Anthelamite Nation

The Anthelamatie Nation existed in the north of the Augal sea for 4,769 years between its foundation in the immediate hours in the aftermath of the Goddeath and its destruction in 2269LA. It was a nation of elven slavers who would adapt their bodies to aid their rule and by doing so become the Drow. In its long history, it would be known as many names. The final iteration was known as Anolth to the Drow.

### Politics

Due to its nature, very few have an understanding of its governance, and much has been lost to history. Its early iterations seemed to have a consular system nearly identical to Kier, though records in the early LA speak of various Kings and monarchs, later replaced by a mageocratic elite, and its latter centuries, a complex quasi-feudal system of noble, matriarchal families, that survives in a gender-neutral continuation with the various enclaves that survived its downfall.

### Culture

For nearly its entire existence, the Anthelamites relied on a working caste of supposedly lesser creatures to sustain a high standard of living for their elven elite. Initially this would be a construct force, but later would be a slave pool taken from the surrounding regions, primarily humans.

Fictional literature was known to be a major occupation for the idle elite, along with blood sports, poetry, fine dining, and beast taming. The principle intent with many of these activities was activity for activities sake, to display the wealth, power, and sophistication of the individual.

### History

#### Origins

The Agony is an archipelago in the northern portion of the Augal Sea. It is saturated in Soulblight, and is one of the most inhospitable regions of the world. Once the idyllic island of Anthelam, it was the site of a major Divine Era fortress and subterranean vaults. This bastion would survive the Godswar with a great stock of weaponry in its lower vaults.

It would be at this fortress that many elves and dragons fleeing the demontide would arrive from their homeworld of Balthuin at the culmination of the Godswar. This mass of refugees had been shepherded to safety by their patron Goddess, Kornalla. They would receive guidance from Kornalla to go north and seek a new homeland, away from Anthelam, for there were many aspects of the fortress that housed dreadful dangers. Many would heed this advice, braving the dangers of the world still beset by the horrors of the divine conflicts, eventually finding and founding the city state of Kier, and several other northern elven realms. However, nearly half – including many dragons – would not heed this advice and would remain within the safety of the subterranean fortresses.

Those that remained would take full advantage of many of the features and secrets of the fortress to turn Anthelam into a major power within the region, forming an isolationist empire that dominated the Augal sea for most of its existence. The relative splendour and power led to an increasing sense of superiority over the region. With the New Age Collapse, there would be a dramatic decline power of the nation as the constructs used as the menial labour for the nation gradually ceased to function forcing the elves to look elsewhere for base labour to sustain their high living standards.

The primary source would be slaves, acquired from the coastal nations of the western hemisphere in night time raids. This practice would earn the elves of Anthelam the eternal enmity of the peoples of the region, but would not face significant opposition from the far weaker neighbours, and with the supreme defensive capabilities of the fortress cities of the land it was essentially immune to any and all responses.

#### Birth of the Drow

In time, while the island was resolute and safe from assault, the surrounding regions would periodically see nations rise to power with the capacity to fend off raids and protect their coasts. In tune with the wider affairs of the region, Anthelam would often acquire colonies on the various islands of the Augal sea and in various coastal regions. Rarely did this small dominion extend far inland, as the numerically smaller elven nation generally preferred to subjugate A few were even of such power that they could invade the island, though not take the cities. These invasions by numerically larger forces happened at several points throughout history. The Elves would shift from larger invasion raids to hard hitting night raids, enhancing their gene lines using technologies from the deep vaults of the cities, making them superlative night fighters. Some of these changes would manifest generations later with less positive effects, but the elves of Anthelam are now largely viewed as a subspecies of the wider Elven race: Drow.

#### Downfall

These conditions would persist with reasonable stability – though with many shorter-term periods of chaos – for several millennia until the island was largely occupied by Hasader forces during the Great Purges of the 16th and 17th centuries LA. Though the fortresses remained inviolate, the lands themselves were devastated by raiders, and many smaller settlements were destroyed, the Elves captured subjected to terrible acts by vengeful slaves and zealous Hasaders.

This would begin the twilight era of Anthelam. Though the Hasaders would move on, the devastation of the occupation and the riots amongst the slave population would be catastrophic. It would take centuries to re-establish itself, and regain its standing in the region. With the powerful Zachliche Empire to the west, Septima and Zelira to the north, the elves looked southwards, reaving on the Arban and Palatine regions, regaining many of its colonies upon the southern and eastern portions of the Augal sea. In 2004LA, they would reach the apex of this resurgence with the sack of Avum, with a significant portion of the population taken as slaves.

The Elves of Anthelam would look towards their northern cousins with increasing jealousy in this time. Kier was the only surviving northern elven realm, and was a store of many artifacts and much lore. In one of the most catastrophic overextensions in diplomatic history, Anthelam would attack the Kieri elves at the Assembly of Woe in 2262LA, an event that would be known as the Brethren War. Though Anthelam had a huge advantage in numbers and military tradition, distance meant the campaign was likely to be a slow one. The overextension caused many regional enemies taking independent actions while Anthelam was at war. The Zachliche Commonwealth launched several naval blockades, while engaging in a race with the Avum Empire and Kingdom of Septima to assault the various island colonies. Kier was slow to mobilise, but with an advantage in dragons. Supported as a proxy by the other nations of the region to strike against Anthelam, Kier would eventually succeed in landing a significant force upon Anthelam. By this stage, the process of the war had become apparent, and the Elves of Anthelam had decided to withdraw the majority of their population and forces to main fortresses upon the Island and wait out the sieges, trusting in the strength of their defences and in a lack of Kieri willingness to fight a prolonged conflict.

Eight months into this siege, in the year 2269LA, the siege would take a cataclysmic turn when a vast stockpile of soulblight would be unleashed upon the island, after which the entire landmass would experience massive earthquakes and subsidence, with much of the lowlands sinking under the waves. The Soulblight and the rising seas led to the total annihilation of the Anthelam nation. Millions of elves and countless more slaves would perish or worse, the lucky drowning or dying in the panic and confusion, the more unfortunate falling victim to the soulblight. Hereafter, the region would be colloquially known as the Agony.

It is widely accepted that this stockpile existed within the deep vaults of Anthelam. What is disputed is whether it’s release was triggered by the Anthelamites themselves, or by the Kieri invaders. It was widely accepted in the immediate aftermath that Kier had done so, though since the previously isolationist Keiri have become more integrated the wider world, they have continually and strenuously denied this presumption.

#### Legacy

The greatest legacy of the Anthelamite nation is the existence of the Drow, who were now persist across the world. Many of the Drow cling to their ancestral traditions, reaving and raiding from hidden colonies. The destruction of their homeland forced the drow to adapt, and they would take advantage of their superior abilities within the dark to establish new, hidden enclaves within the depths of the world.

The children of Anthelam must live constantly on the far edges of society and far out of sight of the many forces who would seek vengeance upon the Drow for the actions of their ancestors. Bereft of the sanctuary of their fortress home, the once mighty of Anthelam are pariahs due to their past transgressions, and many willing to pay back the centuries of cruelty with interest.