Aellinia

Map of Aellinia

The **Emerald Isles**, known by its inhabitants as the **Forest of Light** **and Dark** or **Aellinia** is an archipelago consisting primarily of three major islands and many other smaller land masses. It is completely covered by the Great Forest which contains within it three distinct biomes. The demographics of the isles compose of Elves who are the predominant race alongside Gnomes and Fairies.

## History

Long in the untold past, it was said that the Emerald Isles were a pristine and wild land; even more so than in the present. Verdant, untamed forests reaching high into the skies, sheltering a mystical place which almost seemed to be in another plane considering the strange beasts, flora and other qualities which are unseen in any other parts of the world. On this untouched land were the Fey; the result of the God of Souls' experiment tinkering with human souls to reshape them into different creatures. The Fey were crafted to be extremely traditional and apprehensive towards change, and were fostered on Aellinia by Ioryx, who taught them how to manipulate their surroundings using the strength of their soul - a practice now known as magic.

Over time, the original Fey had evolved into various different folks who, over time, have come to inhabit various sections of the forest. The Gnomes were a small, whimsical people who were incredibly clever and came to enjoy the isolation and closeness to the primordial forces that the densest regions of the forest had. They mostly kept to themselves, but not out of resistance to foreign influence but from lack of interest in what they perceived as mundane. The Elves, on other other hand, bore many semblances to human societies with an emphasis on familial ties and mutual obligation to the community. They were a beautiful, fair folk whom masterfully balanced caution with curiosity to create a flourishing nation with advanced cultural, arcane and military institutions on the Ludus confluence, a city now known as Var'aellel

Once they had developed sufficiently, the Elves began to wander off their ancestral home onto the mainland, and with them they brought their knowledge of magic as tidings of good will to the people of the mainland. The mainlanders took to the arcane arts voraciously, excited by the prospect of this power that can bend reality to the user's will. Some races took to this more than others, specifically the Drey who had a natural inclination to the arcane and whom adopted the Elvish approach to magic as a force to be used for protection and conservation. Regardless, magic spread quickly across the continent and soon mages could be found in any region, although the largest concentration remained in the Daedalon, the original landing point of the Elvish expedition.

Shortly afterwards, a great debate arose on the Emerald Isles about whether or not to allow migration to the mainland. Two groups naturally arose, the Isolationists, led and composed of the conservative sections of Elvish societies, and the Migrationists, supporters of continued interactions and intermingling with the continental folk. The debate eventually became extremely heated with routine riots and violence occurring in Var'aellel. In an act of compromise to prevent further bloodshed, the two factions agreed to go their seperate ways with the Isolationists remaining in Var'aellel while the majority of the Migrationists immigrated to the mainland.

Centuries later, an arcane catastrophe occurred on the mainland. The reactions to the event were overwhelmingly hostile towards the elves who were blamed as the perpetrators or cause of the disaster as they were almost synonymous with the arcane. By this point many of them had already intermingled with humans, many of whom were overwhelmingly protective of who they now saw as brethren. Outnumbered, the elves were forced to flee the continent, returning to the Emerald Isles from whence they came, bringing with them many humans who were part of the same interracial community.

Exiled from Var'aellel, these communities gathered together in the Ludus Delta to establish a new home: **The Pale of Nhimract**, named after the first king. This town eventually grew to become the commercial centre of Aellinia and capital of the soon-to-be Republic. Combining Human dilligence with Elven wisdom, the Nhimract experienced rapid growth and expanded extremely quickly, nearly rivaling Aellinel in splendour.

In the past century, tensions have been extremely high between the two states with occasional border skirmishes between the two. Eventually, they settled upon territorial agreements with the Dark Forest being the strict boundary between the two nations. With the recent revolution in Nhimract and the interregnum in Aellinel, the battle for Aellinia has begun and the future of Elvenkind stands at a precipice.

## Geography

### **Regions**

#### Elyrion

The largest of the three isles, Elyrion is a diverse and expansive region home to the Elves. The bottom half of the island contains Ellin Forest, the largest expanse of Light Forest among the isles and whereupon the Ludus River Delta is located. Saddling atop it is the city of **Tir Ellin**, capital of the **Republic of the Elves**, a nation composed of the descendents of human and elven settler communities from the mainland. Northward from the Ludus River Delta is Ephemia Forest whereupon the more conservative and nature-connected communities of pureblooded Elves reside. Deeper in Ephemia Forest, the Ludus River Confluence holds the ancestral city of the elves, **Tir Lud**, capital of the **Kingdom of the Elves**, rival nation to the Republic.

#### Light Forest

The Light Forest is a less dense biome of the Great Forest where sunlight can still pierce the thick canopy and is primarily inhabited by Half-Elves and Sun Elves. The Light Forest is located mostly in the lower half of Ludus Island with several smaller expanses over various . Due to its relative detachment to primordial forces, the Light Forest is generally less mystical with a lower amount of arcane turbulence in the area which also leads to the flora and fauna being generally less dangerous compared to other regions which makes it more habitable and thus populated.

#### Dark Forest

The Dark Forest is a dense biome of the Great Forest where very little sunlight permeates through the canopy and is mostly inhabited by the Moon Elves and Wood Elves. This region is more connected to the primordial forces of the land and is lit dimly by exotic flora but is also occupied by various sorts of dangerous and mischievious beasts and spirits, ranging from benign to dangerous. Magic flows strongly in this area which lends to a larger population of mages and magic being used more in everyday life.

#### Black Forest

The Black Forest, coloquially known as the Sunless Expanse or the Forest of the Unreturned is the thickest biome of the Great Forest with not a speck of light piercing through its unbridled canopy. It is the home of those closest to the Fae in lineage, such as the Fairies and Eladrin. The raw, unrestrained primordial energy flowing in this area warps lifeforce itself, making it the most dangerous region of the Aellinia. Very little is known about this area as few enter and even fewer return. Those who do enter often seek to unravel the mysteries of the arcane and reality itself; for any of weaker will may find themselves led astray by all sorts of unseelie forces.

#### Central Plains

The Central Plains are a region of meadowlands eastwards of the Ludus River Delta. It is home to many more docile creatures which are often used as beasts of labour or war animals by the Republic. There have been many speculations over why Ellin Forest does not encroach here which had led to rumours that the area is cursed which had been the primary reason for why Elves did not settle this area. However, since the return of the Perion Expedition, the more realistic and driven migrationists began rapidly settling this area.

#### Harfloer

The northern island of Aellinia, Harfloer, is home to the White Tower, a famous place that is protected by great arcane and primal power. It is said that great mages, scholars and druids who seek greater power travel there to sequester themselves. Those who have sufficiently proven themselves in Harfloer are granted the title of Loremaster, and most of the greatest and wisest spellcasters in Aellinia have been here.

#### Tladargon

Tladargon is the southwestern island of Aellenia, enclosing the Bay of Stars. It is an area of extreme strategic importance for the Republic as controlling Tladargon is necessary to keep The Pale connected to the sea and so is an area of high military presence. It is on Tladargon that much of the military training academies and bases for the Republic are located. It is also the land of the Gnomes who have not taken kindly to the encroachment of the Elves.