Over the last 500 years the people of Antonica have been under heavy peril. Just about everything that could go wrong did go wrong, culminating with the moon shattering and showering the face of the lands with pieces. Survivors of massive devastation flood throughout the land! They struggle to reestablish their lives within the existing (and thriving) social structures.
Luclin then erupted! It is still visible up in the sky but only as debris fragments orbiting the moon's shattered core. The pieces that fell to Norrath have completely altered the face of the landscape. Some have vanished to extinction. Others such as Antonica have been broken up into new continents.
However, through luck or some devine intervention the two human cities were all but left in tact. Bearing in mind that the Shattering happened just over a decade ago, we notice that every race except humans has been cut off from its people by the devastation. Refugees are flooding into Qeynos and Freeport not out of choice but because they have nowhere else to go. Some races have acted more aggressively to this than others. The Iksar in particular detest having to coexist with 'softskins' but they really have no alternative course of action. The fact that the proud Iksar have been forced into this situation has had a major impact upon their culture. To say they are bitter and resentful is an understatement. It is worth noting that the Iksar are not the only proud race being corralled into the situation. High Elves may be noble and for the most part lighthearted but they also have a great deal of pride and perhaps feel that they are above the other races. Being forced to depend on a lesser race for survival is bound to take a toll on their society.
The Antonica known in the history books is no more. Some parts of the land are large enough to be considered continents. Most noticeably the lands of Karan and D'Lere. These areas now hold the cities of Qeynos and Freeport. Some other areas that were known are indeed located on their own islands now. It was not just the destruction of the moon that caused this. Norrath has suffered through 500 years of devastation. A long period of natural disasters and climatic changes, known as the Age of Cataclysms. What was once known as the lands of Antonica are now simply referred to as the Shattered Lands. Looked over by its one remaining moon, Drinal.