You may have noticed that one of the tags I use is "the art and science of writing". Some people will claim writing is one or the other, I claim those people are at best misguided. Given that I'm a touch busy, I'll swipe a large excerpt from an email exchange on a novel I looked at there were several standard plot elements in evidence, and unfortunately they weren't done quite good enough. Here's some advice and the definitions I use.

It should be noted that the two authors I picked were done so out of genuine respect and the ease of finding their works, I do not represent either of them.
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The only other advice I can give is to take at look at how similar things are done _well_ (not just ok, or passable) in other peoples stories and then apply the appropriate rules of structure to each of your plot/setting/character elements. Possibly look at two or three different works that do the same type thing in a way you like. The biggest problem with the prologue is that it is redundant. It also doesn't move nearly as fast as the pages coming immediately after it. Another point is that at almost 170,000 words you're well over the 120k or so words that most publishers consider for a first or even second novel by someone unproven. Trust me, you aren't hugely off the path to publication. The two super-elements to stories are The Science of Writing and The Art of Writing. The first is getting the structure in place and making things happen in the proper order, and writing in legible sentences that easily convey meaning. The second is the difference between writing a passable paragraph, and a _good_ or even excellent one. It's finding not the happy medium between Spartan and opulent articulation, but the one that best conveys and elicits what you want. The first is something people can learn by wrote, like doing math. The second is much trickier, while some people can learn one or two formulas for writing a 'pretty' book, they tend to then write 'cookie cutter' versions of the same story again, and again, and again. Almost everyone is notably stronger in one of these two area's than the other, Eric Flint for example does the Science of writing better than anyone i can think of in any genre I’ve read, but the Art is not as strong for him. Mercedes Lackey has written some really fantastic coming of age stories where she does the Art of these so well, you forget that the Science lags a bit behind.
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And while yes, I do climb up onto my hobby-horse and ride off in all directions about prologues, I usually don't hold them against people. This one was ok, but nearly all the information was relayed in the first two or so pages of chapter one, and the action in chapter one still began almost immediately.

I think, one day i may have to write my own lexicon of frequently used writing terms. It'll probably save no amount of time for my friends and clients if i send it to them along with my critiques...

Now if i just had time to write it.