One thing to note is that it has been technically inaccessible to everyone in the Vesspyr Isles. The Nexus Core entrance is in the Ethernere but apparently it pierces the veil and the dead can not enter it. This makes the Nexus Core very secure since only the dead can accidently find the entrance since they can't use it. The only being that could access the Nexus Core was Drinal...until the true spirit helped us to create a breach into the Ethernere. Now there are lots of living beings wandering the Ethernere and the defenses have been tested.
I think it might have been built before Drinal became a full fledged God. he wasn't a God until recently, more of a demigod status. So it may have been built by a dragon looking to sneak back to Norrath, or maybe a dragon looking just for a means to see into the threads. after all, we were able to just communicate with Lendaria. so it might have been a dragon that used it as a means to contact the living. Maybe Jaled Dar built it. and that's why his spirit is in the Field of Bone now fighting the risen Iksar from Liched Rile's legions. or perhaps Trakanon built it and used it to come back to norrath as a 'living' dragon and thus claim leadership of the Ring of Scale. or maybe the original intent of the Nexus wasn't so much hopping threads, but a dragon trying to 'force' a way into the Plane of Sky to unite with Veeshan during the time that the deities were absent.
Just a thought, but the Nexus Core is is a place that stands in all realities and times....so theoretically it could have been built years and years AFTER we found it...
There are some problems with that. First being is that time apparently does pass in the Ethernere. Rallos Zek had a small following, Cazic Thule managed to turn a large portion of the Ethernere into his realm. I wouldn't say Cazic is more powerful than Rallos, so that seems to indicate that he had more time to gain influence. Also if the Ethernere wasn't connected at a fundamental level to time outside of the Ethernere then 500 years of the gods closing themselves off from the mortal realm would of been meaningless. Spirits that passed during the 500 years would of simply found themselves deposited into either the past or future and it would of been business as usual for Drinal. But he couldn't do that, so the accumulation of our Norrath's spirits made him into a more powerful but unstable being, drove the Harrowing Horde insaine, and nearly caused the end of our Norrath. Which begs another metaphysical question. Was Drinal stealing living souls from other threads? Or was he a threat to every thread?
Darathar was a dead dragon. Darathar made and broke deals with Drinal before this. Drinal has dominion over the Ethernere and the spirits of the dead. After we helped him by kicking Rallos and Cazic's spirits to the Void Drinal has been able to do this to others...but is it anyone or just the dead? Either way the question is perty much academic since we destroyed what Kerafyrm was after (the Tears of Veeshan in the Nexus Core) he doesn't have any reason to risk a confrontation with Drinal in the Ethernere. Unless you know of another reason Kerafyrm is still interested in the Ethernere?
At the risk of causing a headache, and with touching on what Kaitheel posted about another "thread"; I agree with the possibility she presented if it only served to distract from the potential possibilities of construction. Everything I have seen in this thread points to dragons, shissar and other groups that exist in the EQ2 universe. Let's run through it...Shissar? The Shissar were too proud to construct anything that did not have some unifying theme that definitively said "We are the Shissar Empire and we built this." The same point even holds for the Combine empire; the spire network across Norrath and the matching one that existed in Luclin attested to that...and they were merely copying the Shissar. It could not have been the dragons either as none of them can remember anyone that could or would have built it among them and they too have a unifying style or threme in their architecture; while it can be said it is definitely spacious enough for dragons, it just doesn't quite fit. We know also that the Erudites of our time had no involvement as we involve a dead one very familiar with nexus construction. The overarching point here is that no entity within Norrath's present and known past built it; and the dragons wouldn't cop out of taking ownership of something or simply owning the knowledge of who built it. The key point there is Norrath's present. So we know with Ethernere that many "threads" from the past have leaked into the plane; every single one of the ones we know from the past. Highkeep, the Shissar Temple and others. It is quite possible that the same could occur with some point in this same thread's future, something created in such a manner that when it was built, it was as if it had never "not" been built. The Nexus is clearly a focal point of magical power and interdimensional properties, perhaps it is built by the Combine Empire? Not in their past style...but in a style 2000 years ahead of this moment in time when the New Combine is struggling to hold it together? What do we do during the course of the quest for Yelinak to begin with? We introduce an effectively eternal dead Erudite familiar with Nexus technology to the Nexus Core. What if our own actions in doing so set off a chain of events that assures that the Nexus Core is guaranteed to be created by a group of future Erudites or other mages who study his writings? Created in such a manner that when once completed; it echoes backwards and forwards in such a way that even dead dragons look upon it and say, "I cannot remember a time in which this did not exist." Thus in a paradoxical sense we encounter the Nexus Core, and thus guarantee it is built, so for some reason we can encounter it in the past, and thus guarantee it is built, so for some reason we can encounter it in the past, and thus guarantee it is built, so we can encounter it in the past... ...All for some unknown reason.
I hate time travel. Ok, first up the basic premise is off. Empires can't be responsible for a construction in the Ethernere since their influence is over a mortal Norrath. Even if large numbers of them died at once they can't be responsible for this Nexus Core. 1) The dead can't enter this core. The drake assisting you tells you this, and the euradite assisting you does so from outside. 2) If it wasn't dragons, what are they doing in the Vesspyr Isles? Why build it in VI when you could just as easily build it anywhere? It isn't like the natives could interfere. 3) The nexus core was specifically attuned to work for either dragons, or a particular dragon. We're told that by the euradite that helps us fix the core. We also need a "healing scale" from a dragon to fix the core. The euradite was very specific in saying it had to be a type of dragon magic. That leads to the natural conclusion that the Nexus Core was designed by a dragon. Not just dragon-kin but specifically a dragon since you would have to be one to have constant access to magic like a healing scale. 4) the architecture of the Nexus Core is very consistent with dragon style. Large open spaces, important parts tucked into places humanoids couldn't reach without scaffolding or magic, but a dragon could easily reach. The control device didn't require pushing buttons, flipping levers or reading dials that would be difficult for a dragon to do (or a humanoid for that matter). There are no symbols used in the core outside of the ones that were on the Tears themselves. And the biggest detractor in this is...if it is a future group it means the tears of Veeshan we destroyed still exist in Norrath (or multiple Norraths in different threads). One thing to note is that all of the dragons we've encountered in the Ethernere died very recently. Ragefire is the oldest, the rest being slain during EQ2. Considering that the isles are (more or less) Harrowing Horde free...where did the rest of the dead dragon spirits go? Did Veeshan collect then prior to the return of the gods? Or is it just that no dragons died for 500 years? The Harrowing Horde should of been manageable until the death of Rallos. By that time most of the dragons we've seen in VI should of been dead so the Horde wouldn't of had a chance to depopulate VI before any of the dragons there were aware of it.
Or simply that we didn't have access to the portion of Ethernere that they exist in. It's fairly obvious (and I think explicitly stated in the CoE questline) that we don't encounter every being that has died for the last 500 years while in Ethernere. There are other areas that exist, we just don't see them. It's very likely to be the same with the dragons. We have experience with some, and specifically need to speak with others, so we naturally are sent to that area. Though it's equally possible that no dragon died for 500 years. If they weren't fighting anyone during that time, np!
yeah it could be likely there are many more dead dragons but they are in other realms. so there may be the Ring of Scale in the Ethernere version of VP. or maybe they are in the Ethernere versions of Barren Sky or Bonemire.
Mayong was already a deity during the 500 years between games, and he gave it up after he got the answers he was looking for while he was a god.
Yeah Mayong is so cool he achieved godhood just cause he could and gave it up cause he didn't need it.
Curious, how do people equate Darathar in this? Who's side is he on? I just remember him being the end boss of the Original EQ2 and being a major role where he was manipulating others so he could kill Nagafen and Vox. Wasn't he doing it under the command of the Ring Of Scale? I mean what's his main goal in general? Is he allied with Kerafyrm? Speaking of which, was the Ring Of Scale allied with Kerafyrm at all?
Darathar was on his own side. His plan when he was alive was to steal the clutch of prismatic eggs and raise an army of prismatic dragons (the same as Nagafen actually). He was just using his control of the drakota to get us to do his dirty work since he tried an failed before. The Ring of Scale is not allied with the Awakened Cult. Back in the EQ1 days Kerafyrm's rampage across Norrath started in Skyshrine and ended with him killing knocking unconscious the entire Ring of Scale in Veeshan's Peak. Relations between the Ring of Scale and the Awakened Cult haven't exactly been addressed but you can be sure that any supporters amongst the Ring of Scale probably left before we rampaged in an epic-weapon collecting frenzy across Kunark where we killed off the entire Ring of Scale. I'm perty sure Trakanon and company's deaths are considered cannon. Not 100% sure, but it just makes too much sense given that there is no talk about contacting the prophetic vision seeing dragon that leads the Ring of Scale about becoming the next leader of the newly homeless Claws of Veeshan. Actually, shouldn't the remnants of the Claws be moving to Veeshan's Peak? Or somewhere? At least appearing in the Cobalt Scar or in the Great Divide. You'd think they would go somewhere they could expect some sort of protection from the Awakened and maybe help from allies.
Directly addressed in the "Lost Souls" book from the collection. In short: He's (apparently) dead, no sign of his soul, folks are wondering What's Up With That. ...translation: We'll hear from him and Mayong Soon™.
Always felt that RoK didn't have much to do with the main story other then finding the Chelsith Stone to address the Age's End prophecy. We still have a major cliffhanger for Mayong at the end of the signature quest line and The Ring Of Scale didn't have much of any role in a lore perspective. Speaking of which, we're still on a cliffhanger revolving around Nagafen; last we saw him was in KoS 8 years ago...
I know it's been a bit, but I've been thinking about this, and realized something, especially with the comment that it could be someone from another thread. If it could be one person from another thread, it could be multiple. Even multiple of the same person, in theory. And lore-wise, there's one person I can think of with the experience, knowledge, power, and drive for that. Miragul. The one and only person in Norrath's entire history to master every school of arcane magic, and once there was nothing else to learn from his fellow erudites, he moved on. He built Miragul's Highway, allowing him to secretly plunder /every/ repository of knowledge on Norrath. What would he do when he exhausted that knowledge? Well, he'd likely take advantage of Norrathians in the EQ1 thread breaking into the Plane of Time, and enhance the Highway, allowing him to access destroyed libraries for more secrets. When Al'Kabor triggered the Spires, he likely also enhanced the Highway then, opening up access to Luclin's secrets. With his reach spreading like that, the next step would be to use the Discord portals to secretly raid their storehouses of knowledge...which would give him a vital piece of the puzzle...how to breach worlds. Combined with the power of Time, he could then expand his reach further. But perhaps it wasn't ready yet...until the events of Cazic-Thule's death, and then sleepy ressurection that tore open the Ethernere. The reason I'm thinking this way is exactly the whole 'it's in the Ethernere, but the dead absolutely cannot get in'. It could be some bizarre, strange feature...or it could be simpler than that. It could be one of the most powerful acts of Necromancy possible. The Nexus Core could be the latest iteration of Miragul's Highway, reaching to all places, all times, allowing him to learn and know /everything/. He'd have to share the secrets with the other Miraguls most likely...at least until they got themselves bumped off, or he got a chance to eliminate them and take what useful knowledge they had declined to share already. And he could certainly attune it a dragon's body parts for access. That would be a good security measure, blocking all but the most skilled and powerful people from gaining access (how many people, really, can get the needed scale?) He's got the motive, the skill, and the drive. And thanks to events in EQ1, he's got the opportunity.
Well, it couldn't be our Miragul since he trapped himself in the Eternal Prism when he used it to become a lich. Also Miragul is not a master of draconic magic. Why? Because he isn't a dragon and most of that magic relies on using the life force of the caster, often using parts of your own body to bind the magic. We have several examples of this magic in EQ2. The Epic Repercussions quest involves using blood from a willing subject. The scale we use to fix the Nexus is a special "healing scale" prepared for us to use. This doesn't involve just cutting up a dragon, it also involves the will of the dragon. This is a large reason behind why dragons consider themselves to be better than other races at magic. Also our Miragul wouldn't need the Nexus Core. He can use magic to set himself "adrift in time and space traveling on the sea of mana". Well, something like that. He can astral project himself through time and space (which is how he met the Ethernaughts) and doesn't need anything like the pots room or the Nexus Core.
