The Green Gate is an ancient interworld rift that formed naturally around 1050 BA between the worlds of Eamon and Toril.
History
The rift's terminus on Eamon formed on the outskirts of the city of Lumen and became an immediate subject of fascination to the Aspirants of Lumen whose purpose was to attract the attention and favor of powerful deities. Its Torilian terminus opened in the far eastern portion of High Forest on the continent of Faerûn, at that time within the elven realm of Eaerlann. A stone portal-house was erected around the Green Gate and access controlled by the Aspirants, but most peaceful traders or explorers were granted passage.
For centuries the Green Gate served as one of the principal routes by which the Aspirants of Lumen studied the gods and religions of other worlds. The Eaerlanni were initially suspicious of the scouts coming through the rift, but soon established diplomatic contact with Lumen and became interested in learning about the alien cosmology of Eamon. They also taught Lumenite travelers about Toril's deities and its Weave.
During the cataclysmic events of Karsus's Folly in 507 BA the rift vanished for several minutes before reopening in slightly different form (reflecting the changed magic of Toril). Karsus's floating city, and the petrified remains of the mage himself, crashed into the High Forest roughly ten miles west of the gate. By the mid-fifth century the crash site had become the settlement of Karse, inhabited by the Cult of Karsus, and soon thereafter became the home of the dangerous lich Wulgreth. In response, the portal-house surrounding the Green Gate was fortified, and passage through the rift carefully monitored; however, this was more a matter of caution than fear given that most magic from Toril was unable to work on Eamon (which lies beyond the Weave). For most of the next millennium a small but regular flow of traffic continued through the rift, mostly consisting of adventurers, explorers, and traders.
In 711 YA (882 DR) the elven realm of Eaerlann collapsed due to demonic incursions from Ascalhorn and attacks by orcs. Some of the fleeing elves escaped through the Green Gate and took refuge in Lumen. The following year another disaster struck near the rift when the mage Wulgreth of Ascalhorn, trying to tap into the lingering power of Karsus, released a burst of necromantic energy that transformed the surrounding forest into the Dire Wood, a corrupted region haunted by undead and demonic creatures. The mages of Lumen immediately sealed the portal-house and placed powerful wards around the rift.
Today the Green Gate remains securely enclosed and guarded, and is only occasionally opened for specialists or rare reconnaissance missions. A small community of Eaerlanni refugees survives in the surrounding city.
