Skip to main content

2026-04-01 - The Quarter of Spells, Map Updates, & Calendars

Intro

New Level Up Word

Random word from Scott

Calendar


The world of Hiraeth has been around for more than a decade, as I grow and gain better skills in the world change and grow with me.  Sometimes things I wrote in a math classroom when I should have been working on schoolwork in May 13 years ago is one of them.  The calendar is one of the many things that have changed over the years, and I hope for the better.  This is a small change but I think will have a good impact on play at the table.  Renaming the days of the week and months to be less alien and forced, the goal is to make days and months titles feel more special and also have some holidays be. 

operates on a mathematically perfect 360-day solar year. Every day represents exactly one degree of planetary rotation around the sun.

For the common folk, scholars, and adventurers, the calendar is a blend of ancient divine reverence and practical, everyday terminology.

Days of the Week

A standard week in Hiraeth now consists of 7a days.10-day cycle, commonly referred to as a "tenday." While scholars and the devout use the ancient divine names, commoners use simplified, modern terms that closely mirror the real world. The weekend consists of the final two days, dedicated to hearth, home, and sunlight.

Day # Ancient Name Common Name Origin / Meaning

Day

#

1

Ancient

Name

Pythda

Common

Name

Lyday

Origin / Meaning

1

Pythda

Lyday

Named for Pythia, Goddess of Life. The start of the work week.

2 

Minda

Loronda

Minday

Moonday Named

for Loron, Goddess of the Moon. A day transitioning out of the weekend's rest.

3 Minda Minday Named for Minos, God of Time.

3

4

Voida 

Wanesday 

Named for Voidos, God of Space (the waning void).

4

5

Ethearda 

Giada

Starday

Earthday Named

for Gia, Guardian of the Land. The peak of the agricultural workweek.

6 Matda Forgeday Named for Matrix, the Anvil of Destiny. A day of heavy labor, crafting, and industry. 7 Ethearda Starday Named for Etherea, Goddess of the Stars.

5

8

Nyda

Freeday

Named for Nyx, Goddess of Night. The final workday where evening brings

workday.

6

9

Hestda

Hearthday

Named for Hesta, Goddess of the Hearth. A day of rest and family.

7

10

Bethda

Sunday

Named for Bethtox, God of the Sun. A day of celebration and worship.

The Calendar Year: Seasons and Months

The calendar is built around a 364-day year. This is divided into exactly 360 standard days (organized into 12 months) and 4 Quarter Days that mark the shifting of the seasons.

Together, solstices and equinoxes are traditionally known as Quarter Days. To fit the 360-degree rotation and thethese 4 DaysQuarter Outside Time,Days, each season isoperates exactlyon 90an daysidentical long:91-day structure:

    It begins with

    1 Day Outside a Month (the 1 seasonal transitionQuarter day,Day).

    It is followed by two 30-day months,months and(exactly endsthree tendays each). It concludes with one 29-day month.month.

    Months vs. Zodiacs

    (Note:It Inis differentimportant cultures,to note that the calendar months are not the Zodiacs. The months are sometimessimply the periods of time used to track the year.

    The Zodiacs (often referred to simplyin different cultures as "The Sky Signs" or "The Ascendants".) are the dominant celestial constellations that happen to be visible in the night sky during those specific months. For example, a person born in the month of Novnus is born under the Zodiac of The Matrix, but the month itself is distinct from the stars overhead.


    Winter (The Stillness)

    Quarter Day (Day Outside Time:a Month): The Nadir (Winter Solstice)

    1. Month # Ancient Name Common Name Days Dominant Zodiac Zodiac Characteristics 1 Novnus /Deepwinter "Deepwinter"30 (30 Days)

    • Zodiac:

    The Matrix (The Hero). Intellectuals and prophesied figures.

    2. 2 Ultcicero /Dawning "Dawning"30 (30 Days)

    • Zodiac:

    The Son (The Prince). Noble, aggressive, bound by fate.

    3. 3 Concis / "The Thaw"Thaw (29 Days)

    • Zodiac:

    The Phoenix.Phoenix Necromancers and hopeless romantics. Rebirth.

    Spring (The Growth)

    Quarter Day (Spring Equinox)

    Day Outside Time:a Month): The Vernal Awakening • 4. Rifis / "Springtide" (30 Days)

    Zodiac: Month # Ancient Name Common Name Days Dominant Zodiac Zodiac Characteristics 4 Rifis Springtide 30 The Frog.Frog Impatient, skilled in Transmutation magic.

    5. 5 Inder /Monsoon "Monsoon"30 (30 Days)

    • Zodiac:

    The Hammer.Hammer Artisans, Enchanters, and tales of betrayal. 6. 6 Gradum /Greengrass "Greengrass"29 (29 Days)

    • Zodiac:

    The Leaf.Leaf Druids, water affinity, and the followers of Pythia.

    Summer (The Heat)

    Quarter Day (Summer Solstice)

    Day Outside Time:a Month): The Zenith • 7. Tristis / "Highsun" (30 Days)

    Zodiac: Month # Ancient Name Common Name Days Dominant Zodiac Zodiac Characteristics 7 Tristis Highsun 30 The Horse.Horse Mercurial temperaments, Evokers, remnants of lost cultures.

    8. 8 Mutare / "The Turn"Turn (30 Days)

    • Zodiac:

    The Ship.Ship Pessimists. Often associated with impending betrayal.

    9. 9 The Watcher / "The Harvest"Harvest (29 Days) (Formerly Harolds)

    • Zodiac:

    The Iris.Iris Diviners, great villains. An eye-shaped constellation.

    Fall (The Fading)

    Quarter Day (Fall Equinox)

    Day Outside Time:a Month): The Autumnal Balance • 10. Umbra / "Leaf-fall" (30 Days)

    Zodiac: Month # Ancient Name Common Name Days Dominant Zodiac Zodiac Characteristics 10 Umbra Leaf-fall 30 The Cart.Cart Great lovers, associated with hidden divine powers.

    11. 11 Galious / "First Frost"Frost (30 Days)

    • Zodiac:

    The Snow Wolf.Wolf Impulsive, spiritual, and fiercely loyal.

    12. 12 Nocturum / "Year's End"End (29 Days)

    • Zodiac:

    The Knights.Knights Passionate protectors and stalwart friends.

    The

    Four Days Outside Time

    To maintain the perfect 360-day calendar, four days exist outside of any standard month. These days act as the

    seasons. Because they belong to no month, different cultures and regions refer to them by

    heralds of the new different names:

    • The Devout & Clergy: The Empyrean Days (Commonly shortened to The Empyrs). They believe these are

    holy days where the gods' influence is strongest.

    • The Common Folk: The Achrona (Commonly shortened to The Chrons). Derived from an ancient word

    meaning "without time," as these days sit outside the God of Time's standard months.

    The Scholars (The Athenaeum): The Epagomenal Days (Commonly shortened to The Epags). A strict, academic term for days mathematically added to balance the solar calendar.

    Regardless of what they are called, these four days anchor the year, opening each new season:

      The Nadir (Winter Solstice): Occurs before Novnus. The Vernal Awakening (Spring Equinox): Occurs before Rifis. The Zenith (Summer Solstice): Occurs before Tristis. The Autumnal Balance (Fall Equinox): Occurs before Umbra.Months of the Year