What follows is a basic timeline and historical outline of the setting. Beginning with humans on Earth.

2092: Earth’s natural resources are dwindling. Efforts to replenish the damaged ecosystems of the world have come too little too late. Population controls are in place, searches have begun for new worlds to settle, probes sent far out into space. Nations unite to begin heavy research into long-distance space travel.

2120: Data broadcast back by long-searching probes prompts massive space travel research rush. Long distance colonist ship construction is at its peak.

2134: Cryostasis technology perfected. Spurred by data received from probes, the first two colony ships are dispatched to nearby star systems.

2140: Data from a habitable planet dubbed Tintare II is received, showing no evidence of pre-existing civilization.

2142: Colony Ship Ventara (23 crew, 257 colonists) is dispatched to the Tintare system. ETA: 85.7 years.

2143-2150: 12 more colony ships dispatched over the course of 7 years.

2151: Angered by Earth’s encroachment into their territories, the alien race known as the Demnoc, after destroying the Colony Ship Troy, trace it back to Earth and declare war. Depleted by the race to complete and dispatch colony ships, Earth is unable to defend itself.

2154: After several failed attempts to destroy the Demnoc, resulting only in a nuclear winter, Earth is defeated. What humans remain are gathered by the Demnoc and taken as slaves. 12% of Earth’s previous population remains in hiding, its civilization shattered.

2230: Colony Ship Ventara, unaware of Earth’s downfall, arrives at the Tintare system three years behind schedule, due to inaccurate estimations of distance. Preparations to abandon the drained Colony Ship begin. Crew begins shuttling colonists and supplies to the chosen location on the surface of Tintare II.

2231: Last of the colonists and supplies are shuttled to the surface. All but one shuttle left on the colony ship. Drained of fuel, only supplied for the trip to this system, it is now useless, left in orbit.

2232: Construction of first Terran settlement on Tintare II completed. Exploration of surrounding areas begins.

2233: Summer: Evidence of other sentient lifeforms discovered. Three colonists do not return from exploration party. Survivors claim a “monster” attacked them.

2233: Winter: More sightings of “monsters”. Four more deaths. More evidence of civilization discovered. Debate arises over whether or not to return to the colony ship and attempt to signal for help. Near-panic, overlying sentiment: The Probe was wrong! There are already people here!

2234: After subduing a panic-stricken party attempting to steal the one remaining shuttle, a consensus is reached amongst the colony leaders to dismantle the shuttle and piece it out for supplies, thus destroying any possibility of returning to the ship.
All exploration parties are recalled, further exploration postponed to focus on expanding and fortifying settlement. No further incidents for ten years.

2244: Hunting party encounters a group of beings of another race. Appearance mirrors that of “elves” of Earth lore. Tall, slender, pointed ears. Friendly, though language barrier makes any true communication impossible. Mutual education on both parts begins.

2245: Language barrier breakthroughs reveal this planet to already be populated by several races, including many previously thought by humanity to be purely “mythical”. Planet name De’Ru.

2246: Alliances and trade agreements formed with the “elven” nation. Exploration parties consisting of both races set out together to meet with groups from the other peoples of De’Ru. Due to elven members of the party acting as delegates and translators, contact established with other races is peaceful.

Through their contact with the Elven Nation, the Human settlers learned that there were three known races native to De’Ru. The hexapodal beings known as the De’Rukai, the De'Rochnei, and the Garroch. The other “fantasy” races now inhabiting the world had emigrated to De’Ru via a rift in time and space. Most of these races had immediately sought out the De’Rukai, this race being the most common and most overall friendly of the three, and formed alliances and peaceful relations to avoid conflict, having entered as trespassers and interlopers. The De’Rukai are shrewd traders, inventors, and merchants, and were pleased simply to have more people with which to barter their wares.
The De’Rukai make their homes underground in a massive river and canyon system, pocketed with caves. The Garroch live in deep forests and mountains at the southern pole, and the Shelsaire have no proper civilization.  It was for these reasons the probe did not pick up evidence of their existence.
Fantasy races arrived shortly after Ventara ship left earth. Though they have names by which they call themselves, the Humans took to calling them by the names of the creatures in Earth mythology they most closely resembled. Large numbers, and, subsequently, civilizations exist of the following: Elves, Dwarves, Centaurs, Halflings, Lizardmen, Minotaurs, Orcs, and Trolls. Interspersed or independent smatterings of the following exist in small numbers: Dre’ak, Lycanthropes, Vampires, Giants, Goblins, Ogres, Fairies, Sprites, and Nymphs. Most disturbing and fascinating to the colonists on De’Ru was a creature that most closely resembled Earth’s mythological dragon. Many a scientist amongst the colonists took up a dedicated study of this particular beast.
The technology level of De’Ru varies between medieval (fantasy races) and industrial steam power (De’Rukai). The discovery of “magic” and subsequent proof of its undeniable existence by the elves was a shock to many colonists, and there occurred several accidents and even a death as a result of unsafe experiments.
The colonists, who came to be known among the other races of De’Ru as Terrans, did away with all but the most necessary of their advanced technology, opting to avoid tainting the natural evolution of this world’s technology, and to prevent such things as energy weapons from falling into the wrong hands.
For more information on the races of De'Ru, see the People section.