Feadhainn

Feadhainn was one of the first major civilizations to exist in the Draoidh Valley and Monaidh Plains in modern-day Duilintinn, Tirónar. Its rise and fall would define the time period known today as the "Feadhainn Era" in Duilintinn and create the basis of the kingdom's calendar. With architectural feats and magical discoveries that literally changed the course of history, Feadhainn's impact can be felt in Duilintinn to this day, over a millennia after its fall.

## Name Origin

Feadhainn has a variety of meanings, such as “the folk,” “the people,” “the few,” “the ones,” etc. It’s vague, yeah, but there’s something very fitting about that.

Tolkien had his first civilization of elves call themselves the Quendi (”those who speak with voices”) because they were the only speaking race they had encountered up to that point.

Similarly, the Feadhainn were one of the first human civilizations between the northern and southern mountains; it makes sense that their name would be similarly vague.

Feadhainn is pronounced 'Fyah-yan'

## Phenotype

The stereotypical Feadhainn phenotype is similar to the Mediterranean phenotype, with dark, curly hair and an olive skin tone that, in darker shades, sometimes looks like you've got a tan all the time.

## Origins and Magic

Presumed to be one of the original civilizations to rise after the first souls were born, the Feadhainn civilization began on the banks of Loch Glas, which filled the whole bottom of the Draoidh Valley at the time. What little we know about their history is mired in myths and legends about magic, nature, and the Fae Folk, which were considered to be interlinked.

Due to its proximity to the Fae Garden known as the Western Forest, which, at the time, was far larger and even more magically active, Feadhainn interacted with members of the Fae Folk more than any civilization has since. Most modern-day superstitions about the Fae, whether based in truth or fallacy, originated from Feadhainn legend, including the term “fairies,” the power of names, and their supposed hatred of iron and love of shiny things.

In addition, this up-close-and-personal relationship with the fae folk heavily influenced Feadhainn’s beliefs about magic. Specifically, the people of Feadhainn believed that these supernatural beings would choose worthy mortals to receive magical abilities and become their champion. In order to understand why they were chosen and ensure they lived up to the expectations of their fae patrons, mages were encouraged to think upon their personal beliefs to determine what aspect of their character feels the most important to them, dedicating themselves and their magic to these things.

While the mythology behind this tradition was just that- myth- there was no arguing with the results. Today, we call this self-reflection and dedication to one’s values a magical focus. However, unlike today, there was no training element to unlocking magic or choosing a focus. All mages unlocked their magic by accident; the true nature of magic and souls wouldn’t be discovered until Feadhainn’s Golden Age.

To reflect their beliefs about magic, mages would wear intricate animal masks. The creature depicted in each mask was a personal choice that symbolized to the wearer the values and intentions they discovered during their self-reflection, and there was a great ceremony around the decision. Mages would often spend days reflecting, either alone or with people close to them. In a tradition that exists to this day, upon announcing their choice and receiving a mask, the mage be considered fully mature in their magic, just like modern-day journeyman mages.

## Golden Age and Decline

A few centuries after the transition from a hunter-gatherer to an agricultural society, the Feadhainn people realized that they’d need more land for agriculture. The only way to expand was east, but the Monaidh Plains are incredibly dry, with only the Guardian River to the east as one of the few consistent sources of moisture and, by extension, agriculture. Therefore, in a stunning feat of technology and construction, the people of Feadhainn diverted the Agrona River.

According to Duil tradition, the year 0 on their calendar marks this tremendous accomplishment. While the accuracy of the date is difficult to prove for certain, its indisputable that, by diverting the river, Feadhainn changed the course of the land's history forever.

By forcing the Agrona River to flow along the edge of the valley before diving down into Loch Glas, Feadhainn could now irrigate the Monaidh Plains for agriculture and expand their civilization further east. At the same time, the hundreds of small, man-made tributaries would deplete some of the Agrona’s massive supply of water before it had a chance to reach Loch Glas. This caused the lake to shrink significantly, opening up the Draoidh Valley for further settlement. The resulting expansion would mark the beginning of Feadhainn’s Golden Age.

Cities such as Mulladún, along the banks of this now-diverted river, and Monacoil, within the valley itself, would be the crowning jewels of Feadhainn civilization. One city by the powerful force of nature they bent to their will, and the other within the new land that they revealed through their efforts.

After diverting the Agrona, Feadhainn became obsessed with performing similar feats of power and control over the natural world. Combined with the construction of a city just outside the Western Forest, this ambition resulted in an explosion of discoveries about the nature of magic, souls, and the Fae Folk. Unfortunately, these advancements had some devastating repercussions.

While Feadhainn did see some mages abuse their powers prior to the Golden Age, these were isolated cases, used as lessons warning against such actions. In general, the mythology around magic and the significance of the mask ceremony ensured that the vast majority of Feadhainn mages actually did the self-reflection needed to form what we call a “focus” today.

However, as young mages in Golden Age Feadhainn increased their understanding of magic, those beliefs began to hold less and less significance. People started intentionally unlocking their magic, not realizing that such abilities are a permanent responsibility. Others, disillusioned with the idea of a higher purpose behind their magic, began using their abilities for selfish or even downright evil purposes.

As a result, out-of-control magic users became a serious problem about halfway into Feadhainn’s Golden Age. While these dangerous mages were mostly kept under control by their less-chaotic brethren, the endless strife between these two different magical ideologies would slowly consume Feadhainn culture.

In the end, the resulting destabilization and conflict likely contributed, at least in part, to Feadhainn’s destruction during the Dragon War.

We know very little about the catastrophic conflict between the dragons. It ranged sometime between 500 and 600, possibly as long as a century. When the dust settled, the dragons were extinct, and they nearly brought the whole continent down with them. In a disaster rivaling the real-world Bronze Age Collapse, the civilizations of Tirónar’s northern shores were almost entirely wiped from memory, while Feadhainn was reduced to scattered groups of survivors living in cities of charred stone.

### Mining

Many scholars of Feadhainn history believe that their mining practices formed the mountain pass between Haneul and Duilintinn.

This theory is mostly due to the location of the pass and its geological makeup.

Most scholars agree that Feadhainn’s first great architectural achievement was the diverting of the Agrona River. This not only sparked the civilization’s golden age, but the architectural style we associate with Feadhainn today as well.

Since the mountain pass is situated so close to the source of the Agrona River, it would be extremely convenient for mining the necessary resources for that original project. Then, when Feadhainn moved on to other architectural endeavors, they probably decided to just keep mining from the same spot, rather than set up the infrastructure somewhere else.

Moreover, the stone in that part of the Northern Mountains is the same mineral (is that the term?) used in the classic blue-grey hue of Feadhainn stonework. Granted, there are other places this stone could be mined, but the fact remains.

When the theory was first proposed, people started to take a closer look at the pass itself for any hints at the theory’s validity. Sure enough, while the pass itself is extremely hazardous and seems to be mostly formed by a long-gone river or glacier, there are a few spots on the Duilintinn side that seem to form stairsteps, so gradual and worn away by time that you’d never notice unless you were looking for them.

A popular rumor says that this theory was first proposed when someone thought to wonder why the insanely steep Northern Mountains just *happened* to have a reasonably-traversable spot just a little to the right of the Agrona River. And when you put it that way…

On another note

The Dwarves were probably part of the reason why Feadhainn only mined the surface of the Northern Mountains.

As mentioned above, the pass over the Northern Mountains between Duilintinn and Haneul was formed by Feadhainn mining the surface of the mountains for their golden age construction projects.

That does beg the question, however; why did they only mine the surface?

Most likely, it was the Dwarves. The Dragon War which ended Feadhainn’s golden age also prompted the Dwarves’ discontinued use of the tunnels underneath the non-mountainous parts of Tirónar.

Therefore, it’s possible that, while those tunnels were actually in use, the Dwarves had agreements with the surface-dwelling residents of Tirónar asking them not to dig too deep, for fear of encroaching on their domain.

## Cultural Legacy

While the arrival of the Waldren Trade Enterprise in 975 ensured that Feadhainn would never return to its former glory, its descendants never gave up on their heritage. Centuries later, Fort Conchúr, Iolla Beacon, Monacoil, Mulladún, and dozens of other examples of Feadhainn Era architecture are standing and lived-in to this day. Their history and legends are passed down to each new generation in stories and songs. The Feadhainn language, once at risk of being destroyed by the common tongue, has been preserved in the names of dozens of locations across Duilintinn.

Many elements of Feadhainn's culture live on today in Duilintinn's traditions and beliefs. Celebrations such as Name Days and *especially* weddings have major Feadhainn influences.

### Weddings

Unlike real-world European marriage ceremonies, which are often designed to represent the unification of two different families, the marriage ceremonies of Feadhainn were meant to symbolize the creation of an entirely new family, with ties to both but allegiance to neither.

Amphitheaters originate from Feadhainn culture, who used them for weddings like we do today. The layout of these structures emphasized the individualist nature of the ceremony; the lack of a parental figure "giving away" the bride emphasizes that neither party is losing their individuality in getting married. The idea was that these two people have found each other to be worthy individuals, and are pledging to continue to respect that individuality in marriage.

This is why the colors/symbols of each family feature heavily in weddings, both past and present. Today, they'd depict the Noble Houses of the two families, but back in Feadhainn times, it'd be your family's insignia or crest. To have both symbols hanging side-by-side shows that both parties respect and recognize the identity of the other. This was a significant symbolic gesture in Feadhainn culture, where individuality and identity were such a big deal.

This is also where the traditional "show-off" between the chosen champions of both partners comes from. By demonstrating their ability to defend the couple, the families are also demonstrating their willingness to defend the individuality of their union as a separate family unit from those of their relatives. No overbearing in-laws here! While Duilintinn's wedding traditions have dropped those implications almost entirely, most ceremonies still include this moment.

Finally, the exchange of personal vows was a Feadhainn tradition as well and is used in Duilintinn to this day.

### Texts and Translations

In recent years, historians and linguists in Duilintinn have attempted to translate recovered texts in the Feadhainn language through the use of translation magic, scholarly research, and the accounts passed through the generations of Feadhainn's descendants.

One of the most significant of these texts was translated magically by Bard Scholar Autumn Green and Mage Morgana Spewraith in July 1614. Dubbed "The Ranger's Tale," this original telling of a popular fairy tale has extremely dark implications about Fae Magic and the ability of a mortal soul to wield it. After its publication in August 1614, The Watch has latched onto this text as the key to understanding The Enemy's powers.

### Architecture

Several of buildings built in Feadhainn's Golden age survived, or still feature heavily. Places like Mulladun and Monacoil still heavily feature the Feadhainn style of architecture; which looks like cylinders stacked on top of each other, each cylinder becoming increasingly smaller the higher they go.

Buildings like Fort Conchur and Iolla Lighthouse are also still standing examples of Feadhainn architecture, but feel into disrepair over the centuires before being restored by the Watch.

That said, most of the structures built during the Feadhainn Era now feature newer, wooden flooring.

There’s a fairly simple reason for this; the original floors were at least a thousand years old by the time Duilintinn was founded. Despite how long Feadhainn’s architecture had lasted in most other respects, gravity and exposure to the elements left most of the upper floors of these structures in a weakened condition.

Granted, some of the original floorings probably could have been left alone without the risk of sending someone falling through the ceiling, but no one wanted to take that risk.

Places such as Monacoil and Mulladún, which were already occupied prior to Duilintinn’s founding, were renovated over time by its various occupants. Some structures were still in disrepair, but the vast majority of both cities had been livable for some time.

On the other hand, places like Fort Conchúr and Iolla Beacon were almost completely abandoned. In a series of government-created civil projects, these structures and others like them were repaired over the course of several years. This was when the modern wooden floors were added.

After the repairs had been completed, barely a few months passed before The Watch was founded and both structures were chosen for its use. To this day, the original reason why both structures were being repaired is unknown. Perhaps it was nothing more than a public works project to bring the kingdom together, or an attempt to preserve the land’s ancient heritage.