THE GREYHAWK CALENDAR

The Following material describes the standard calendar familiar to the civilized inhabitants of the Flanaess. The calendar is very old, much of it predating the founding of the Great Kingdom in the year 1 CY. It is important to note that the Common Year Calendar does not have a "zero year". Most historians of the Flanaess use other dating systems when talking about ancient history.

A month consists of 28 days, divided into four weeks of seven days each. The month's length is based on the period of Oerth's Great Moon, Luna. A year is divided into twelve months (called a Dozenmonth), further divided into four groups of three months each, separated by weeklong festivals, for a total of 364 days. The timing of the festivals is determined by the period of the lesser moon, Celene; the fourth (middle) day of each festival is when Celene is full. The dates of each full Luna wander through the year as the Festival  weeks throw off the Calendar cycle, though at least they do so on a predictable basis.

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Annual Events

This section describes the major annual events commonly recognized in the central Flanaess, particularly the Domain of Greyhawk, focusing on the four festival weeks of the calendar year and certain days of importance to the functioning of the government of the City of Greyhawk. Only the most significant and widely celebrated religious holidays are given here. In addition, each religion has its own set of holy days in addition to this list, and each city and town celebrates its own secular holidays, most of them of minor importance elsewhere.

Needfest : This frigid seven-day period marks the transition from one calendar year to another, and it is usually accounted as the start of the new year. In many areas in the central Flanaess, the week is spent feasting, drinking, dancing, gift-giving, putting up lights and decorations, and in revelry. Many religions celebrate midwinter with good deeds, charity, or observations of the sky. Various civic government functions take place during this time, as well. The evening of Needfest Godsday is also known as Midwinter Night. In the City of Greyhawk, the height of the midwinter celebration is Needfest 7th (a Freeday), known as the Feast of Fools. Madness reigns for precisely seven hours under the leadership of The Fool, the most talented bard or jester in the city.

Great Moons Glory: On Readying Ilth, Luna is full but Celene is new. This night is called Great Moon’s Glory. The church of Celestian regards this night as holy, with the usual all-night outdoor vigil of the heavens outside the Grey College Observatory. Oeridian citizens make offerings to shrines to the lesser goddess Atroa on this night, asking the Queen of Spring to come early. Offerings to shrines to Telchur (the Oeridian god of the north and winter) are also made, praising his work but suggesting he go home to the pole and sleep. Local druids and their small congregations also hold this night sacred, but little is known of their activities. Many farmers and herdsmen mark this night as the true beginning of spring, though Readying 1st is the calendar date for spring's start.

Growfest:  In Greyhawk, Growfest is not taken as a week-long public holiday, though it is regarded as a time of good cheer with the full arrival of spring. The weather is usually blustery, with cool sunny days alternating with heavy rain. Farmers, herders, longshoremen and other workers prepare for the upcoming busy summer, and merchant activity is high. Growfest 4th, Godsday, is St. Cuthbert's Day, the largest annual festival celebrated by those of that faith. In the City of Greyhawk, the highlight of Growfest for the rest of the populace comes on Freeday evening, Growfest 7^th. This event is the Desportium of Magick, a contest between illusionists who seek to cast the most magnificent display of illusion/phantasm magic on an established theme, that of a historical attack by monsters and humanoids on the Grand Citadel.

Richfest: The hot, breezy week of Richfest is not kept as a public holiday in Greyhawk. Midsummer Day (Richfest 4th) is the only real celebration, when the city takes off to celebrate the height of summer and give thanks to the appropriate gods for any good fortune they've had. Midsummer Day is called the Holy Day of Pelor. Pelor - master of the sun, light, and healing - is beloved of many of Greyhawks populace, and this day sees the largest religious festival held in the Free City in Pelor's honor. The evening of Riclifest 4th is Midsummer Night. Both moons are full, and at midnight Celene eclipses Luna. This is a portentous evening, sacred to many religions, and sometimes astronomical phenomena are seen that hint at future events, good and ill. This is the best night of all for druids to collect mistletoe, but it is also the night on which the greatest number of werewolves are out, as the combined effect of the two moons makes it nearly impossible for lycanthropes to avoid were‑change.

Dark Night: Both moons of Oerth are new on the night of Goodmonth 11th (always a Godsday), which earns this evening various tides such as the Dark Night, Black Night or Star Night. While certain religious groups spend the night observing the skies for portents (or taking advantage of its darkness for acts of evil or thievery), many ordinary folk light all­ night bonfires.

Brewfest:  Only the first and last days of Brewfest (Starday and Freeday) are public holidays in the City of Greyhawk, meaning that no one can be coerced to work, and public revelry is encouraged by the government However, many citizens take this faIl celebration of the last harvest completely to heart, and public intoxication is common. The city takes on a circus atmosphere, and the streets are filled with actors, jugglers, acrobats, animal and monster trainers (with their best "pets"), and grinning adventurers showing off their latest trophies. The festival is celebrated throughout the central Flanaess.

Time-Keeping

Most timekeeping on Oerth is performed by sundials, which indicate not only the time of day but also the month and day of the year. This is because Oerth's axial tilt causes the sun's shadow to wander over the ground in a curving pattern that repeats every year; a sundial can track this effect, known as far back as the days of the Suel Imperium. Water clocks and mechanical clocks, powered by coiled wind up springs or pendulums and weights, are also used, but these are costly and difficult to make, often tastelessly ornamented, and prone to inaccurate readings. Perfectly accurate magical time pieces have been created by priests and wizards, but these are so expensive that guilds for navigators and night watchmen are the primary buyers. Minor spells allow sundials in public areas to register the time even on cloudy days, and these are sufficient for most public needs. The clerics of those deities concerned with time such as Istus, Cyndor or Lendor, are valued and sought for their timing of ceremonies, complex spells and military activities, and they are gainfully employed by certain merchants, governments, wizard's guilds, the military and others.