[2e] Timeline crossings

[The Dark]

There are some events that are relatively firmly placed in their settings' timelines that also let us understand when events in one setting happened relative to another setting.

For Ravenloft, Lord Soth's entry to the Mists is firmly placed as being in 357 AC (Krynnish Calendar) and BY 720 (Barovian Calendar). The Dragon Magazine "Wizards Three" articles then establish by reference to events that 358 AC is 1361 DR (Forgotten Realms Dale Reckoning) and that 1360 DR was 580 CY (Greyhawk Common Year). Thus, we end up with BY 720 = 357 AC = 1360 DR = 580 CY.

Using the timeline from Domains of Dread, I wanted to look at events that would have relevance to other settings and cross-reference their dates - for example, Azalin's entry is relevant to Greyhawk. Adam's entry isn't relevant to any of the main settings, since he doesn't come from any of them. I'll only comment on some of them because I don't have vast knowledge on the history of all of these settings, just bits and pieces. It's always possible there are time wobbles,

BY 351 - the creation of Barovia as a Ravenloft domain - this happens 12 years before the Cataclysm on Krynn and 2 years after Ponjes the Bull becomes the first Mayor of Greyhawk.
BY 452 - Jander Sunstar is drawn into Ravenloft. This is 1092 DR.
BY 528 - the events of I6 Ravenloft. It is 165 AC, 1168 DR, and 388 CY.
BY 542 - Azalin the Lich enters Ravenloft. This is 402 CY. It is 9 years since Zagig Yragerne founded the Guild of Wizardry in Greyhawk and 2 years since the foundation of Perrenland.
BY 579 - Azalin abandons Strahd and Darkon forms.
BY 600 - Vechor forms. It is 460 CY, casting doubt on Easan the Mad's backstory of being an agitator against Iuz, since this is the first year of Iggwilv's appearance (Iuz's mother) and is approximately the year Iuz is conceived. Iuz won't rule anything until 479 CY.
BY 610 - Harkon Lukas enters Ravenloft from Cormyr. It is 1250 DR.
BY 625 - Valachan is formed with von Kharkov of Thay as its Darklord. The year is 1265 DR, but von Kharkov has been in Ravenloft for a number of years already.
BY 635 - Souragne forms from the Amedio Jungle of Oerth. It is 495 CY.
BY 682 - Nova Vaasa comes from Vaasa on Toril. The year is 1322 DR.
BY 689 - Vlad Drakov enters Ravenloft. It is 326 AC.
BY 712 - this year corresponds to 1352 DR, when Gondegal vanished from Toril.
BY 714 - Hazlan forms with Hazlik as its Darklord. This is 1354 DR.
BY 720 - Lord Soth enters Ravenloft and Sithicus forms. It is 357 AC.
BY 732 - I'Cath forms. It is 1372 DR. This is the year of the Neverwinter Nights computer game and the "now" of the third edition Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting.
BY 735 - the Black Box. It is 372 AC, 1375 DR, and 595 CY.
BY 740 - the Red Box. The Grand Conjunction. Corresponding years are 377 AC, 1380 DR, and 600 CY.
BY 750 - Domains of Dread. The end of the Grim Harvest. Tovag and Cavitius form with Kas and Vecna as Darklords. It is 610 CY, 29 years after Vecna vanished from Oerth (at the end of Vecna Lives in 581 CY).

[brothersale]

A very detailed timeline exists created by John W. Mangrum in the Mausoleum http://fraternityofshadows.com/Mausoleu ... ne_JWM.doc. I mention it because the timelines in some raveloft products don't work correctly due to not being checked a much as they should have, Jander's entry being one of problem dates (Vampire of the mists has several date problems in it the Daggerdale event being one). Have a read, its quite intresting, but it does not cover the 3rd edition entries only upto Dragon Magazine #264, Carnival, The Book of Secrets.

[The Dark]

The dates I came up with are slightly different because Fifth Age is explicit that the Blue Lady's War takes place in 357 AC, while John's timeline places it in 354 AC. Either way, this corresponds to BY 720, when Soth appears in Ravenloft.

All of the others have multiple contradicting correspondences, which Paul Westermeyer covered well when trying to come up with a Spelljammer chronology:
The first two Spelljammer novels take place "five years after the end of the War of the Lance" (which would be 357 or 358 AC depending on whether one follows the timeline in Dragonlance Adventures or the timeline in almost literally any other Dragonlance product) and in 1361 DR. This implies 357 AC = 1360 DR = BY 720.

The Wizards Three article "Magic in the Evening" states that the novel The Parched Sea just happened, which is placed in 1360 DR. It also states Vecna Lives has not happened yet, which is 581 CY per The Adventure Begins. It also implies the War of the Lance and Blue Lady's War are both over (Fizban and Raistlin are gone and Dalamar has just become head of the Black Robes). The next two Wizards Three articles take place after Vecna Lives and after the start of the Greyhawk Wars in 582 CY. These articles would roughly place 580 CY = 1360 DR and be consistent with 1360 DR = 357 AC = BY 720.

I went with the Wizards Three timeline because they're explicitly intended to be crossovers that mention current/recent events to tie the settings together, and most of the messiness comes from the Ravenloft novels. Ignoring their chronology makes just about everything else consistent or at least consistent enough that we're left arguing away quibbles instead of needing chronomancers to sort out the plot holes.

King of the Dead also ends up with a bad and somewhat amusing (at least to me) timeline snarl when combined with other products. It puts Azalin's entry at BY 542 and 391 CY. Easan the Mad is now Misted in 449 CY after resisting Iuz's rule 11 years before Iuz is born.

[The Dark]

For extra bonus hilarity, BY 570 is when Kalidnay entered Ravenloft. That's 1200 to 1300 years in the past of the Dark Sun campaign settings, so the "now" of the fall of Kalak (or the later "now" of the post-Prism Pentad era) is around BY 1800.

[joke] And that's why your Dark Sun characters can't go to Ravenloft. [/joke]