Lore · Continents & Moons
Alaris & the Veil
Veil of Alaris, in 2011, did something EverQuest had not done in years: it opened an entirely new continent, with gods of its own.
Unveiled
For ages Norrath’s dragons kept a continent hidden by magic. Then, in House of Thule, mortals permanently defeated Cazic-Thule, and the hidden land was “unveiled”: Alaris. Even the gods, the announcement promised, would be threatened by the forces found there. Veil of Alaris launched on November 15, 2011.
Airships to a new world
Brell Serilis commissioned the gnomes to build giant airships to carry adventurers across. For most, the first stop was Argath, Bastion of Illdaera, a battle-scarred mountain fortress dedicated to the Alaran god of war and battle. Its imposing walls and grand scale “should leave one feeling safe and serene, but invaders threaten and momentous events are beginning to take place.”
Gods that need belief
There lay the twist. Norrath’s gods draw their power from their planes, but Alaran gods need belief. Argath’s citizens, weary of years of war, had turned to trade, and their war god was weakening. Their neighbours in the City of Bronze seized the confusion of the Norrathians’ arrival to attack, and Argath had to turn to outsiders for help. Adventurers even had to learn the Alaran language through quests to reach deeper into the continent.
Erillion, the City of Bronze
Erillion, the City of Bronze, is “a bastion of order and law,” designed so that every building reflects those ideals and presents “a façade of perfection.” From its broad avenues to its imposing city hall, “nothing is permitted to deviate from its purpose.”
Rubak Oseka and a hero made god
Alaran gods are made, not born. Rubak Oseka, Temple of the Sea, is dedicated to “one of the greatest heroes of the Alaran people now ascended into godhood,” and is shared by the priests of Oseka and the Hadal. The temple is a twisted conch shell grown to mythic size, and Oseka was openly called a “challenger of the Norrathian deities.”
How much is known
The written story of Alaris is thin. Only a few official texts survive, mostly the 2011 zone previews, and most of the tale lives in the expansion’s quests rather than in books. This page keeps to what those texts say and leaves the gaps unfilled.
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.
Sources
[1] Allakhazam: Veil of Alaris overview · [2] EverQuest.com: Announcing Veil of Alaris (2011) · [3] Ten Ton Hammer: Veil of Alaris hands-on preview (2011) · [4] Library of Erudin: Alaris (Veil of Alaris Zone Preview: Erillion, City of Bronze)
Keep reading
Retold in our own words from the sources listed on this page; short quotes are marked and sourced. The illustration is an original AI-generated painting made for this page alone, not from the game.