Time is measured very differently on Zalanthas, having much more to do with the motion of the sun and the collective movements of the sun and two moons.

 

Each day is divided into nine equal hours: before dawn, dawn, early morning, late morning, high sun, early afternoon, late afternoon, dusk, and late at night. Note that there are only two hours of sundown for every seven hours of sunup. One hour of Zalanthan time is equivalent to 10 minutes of real time.

 

Days are also grouped into weeks of eleven days: Ocandra, Terrin, Abid, Cingel, Nekrete, Waleuk, Yochem, Huegel, Dzeda, Barani, and Detal. Not much is known as to why eleven days were chosen to comprise a week, but the current superstition amongst the common folk is that each day was named after a member of the Old Council of Kings, but nobody is absolutely certain of this.

 

Days are further grouped into sets of two hundred thirty-one. This interval marks the third time the sun and two moons converge in each phase of the sun. Thus, in a 231-day phase (or month), the sun and moons will all occupy the same place in the sky, which happens to occur at midnight, exactly three times. The third time this happens, the sun is said to have moved into another phase and a new month begins.

 

There are three such phases or months in a Zalanthan year, which thus consists of 693 days. The sun returns to its original arc in the sky at the end of each year; the three primary arcs being the Arc of Descension, the Low Arc, and the Arc of Ascension.

 

Years are measured on a 77-year cycle called a King's Age. Each year in the cycle has its own name.

 

A summary of the organization of Zalanthan time might be as follows:

 

Days of the Week (11)

Ocandra

Terrin

Abid

Cingel

Nekrete

Waleuk

Yochem

Huegel

Dzeda

Barani

Detal

 

Hours in the Day (9)

Before Dawn

Dawn

Early Morning

Late Morning

High Sun

Early Afternoon

Late Afternoon

Dusk

Late at Night

 

 

Months in the Year (3)

Descending Sun

Low Sun

Ascending Sun

 

There are 21 weeks (231 days) per month, three months (63 weeks or 693 days) per year, and 77 years per King's Age.

Syntax:

time

Notes:

Real Time -> Zalanthan Time

• 10 RL mins = 1 ZT hour

• 1 RL day = 16 ZT days

• 1 RL week = ~0.5 ZT month

• 1 RL month = ~2 ZT months

• 1 RL year = ~8.5 ZT years

 

Zalanthan Time -> Real Time

• 1 ZT hour = 10 RL mins

• 1 ZT day = 90 RL mins

• 1 ZT week = 16.5 RL hours

• 1 ZT month = ~2 RL weeks

• 1 ZT year = ~43 RL days