Lore · Continents & Moons
Alaris & the Veil
Veil of Alaris (2011) did something EverQuest had not done in years: it opened an entirely new continent, with its own gods.
Unveiled
Alaris is a continent long hidden by magic. Ten Ton Hammer’s preview, written after a tour with the developers, says Norrath’s dragons concealed it, and that when players permanently defeated Cazic-Thule in House of Thule, the continent was “unveiled.” The official announcement promised that even the gods would be threatened by the forces found there. Veil of Alaris launched November 15, 2011.
Sources: Allakhazam: Veil of Alaris overview · EverQuest.com: Announcing Veil of Alaris (2011) · Ten Ton Hammer: Veil of Alaris hands-on preview (2011)
Airships to a new world
Brell Serilis commissioned the gnomes to build giant airships to carry adventurers to Alaris. The first stop is Argath, Bastion of Illdaera, a battle-scarred mountain fortress dedicated to the Alaran god of war and battle.
Sources: Ten Ton Hammer: Veil of Alaris hands-on preview (2011) · Allakhazam: Veil of Alaris overview
Gods that need belief
Here is the twist: Norrath’s gods draw their power from their planes, but Alaran gods need belief. Argath’s citizens, tired of years of war, have turned to trade, and their war god is weakening. The neighboring City of Bronze has used the confusion of the Norrathians’ arrival to attack, and Argath has to turn to outsiders. Players even had to learn the Alaran language through quests to reach deeper into the continent.
Sources: Ten Ton Hammer: Veil of Alaris hands-on preview (2011) · Allakhazam: Veil of Alaris overview
Where the sources disagree
- Fanra’s wiki quotes a fan summary (from Tharkis.com) saying the Alarans came from another plane, were driven to Norrath by Discord in the Age of Scale, and that their gods sacrificed themselves to move them and raise the veil. We have not confirmed this in an official text.
- Ten Ton Hammer calls the rival city “Erlonn”; Allakhazam lists it as Erillion, City of Bronze.
Keep reading
Retold in our own words from the sources linked under each chapter; short quotes are marked and sourced. The illustration is an original AI-generated painting made for this page alone, not from the game.