of time itself to before he and the mortals came to the Plane of Time. She admits that none of the mortals will understand the reasoning behind this, but it must be done. As she looks at Zebuxoruk one last time, sadness crosses her beautiful face. As she begins chanting, things start moving in reverse. Druzzil smiles kindly, waves her arms gracefully and points at the band of mortals sending them backward through time and space. They awake in the Plane of Knowledge in front of Maelin Starpyre just before handing him the elements recovered from the Doomfire, Eryslai, Coirnav, and Ragrax. Druzzil has restored existence back to its normalcy.