Aegean Elves
An off-shoot of the original families that made up the Insel Elves, the elves of the northern Aeg continent are physically indistinguishable from their Insel cousins with the exception of a marginally darker skin tone. Living in more close-knit, tribal communities consisting primarily of related families, the Aegean Elves have gone to great lengths to distance themselves from many of the ideals which they believe have bred conflict among the greater elven race as well as the rest of the world.
Homeland
Dotting the northwestern coastline of the continent of Aeg, bordering both the Mesothalassa Sea and the Hydrian Ocean, the Aegean Elves settled a collection of seven small to medium-sized villages between Aborra’s Point and the Kethren Peninsula across the greater land mass which they eventually named the Beli Vaerendi. While some skirt the coast in order to take advantage of its bounties for fishing and recreation, the majority are located deeper in the thick jungle where both danger and solitude are prevalent, depending on one’s aptitude with the wilderness around him.
History
Established centuries ago as a byproduct of the Insel Exile which saw the Insel Elves banished from the Forest Realm by the Continental Elves, the sub-race now known as Aegean began to segment from the primary Insel population within a single generation of the colonization of Insel Island. Refusing to accept how their exile could justify their people’s growingly savage and violent attitude towards the rest of the world, a small group of friends and their families sought to leave the irrational nation behind and form their own community where they could live in peace. So caught up in the anger that raged through society, their absence was barely noticed as they took to the sea, heading south from Insel until they reached the foreign land of Aeg.
First settling on the coastal bluffs of Aborra’s Point, the clan eventually separated into the seven distinct tribes that exist along the Beli Vaerendi today, each distant from its neighbors to allow for a sustainable food supply but also close enough to provide for a common defense across the region as a whole. Content with the isolation that both the jungle and the greater expanses of the wild continent lend, the Aegean Elves now enjoy a life at peace, unattached from the political strife that ebbs and flows throughout the “civilized land” on the Windman continent to the north.
Society
A core belief shared across all of the Aegean tribes is the concept of living off the land, or taking just what they need to survive and also giving back to the earth in return. The mantra, "Keedrah provides..." is one that was often spoken by the first settlers to land on Aeg and has since been passed down through many generations, taught to young Aegean children very early when they are first show interest in the primary ways that many provide for the tribe, such as harvesting and hunting. The Elves believe it to be just as important to protect future generations as they do their own, thus striving to keep their impact to a minimum, and as such do not take kindly to find when others do not offer the same respect.
Interactions with “the outside world” are minimal, however they occasionally see travelers and welcome them warmly if not threatened. Although they are aware of the racial tension that is felt towards Elves in general by many from the civilized world, they have been taught down through generations that baseless intolerance and aggression doesn’t serve the time of either side and refuse to harbor ill-will towards the short-sighted. That said, both across the individual tribes as well as the people as a whole, the Aegean are fiercely loyal to one another and will fight to the death if they feel that anyone or anything has intentionally placed their kin in mortal danger.
The Seven Tribes
- Tialis (magic breeze)
- Kasal (sweet dragon)
- Cydeth (eternal onyx)
- Tahlthal (blade of the healer)
- Tahlkash (blade of the fates)
- Ferawyn (champions of music)
- Vilruil (point of nobles)
See also: Race