• Star: Belinus — Bel
• 1st World: Arianrhod — rocky world
• 2nd World: Gwydion — ringed gas giant
• Inhabited Moon: Aereth
• Aereth's Moon: Aine
• 3rd World: Airemidd — icy super-Earth
• 4th World: Niskai — ringed gas giant
• Beyond Niskai: Asteroid Belt
• 5th World: Lugh — ice giant
• 6th World: Balor — ice giant
• Notable Nearby Star: Morrígu
• Galaxy: The Sword of Light

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Timekeeping on Aereth

For more information on the Trader's Calendar, Moons, the Shroud, Turns, and the great cycle of the Ley, see Timekeeping on Aereth.

Morrígu is a brilliant red star visible from Aereth and one of the most striking objects in the night sky.

Astronomers identify it as an enormous aging star, while Aereth's cultures have surrounded it with much older legends.

Its namesake, Morrígu, is associated with battle, fate, death, victory, and the passage between worlds. She is often represented by the raven or crow and is remembered both as a herald of death and as a guardian of those making their final journey beyond the Veil.

The Morrighan, Aereth's Dragonriders, take their name from this ancient figure.

Gwydion

From Aereth, Gwydion feels less like a distant world than a constant presence. The immense ringed giant dominates the sky by day and night, its luminous Ley sweeping across the heavens in bands of shifting light. Generations are born and die beneath it; to the people of Aereth, Gwydion is simply part of the sky itself.

Position: Third world from Bel
Type: Icy super-Earth
Moons: Three small satellites
Visibility: Naked eye

Airemidd is a large rocky world beyond the habitable region of the Bel system. Beneath its thick atmosphere lies a frozen surface.

From Aereth, it appears as a bright blue-white point in the night sky.

The world is named for Airemidd, one of the ancient Tuatha Dé Danann remembered for her knowledge of healing and herbs. Her name survives throughout Aereth in healing traditions and among practitioners who follow her example.

Niskai

Position: Fourth world from Bel
Type: Gas giant
Moons: Dozens
Visibility: Naked eye

Niskai is a blue-toned gas giant surrounded by a conventional ring system whose icy particles glitter brilliantly in Bel's light.

The planet takes its name from the Niskai, ancient water spirits associated with springs, rivers, lakes, wells, and other sources of fresh water.

In some cultures, travelers still spill a few drops from a cup or canteen before drinking as a traditional gesture of thanks to the Niskai.

The Asteroid Belt

Beyond Niskai lies a broad and diffuse belt of rocky debris and small planetary bodies.

Most are too small to observe from Aereth without advanced instruments, although several of the largest can be seen through relatively simple telescopes.

Lugh

Position: Fifth world from Bel
Type: Ice giant
Moons: Fourteen
Visibility: Naked eye under favorable conditions

Lugh is a distant ice giant whose atmosphere gives it a reddish-orange appearance from Aereth.

Its slow movement against the background stars can be detected through repeated observation.

The planet is named for Lugh the Many-Skilled, an ancient figure associated with knowledge, craftsmanship, healing, prophecy, and mastery of many arts.

Balor

Position: Sixth world from Bel
Type: Ice giant
Moons: Five
Visibility: Telescope

Balor is the most distant major planet traditionally recognized in the Bel system.

Another cold giant, it appears deeper and darker in color than Lugh and can only be observed with telescopes.

Its name comes from Balor of the Evil Eye, an ancient and fearsome figure of war remembered in old legend.

Aereth lies within a great spiral galaxy visible from the world's surface as a dusky river of countless stars.

Its most common name is the Sword of Light.

To the Ddraig, the Sword represents the road along which souls continue their journey through the stars. Other cultures see in it the eternal struggle between Light and Shadow or attach their own religious and philosophical meanings to its presence.

Aerethian scholars have studied the heavens for centuries. Although the world's technology may appear simple by modern Earth standards, its astronomers possess sophisticated knowledge of celestial motion and have observed distant stars and extraordinary events far beyond their own solar system.

No other world in the Bel system is known to support complex life.

Belinus — Bel

Type: Yellow-white star
Common Name: Bel
Meaning: The Shining God

Belinus, almost universally shortened to Bel, is the star around which the system revolves.

It was named for an ancient deity associated with the sun, fire, healing, fertility, purification, and the success of crops and herds. The old name survives even in cultures where worship of Belinus has largely faded.

The traditional Fires of Bel, celebrated on the first day of the 5th Moon, mark the approach of summer in cultures that still observe the ancient festival.

The magnificent rings surrounding Gwydion are unlike ordinary planetary rings.

They are vast bands of arcane energy.

Known collectively as the Ley, these luminous fields are intimately connected to Aereth's magic. Three major bands dominate the ring system, accompanied by smaller and darker currents.

The brighter Ley appear as shimmering bands of gold, blue, and silver-white light. Brilliant discharges sometimes arc between them like immense strokes of lightning.

Between them lie darker currents commonly called the Shadow Ley. These are much harder to see and appear as deep violet or nearly black bands illuminated by occasional sullen flashes of energy.

The Ley brighten and dim over a repeating cycle lasting approximately 4,000 years.

Their four great phases are:

Waxing → Argent → Waning → Obscura

Aereth is presently in Waxing.

The Ley's cycle influences both magic and long-term climate. During Argent, the luminous Ley reach their greatest brilliance. During Obscura, they become faint and the darker currents more prominent.

For the complete cycle and its relationship to Aerethian history, see Timekeeping on Aereth.

The Shroud

Approximately once each Moon, a recurring celestial alignment involving Aereth, Aine, Gwydion, Bel, and the Ley produces the phenomenon known as the Shroud.

The event brings an unnatural period of darkness and is associated throughout Aereth with a thinning of the Veil Between the Worlds.

The Shroud is explained more fully in Timekeeping on Aereth.

Position: First world from Bel
Type: Rocky world
Moons: None
Visibility: Naked eye

Arianrhod is a small, airless world orbiting closest to Bel. Tidally locked to the star, one hemisphere perpetually faces Bel while the other remains in darkness.

From Aereth, Arianrhod is visible near sunrise or sunset and is traditionally known as the Morning and Evening Star.

Its name means the Silver Wheel and comes from an ancient sky deity associated with stars, time, fate, and the passage of the dead beyond the Veil.

Gwydion

Position: Second world from Bel
Type: Gas giant
Moons: Many
Notable Feature: The Ley

Gwydion is an immense gas giant occupying the habitable region of the Bel system.

From Aereth, it is the dominant object in the heavens: a vast world crossed by atmospheric bands and surrounded by the luminous energy fields known as the Ley.

Gwydion possesses numerous moons. Most are small, although several larger satellites can be seen from Aereth without powerful instruments. One of the most prominent is Morrígu, whose reddish surface makes it a familiar sight in Aereth's night sky.

Only one of Gwydion's moons is known to support complex life:

Aereth.

Gwydion takes its name from an ancient deity of magic, enchantment, transformation, and knowledge.

Morrígu

Relationship: Major moon of Gwydion
Type: Rocky moon
Appearance: Rust-red to deep reddish-brown
Visibility: Naked eye

Morrígu is one of Gwydion's larger moons and is readily visible from Aereth. Although it does not orbit Aereth itself, its size and position make it appear much like a second moon moving through the night sky.

Its rocky, iron-rich surface gives Morrígu a distinctive reddish cast, ranging from muted rust and ochre to deeper red-brown in shadow. Its appearance has long encouraged associations with blood, battle, death, and fate.

Morrígu takes its name from an ancient figure associated with war, prophecy, victory, death, and the passage between worlds. Often represented by the raven or crow, she was regarded not merely as a herald of death but as a guardian of those making their final journey beyond the Veil.

The Morrighan, Aereth's Dragonriders, take their name from Morrígu.

The Bel System at a Glance

• Star: Belinus — Bel
• 1st World: Arianrhod — rocky world
• 2nd World: Gwydion — ringed gas giant
• Inhabited Moon: Aereth
• Aereth's Moon: Aine
• Major Visible Moon: Morrígu — reddish rocky moon
• 3rd World: Airemidd — icy super-Earth
• 4th World: Niskai — ringed gas giant
• Beyond Niskai: Asteroid Belt
• 5th World: Lugh — ice giant
• 6th World: Balor — ice giant
• Galaxy: The Sword of Light

You do not need to understand Aerethian astronomy to play on Aereth. For everyday play, remember:

• A day is 24 hours.

• A year is approximately 365¼ days.

• There are 12 Moons, corresponding to January through December for ease of play.

• Aereth's ordinary seasons work much like Earth's and are governed primarily by its axial tilt.

• Aine is Aereth's small natural satellite and the historical reason months are called Moons.

• Aereth orbits Gwydion, the enormous ringed gas giant that dominates its sky.

• Gwydion and Aereth orbit Bel, their sun, within the system's habitable zone.

• The Shroud occurs approximately once each Moon and is associated with a recurring celestial alignment involving Aereth, Aine, Gwydion, Bel, and the Ley.

• The Ley follows a 4,000-year cycle: Waxing → Argent → Waning → Obscura. These long cycles influence Aereth's climate and magic but do not change how players count ordinary days, months, or years.

• The current year is 1250 AC — After Conquest.

That's all a player needs for ordinary roleplay. The remainder of this guide is for those who want to know more about the worlds and skies of Aereth.

Morrígu

Relationship: Major moon of Gwydion
Type: Rocky moon
Appearance: Rust-red to deep reddish-brown
Visibility: Naked eye

Morrígu is one of Gwydion's larger moons and is readily visible from Aereth. Although it does not orbit Aereth itself, its size and position make it appear much like a second moon moving through the night sky.

The Bel System at a Glance

• Star: Belinus — Bel

• 1st World: Arianrhod — rocky world

• 2nd World: Gwydion — ringed gas giant (always visible, however, depending on orbit, etc., it does appear to fade and brighten over the month).

• Inhabited Moon: Aereth

• Aereth's Moon: Aine (visible at night and sometimes in the day depending on phase, orbit, etc.).

• Major Visible Moon: Morrígu — reddish rocky moon (visible at night and sometimes in the day depending on phase, orbit, etc.).

• 3rd World: Airemidd — icy super-Earth

• 4th World: Niskai — ringed gas giant

• Beyond Niskai: Asteroid Belt

• 5th World: Lugh — ice giant

• 6th World: Balor — ice giant

• Galaxy: The Sword of Light