Times and Dates

Rather than many hours named with numbers, a day is reckoned simply by four phases and identified by the Soln (Sun) and the shadows it may cast.

 

Crex and Nhyx

The day is understood as having two dividers – one short and one long. Crex is when the Soln is high in the sky and Nhyx when the Soln is low beneath it.

Crex is understood as a brief period of about an hour, what is known as Noon in some worlds, where the sun seems to stand tall in the sky. The day is seperated by this period.

Nhyx is understood as the long period of darkness where no shadows are cast by Soln.

 

Forecrex

The period from First Shadow to Crex is simply referred to as Forecrex. Some also refer to this period of the day as “Shrinking Shadows” because the shadows go from long to short leading up the Soln’s zenith in the sky. Depending on the season, this period can be anywhere from 4 to 7 hours

 

Forenhyx

The period after Crex until Nhyx arrives is commonly referred to as Forenhyx. As the Soln begins its descent in the sky, the shadows it creates begin to expand (which is why some call it “Stretching Shadows”) all the way to twilight, is referred to as Forenhyx. Depending on the season, this period can also be anywhere from 4 to 7 hours

 

 

First Shadow and Last Shadow

These are the daily periods of twilight when the light of the Soln is in the sky, but the Soln itself still hides beyond the horizon. The First Shadow is a brief period (somewhere around an hour) where the darkness of Nhyx is being drawn away back into its hiding place. From the first hint of light until the very moment the full orb of the Soln can be seen over the horizon is called First Shadow (or in some realms, ‘Daystar Waking’. Many will shorten the references for greetings, such as “Good Waking”. )

The “Last Shadow” is that period where the Soln is no longer visible, no longer casting shadows but the whole world seems to be in a shadow. This period is typically brief, about an hour depending on where you are in the world, but stories are told of some lands which exist in the Last Shadow for months at a time.

 

 

Months

There are 3 “weeks” in a month – called Tendays. Each day of a Tenday is commonly called by its order… First-Day, Second-Day, etc

 

There are exactly 10 days in a week (Tenday)

There are exactly 30 days in a month (Mooncirc)

There are exactly 12 months in a year  (Annum)

 

There are 5 days each year which do not belong to any Tenday or month but fall between and are commonly used for celebrations

 

The Calendar of Harptos

Most of Faerûn uses the Calendar of Harptos, named after the long-dead wizard who invented it.
Five special days fall between the months. These annual holidays mark the seasons or the changing of the seasons.

 

The Calendar Of Harptos    
Month Name Common Name
1 Hammer Deepwinter
Annual holiday: Midwinter    
2 Alturiak The Claw of Winter
3 Ches The Claw of the Sunsets
4 Tarsakh The Claw of the Storms
Annual holiday: Greengrass    
5 Mirtul The Melting
6 Kythorn The Time of Flowers
7 Flamerule Summertide
Annual holiday: Midsummer    
8 Eleasis Highsun
9 Eleint The Fading
Annual holiday: Highharvestide    
10 Marpenoth Leaffall
11 Uktar The Rotting
Annual holiday: The Feast of the Moon    
12 Nightal The Drawing Down

 

 

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