The Rift is a miles-long trench, bottom-less in some locations, that cuts its way in a northwestern by southeastern line, neatly bisecting the continent of Zaldara. It is surrounded on both sides by jagged mountains known as The Riftpeaks.

The cause of the Rift has been lost to history. Was it a war between the ancient races? Did the ancestors offend the Old Gods? Was it a natural disaster? All that is known is that the event, known as The Rivening, destroyed civilization as it was known before. The ancient races of the The Ysar and The Aedonii were utterly destroyed, reemerging from the early days of The Scattering as The Saelfsidhedai and Humans.

The Rift separates the newly civilized lands of the world from what is now termed the Eastern Wastes—as well as the strange and monstrous creatures that populate that wasted land. However, some creatures have found their way across the Rift to terrorized the new races.