Il Umbral

Il Umbral is a principality formed by the titular island, Il Umbral, and certain areas on the continent, east of the Abyssal Trench and surrounding the Great Silver Ribbon. Governed by the institution of the Prince, its capital is the eponymous city, Il Umbral. Commonly acknowledged as the most ancient of the constituent entities of the Coastal Concordat, it is particularly known for being the center of faith among worshippers of the Tidemother and her descendent deities, Umberlee, Sehanine Moonbow, and Deep Sashelas, as such being home to the Temple of the Tides.

### **Description**

#### Geography

The capital city spans the narrowest part of the island, and famously has two major institutions: the Temple of the Tides, crowning the cliffs facing out atop the eastern (and much more utilized) bay and port, and the Tidekeep, on the shallower southern-facing inlet. The castle sits on the endless waterfalls fed by the perpetually snowcapped mountains that cover most of the larger northern part of the island, the tallest of which is named Ilmarin.

The Temple is famed for both its white spires sitting on the white cliffs of the bay, and the numerous floating crystals that orbit the varying spires of the Temple complex. The different colors - shades of blue, green, cerulean, white, and more- track various tidal and astronomical metrics. With training, a Tidesage can read the position of the crystals relative to the towers as a tidal clock, to see the phase and position of the moon, solstices and equinoxes, and (apocryphally) even eclipses, among other things. Being a common sight, many Il Umbran sailors are able to read the tidal clock when entering the east bay, but would be hard-pressed to accurately read it from the east. A formal part of Tidesage training is being able to discern all the information from any place a view can be had.

The homes and shops and buidings of the city are white and grey stone, in rolling tiers fitting the sharply-rising ground as it comes in from the blue water. The streets are the same stone, and the retaining walls of each level are draped with hanging plants, the flowers of which bloom in bursts of white and yellow and purple.

#### Government

The Tidekeep is the home of the Prince of Il Umbral, the head of state. The Prince is elected to the position for life, barring abdication and/or impeachment by a quorum of Council members (being seven of a total number of twelve, duly elected by their city provinces of residence), following the death of the previous Prince.

The title stems from a tradition of regarding the Tidemother as Queen Regnant, and is drawn from Deep Sashelas’ honorific of (Dolphin) Prince. The Prince’s rule is considered as a holy charge from the Tidemother and their “domain” is Il Umbral and its people. In practice, the Prince rules in a sort of dyad with the Amphidrome - whether that dynamic is positive or negative is contextual.

### **History**

#### Pre-History

Oral tradition among Il Umbrans holds that the first sentient beings on this plane arose from or around (depending on the teller) the sheltered bay forming the Great Silver Ribbon, though there is no historical record to verify this. It is, however, certain to be one of the (possibly the) oldest cities on the Shatterglass Sea, being able to trace a distinct identity back thousands of years, with the forming of the island.

#### Formation

Before becoming an island, the land that forms it was a peninsula, connected to the mainland. When the Mistmaw first appeared and began to encroach on the land, the peoples that lived there fled its path. The farthest many of them could get was the end of the peninsula, where they were trapped between the water and the creeping mist. Deep Sashelas heard their laments, and took pity on the people. They called on their sister Sehanine Moonbow, and with the moonlight holding back the dark, the Prince of Dolphins called in the water to sunder the land and cut the peninsula off. They and their dolphin familiars towed the new island and anchored it further out in the bay. The Temple of the Tides was founded shortly after this, by a collective of the people.

#### Age of Monsters

In the Age of Monsters, preceding the founding of the Concordat, Il Umbral was a warlike state.  The coast had been at war for generations. Veneration of the Tidemother, while nominally the dominant religion, was pervasively perfunctory. The Temple served more as a political vehicle than the beating heart of a faith.

In 37 BC (Before Concordat), Ossë Trell began his reformation of the Temple, eventually becoming the Amphidrome of the Tides and a spiritual leader of Il Umbral. He used his influence to withdraw Il Umbran forces from all conflicts and institute a protective state of embargo on the island. No outside eye set sight on Il Umbral for almost four decades, until the Amphidrome ended the isolation. He went to the island of Tarravega, and with seven other heroes, founded the Coastal Concordat.

#### Present Day

The intervening years between the Age of Monsters and present saw Il Umbral becoming an integral part of the Concordat body. It is the capital of veneration of the Tidemother, as well as being the center of the Tidesage temples and training.

### **Population**

The population of Il Umbral is comprised of many peoples; any race naturally found on or in the Shatterglass Sea can also be found as native Il Umbran. Stretching back almost to its beginning, it has had a reputation for being a melting pot; first as accepting any able recruit to its military (preceding the Age of Monsters), and later, as taking in any supplicant or orphan who presented themselves at a Temple.

While not as large as other cities in the Concordat, the majority of the Il Umbran populace lives in the capital city. There are some farms on the mainland, but none that go too close to the Mistmaw.

### **Culture**

Lauded for its natural beauty, the nature of being an island defines Il Umbral. The people are a proud and practical folk. Building their city of the white stone comprising the coastline where the land narrows, they built to endure, for wild storms come out of the Mistmaw and batter the land and sea. It’s considered a good omen, though - it means Umberlee is battling whatever evil lurks there and protecting the people.

Formerly a significant military power, since the founding of the Concordat the island has shifted to its new status as the religious capital of the unified Sea. Boasting a large number of skilled artisans, the city mostly imports raw materials and what foods the domestic farms don't provide, and exports fine goods and art. Through Belport as the window to the continent, and as the first stop for all exports from Nightreach, Il Umbral enjoys a thriving trade.

It’s particularly renowned for its glasswork, especially mosaics - all Tidesage temples across the Shatterglass Sea have some degree of ocean-hued mosaic work, as well as particularly rich estates which can afford to import a master. The main Temple’s mosaic begins at the entrance gate, far away from the main spire, and culminates in a multi-story image of the three Tides - Sehanine Moonbow in the sky, her hair coming down and entwining with Umberlee’s in the deep, who is reaching out for Deep Sashelas playing in the foamy sallows. The negative space between the three is reminiscent of a full-bodied woman. The Seoledair estate is also famed for its Il Umbran mosaic work, though few outside of the family have been invited to see it.

### **Etymology**

After Deep Sashelas formed the island, the people named their new home “Il Umbral” - *il* being the royal third-person pronoun and *umbral* meaning “dark; night-time” in the ancient tongue, translating roughly to “the Prince’s Night”.