Architecture
Anquilian architecture is often a mishmash of ancient and new construction, built with functionality and protection in mind overall. Elven and Halgian ruins are relatively common throughout the continent, though most are damaged beyond all possible repair. New buildings are generally short and squat, with thick stone and hardened wood in dome shapes or natural mimicry to blend in with the surroundings and avoid notice.
Though decorations are sparse, black-stone statues and gargoyles are common in larger settlements that cannot be hidden, or are underground. Enchanted gemstones or wardstones are also very common, and can be found in or on all currently occupied buildings - however, any aboveground will be hidden or painted over to escape notice.
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Climate
Anquilian climate is largely overshadowed by the presence of constant, severe magestorms. The skies are never wholly clear, and the sun never completely unobscured - at all times, a veil of shimmering, iridescent grey clouds with colorful streaks of lightning and spellrain swirl amid true clouds, deepening to black as the storms grow worse. North and south hold the most severe magestorms with the greatest corrupting properties, and the sun is very rarely seen even as a hint of a glowing disk in the sky. However, the middle and eastern portions of the land become as clear as Anquil can ever be, with sunlight shining through the magical veil strong enough for the heat to be felt.
Snow is near constant in the northern mountains even in mid-summer, and the permafrost never truly melts. In winter, the days disappear into weeks-long darkness, often referred to as the Long Darkness as in other arctic places. The icy chill midwinter is deadly should any venture out of doors, even with magical protection. Only those with an elemental affinity for ice and cold, or those specifically adapted to this environment, may survive.
Winds scour the middle of the continent with near-constant force, driving from the west to the east. Many of Anquil's trees growing in these regions angle with the wind, and structures reflect this in what way they face. At sea, this is especially dangerous as the winds will drive an unwary ship into the rocks of the western coast very easily; it takes great skill to captain any waterworthy craft in such conditions.
Rainstorms are common throughout Anquil, but unpredictable due to the magestorms and spellrain, which are often mixed in. Monsoons during the summer months are severe and damaging, with localized flooding being common in the southern regions.
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Cultural Tendencies
Anquil is a harsh land, filled with dangerous animals, beasts, and monsters. Those who come to dwell here often to do out of desperation to escape, or the inability to return. Though the population is small compared to the rest of Evylon, and is comprised mostly of Anquil-changed sapient beast races, the humanoids here have settled into a way of life unique to this region alone. The beast-races and magestorm-changed monsters remain a constant threat to the survival of all, and thus the act of staying hidden or becoming powerful enough to defend oneself is paramount.
Packs, flights, and herds of the beast-races are very common, and range overland in groups anywhere from two to several hundred individuals. The larger of these settle in well-protected 'cities' and densites, often warded so that their bodies can recover from the constant influence of the storms. While they are mostly immune to such effects, those who are weaker may succumb to damaging changes both physically and mentally in the presence of the magestorms, and thus weaker individuals are often killed outright.
Most, if not all, of these creatures have a cultural tendency to see violence as an answer to problems. Whether it is changes in hierarchy or a disagreement between individuals, fights break out commonly, and the scars from such battles are seen on most who reach adulthood. Death is something so common most do not fear it, and the majority see killing as both necessity and mercy without compassion. Bones of the dead are often used as tools or decoration regardless of the deceased's relationship to whomever claims the carcass.
In direct contrast to the animalistic races, the ansar - Anquil-sarka - have a culture entirely different from the norm. While most is located on their page, it is worthwhile to note that they don't ascribe to the traditional ways of Anquil; they are bright against the dark earth and shattered sky, and they sing instead of fall to silence. Many ansar wander the region specifically to help travelers, such as humanoids, stay safe from the dangers of the land and its denizens.
Anquilian humanoids are a rugged, insular people, unwelcoming towards strangers. They tend to wear dark clothing in various shades of grey and black while away from their underground homes, and often coat their skin with ash to better blend in with their surroundings. They learn from an early age to move silently, communicate with sign language, and to imitate the calls and noises of native wildlife. When underground or in fortified aboveground buildings, they speak softly.
When forced to fight, or when on the hunt, they prefer to use pole-arms of various sorts, and crossbows, preferring to keep as much distance as possible between themselves and their enemies. They mostly forego armor, relying instead on speed and agility to avoid injury, and remain unburdened. Worn wardstones or enchanted gems to protect against the magestorms are also mandatory, and any who return from the wilderness without such things are often turned away.
Most Anquilians live underground in deep caverns, or aboveground in heavily fortified (but small and largely hidden) villages. Both their underground dwellings and those built overland are designed to give defenders an advantage, as any invaders would have to squeeze through tight spaces where several defenders can attack them at once. There are always several ways out, and no room has only one doorway in case escape become necessary. If escape becomes paramount, all those who are unable to keep up a swift pace remain behind to allow the rest to flee. Children too small to run are carried.
For recreation, they tend to hum various tunes, and tell stories, cautionary tales with advice on how to survive Anquil's harsh, unforgiving expanses. Art is not common aboveground, but exists in mosaics and abstract art in various forms below the surface. Everybody is expected to be able to contribute, and those who break the laws are exiled, their faces scarred. Any who grow too old or infirm to be of any help take part in the Bitter Cup Ceremony, whereupon those who are unable to be of any use to the group drink poison, and are respectfully consigned to the afterlife.
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Economy and Trade
As befitting of the region, most trade in Anquil is based on functionality and ability to harvest in (relative) safety; currency is largely ignored, and barter is preferred. In an environment as destructive as Anquil's, currency is not useful, nor gives an immediate use. Objects are often traded for other objects based on their worth for each party, based on need and availability. The acquisition of such items can be used as a tool for gaining the protection of someone seeking such objects, and the avoidance of roving bands.
Due to the intense environment, most items and things to trade are to help in survival, like cloaks or protective wear made out of slain beasts or obsidian shards, as well as volcanic rock. Food and things to ease the environmental effect are most valued and therefore are more "expensive". Magical items and those that have been enhanced, corrupted or otherwise altered by the magestorms are greatly sought after by mages and alchemists in other Realms, many of which do not wish to do the gathering themselves. However, such items pose inherent risk in themselves - the materials alone may prove dangerously tainted, and thus require careful handling.
Anquil's north is a prime hunting ground for enchanted gems, minerals, and other rocks. Bones from those who fall to their deaths, corrupted by the magestorms, are also plentiful, as are the attuned feathers of the creatures who fly the skies around the jagged peaks. Many things with thick hide or scales exist here as well, and are hunted for the arms and armor crafted of their skins, horns and bones.
The grassy flatlands and volcanic fields of eastern Anquil are fertile for crops, and can be used to grow more vibrant plants in plentiful amounts - though the danger is seen by some to outweigh the benefits, and such crops may be tainted or corrupted by the magestorms overhead. Eruptions from the volcanos are common, and may destroy any farming fields at any given time. Volcanic rock, such as obsidian and basalt, are also harvested here for their unique properties of durability.
Small fishing villages dot the coast, and quick boats brave the seas. These villages provide fish for the rest of Anquil, and may even trade beyond its borders; however, fishing is an immensely dangerous trade, and many vessels are lost year by year to uncontrollable catches, storms, and other such dangers.
The wildlands of the south are largely depopulated, but hunters from all over travel to claim the large beasts and animals that roam the land. Bones and meat are most sought after, with horns, scales and hide following as a close second.
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Inns and Taverns
A small inn located near the coast south of Trinksa, in a tiny, unnamed fishing village populated by humans. The village is protected from the magestorms by wardstones, but is vulnerable to attacks from the bloodwolves to the north. Most visitors arrive via ship and seek refuge from both normal and magical storms, bringing with them trade goods they often use to pay their fees before departing once again.
Thus, the Dark Hammer appears less like a traditional inn and more like a small fort, complete with a stone wall and thick doors that can be barred at any time. Two stories holds a good fifteen rooms, each with a single bed, a table, and a wash basin within it. A central furnace warms the entire structure, and food is cooked in the common room below. Though the inn has limited space, and furniture is sparse, the entire town's populace is able to bar themselves inside comfortably in the case of an assault.
A non-humanoid inn run by swift-clawed phoenixes who tend to their own. Visitors are sparse, and are often treated unfairly; any who are of the 'Unwinged' (such as humans) are subjected to bullying, robbery, and even murder by the Anquil phoenixes and horrorbirds that live there. Those that do visit and are strong enough to repel the traditional denizens and survive are charged thoroughly for their stay, and do not often return.
Shadowed Wings appears as a tall, angular building perhaps once of elven design; however, its sweeping walls and arched roofs are crumbling and have been haphazardly repaired with black wood and dark stone. Claw marks from various denizens perching on its roofline and peak can be seen, and have had to be repaired where the roofing tiles were damaged too significantly to shed rainwater, and scars of many kinds mar the overall construction. Within, the rooms are large but ill-furnished, with beds that more resemble oversized bird nests than anything a human might use.
Though the Slithering Slumber is not located in any town or village, it serves as a small settlement on its own. Located just north of Anquil's southern lake, the Slumber was built by a Halgian man and his brother after they both escaped the Empire, seeking a place they would not be followed by the Inquisition. Uniquely, the innkeep was once a Divine Dragon engineer, and with his brother's help has crafted several of his own modified draconian golems to serve as the inn's protectors. These Divine Dragons serve both to protect the inn from outside assault, but also to serve as barrier-keepers against the magestorms and beacon-holders to draw refugees to the inn's safe walls.
The inn itself is a relatively small two-story structure made out of black stone set with blue wardstones, dark wood and darksteel fastenings. Though its sloping rooflines and smooth walls echo Halgian architecture, very little of it resembles the great buildings of the Empire, and its dimly-lit but cozy interior couldn't be farther from the bright taverns found so many miles away. At least three static Divine Dragons stand watch around the building, maintaining the near-invisible barrier at all times, though there can be as many as nine at any given time depending on the severity of the storms. Blue lanterns burning with arcane fire can be seen from miles away, unafraid to display its location due to the protection the golems offer.
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Racial Configuration
Primarily, Anquilian humanoids all descent from foreigners; humanoids are not native to the region, regardless of race. However, those peoples that have come to live here have begun to evolve Anquil-specific traits and racial features over the long centuries and many generations of their inhabitation. All Anquilian humanoids that have been born in Anquil share one distinct trait not found in any other; the mosaic lines across their bodies, normally invisible to the naked eye on any other humanoid, show up in stark contrast no matter what their usual tone. Markings appear as swirls and whorls, stripes and blotches, and can be lighter or darker than the skin around it. More complex patterns are seen as more attractive, with pale, simple patterns ill-preferred. This is thought to be an effect from latent, but safe, energies from the magestorms effecting development.
Northern Anquilian humanoids have lighter skin and pale eye and hair color; their pupils also appear pale, sometimes even white, and their eyes cannot handle full sun without protection. Their features are sharp and almost gaunt, with small and thin builds.
Most mixed of all Anquil's humanoids, skin, hair, and eye color ranges across the board. However, northern Anquilians are known to have narrow builds and thin facial features, with small eyes and high cheekbones.
Southern Anquilians have very pale, sometimes considered translucent, skin with more subtle markings than others. While their hair and eye color can vary widely, their hair is known to gray prematurely and almost all over forty summers has silver or white hair. Otherwise, they are thin of build with narrow facial features.
Those born in eastern Anquil are a rugged and robust people. They have the darkest of Anquilian humanoids' skin, deepening to a dark bronze in the middle regions of the world, with primarily dark hair and eyes. Their facial features are oftentimes broad, even square, and their builds study.
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Cities:
These are the cities found within this area; each one is marked on the map, and divided by tiers. The larger the tier, the larger the city - tier one may be a small village or town, while tier four may be sprawling cities of grand proportions.
BIRDSONG:
RACE: Anquil phoenix and horrorbird. LEADER: Ronso (NPC).LANGUAGE(S): Common. ALLEGIANCE: Anquil.
APPEARANCE: Birdsong consists of a series of eyries set into the crumbling side of what is rumored to have been the original Mage Tower of Evylon, forged of corruption-touched white stone veined in reds, purples and blues. Stories and stories of ledges and nests bear witness to generations of Anquil phoenix, while horrorbirds dwell along its base. Though the 'city' largely consists of only a single tower, the various spaces left by time's damage or the architecture of birdkind have many of the amenities that traditional cities do.
As the population has grown in recent years, the occasional odd spire has appeared around Birdsong's tower, far newer construction formed of native black rock and sharp stone. These buildings spiral, spread in an elliptical figure around the disintegrating pillar sometimes in pairs of two and three. Most are topped in platforms or domes, and serve as gathering grounds where the denizens may relax after a hunt, hear songs and share news. Tales frequently can be easily overheard, spewing out of the establishment doors by amateur bards that haven’t yet acquired the true history of Anquil.
CULTURE: None know of the inner workings of Birdsong, save for the almost uncanny loyalty to the ancient bird Ronso, a large Anquil phoenix with an unusual blue coloration. The surrounding countryside lives in fear and respect of the droves of phoenixes and horrorbirds, and tribute is often made from lesser clans and packs to ensure their survival.
Annually, mandated gestures of commendation are provided at Shadowed Wings, an inn closest to the base of the deteriorating tower. Ronso entrusts a few of his closest followers to demand payments from the citizens of the city. Any congregation that does not offer their most valuable assets suffer the deadly wrath of the phoenix authorities, and their picked-clean bones hang from the tower's many ledges where all may see.
FILTON:
RACE: Anquil gryphon. LEADER: Groktu (NPC).LANGUAGE(S): Common. ALLEGIANCE: Anquil.
APPEARANCE: A once prestigious city built into the side of an old, blasted apart volcano. Consisting of dens and old stone ruins, it has been taken over by a flight of Anquil gryphons known only as Groktu's Flight. It has become overgrown and corrupted, a shadow of its former self, and now Filton is a place of fear and death. Most of the once-bright buildings are physically warped by the constant magestorms, and appear bent and blackened as if melted under a searing flame. Many of the trees inside the city itself have been cut down, and wooden doors, furniture and other such objects have long since been burnt for firewood or rotted away by the jungle's dense humidity.
Outside of the city itself, the desolate region is primarily enveloped by an abundant jungle; massive canopies intertwine with the area’s various vegetation fueled by the nutrient-dense soil and rains off the nearby shoreline. The jungle is rumored to be inescapable and easy access pertains to only those with wings or transportation magic. Thus, roads to Filton are non-existent, and the city cannot be seen from outside of the jungle's dark reach.
Beneath the city lay old volcanic tunnels and lava tubes large enough for several creatures to fly abreast. These tunnels narrow as they reach the outside, and the entrances are guarded by sharp obsidian and stern guards at all times. Most of the citizenry isn't allowed within except to catch and bring back slave prey, who reside permanently out of the sun.
CULTURE: The Flight commands all, and what creatures they don't kill, they turn into slaves or cattle for food. Humans gathered from other places are bred deep within the catacombs, to be brought up and killed at the gryphons' leisure. These humans live in a state of constant fear, and many have never seen the sun but for the moments just before their death, should it break through the magestorms' deadly light.
Groktu’s followers are said to play horrendous games of hide-and-seek with their chosen participants, often chasing flightless creatures into the vast jungle to either succumb to the depths of the forest or by gryphon digits. Any traveler that might succeed in passing through the deadly terrain would be scarred by the forgotten corpses that are littered throughout the dark shrubbery. Most who survive the initial hunt are often killed or changed by the magestorms, as the gryphons do not give them any protection from their dark energies.
HINDUKU:
RACE: unzirus. LEADER: Tierkah the Radiant (NPC).LANGUAGE(S): Common. ALLEGIANCE: Anquil.
APPEARANCE: Hinduku is less a city and more a horrific and terrifying spiderwebbed complex of interconnecting caves and caverns, filled with twisted unzirus, booby traps, and statutes of grotesque and horrible monsters. Most of the stone that the caverns consist of are grey limestone that turn black nearest the surface. Crystals can be found deeper within, and water is common in both runoff and natural springs that bubble up to fill larger caves in clear, serene-looking pools. However, the springs are toxic and as acidic as the surrounding lands, offering no sustenance to any but the secretive unzirus who dwell there.
Prospectors and explorers seeking the treasure should be wary of the treacherous journey to even arrive at the gateway of the underground city. Ravines populate the entirety of the adjacent mountain ridge, which can only be accessed once passing through acidic marshlands. The corrosive swamp is a result of the frequent magestorms, pooling into the low-lying land and never proceeding to drain due to the layers of nearby rock. While the swamp waters do not reach into the caverns themselves, their taint can be found even in the deepest of Hinduku's springs.
CULTURE: There is a rumored treasure at its heart that brings adventurers to brave the magestorms above and the monsters below, hidden away and guarded by a calamity known as Tierkah the Radiant. Tierkah knows all, and sees all, in his city of the deep. Unzirus pay him tribute once weekly in fresh kills or captured intruders who seek the treasure he sits upon. It is said that he never ventures forth, but can see far beyond the darkness of Hinduku, by means unknown to all. His actual appearance is largely unknown, and is a closely-guarded secret - any who see him in full light do not live to tell the tale.
Those unzirus - and even traditional zirus that have, for whatever reason, joined the hive after finding themselves in Hinduku - who dwell here only have some semblance of a normal life. They are controlled by Tierkah nearly constantly, and the illusion of living only superficially resembles the real thing. Only those who must hunt for him, and those that are tasked with guarding him, are left to their own minds for very long.
TRINKSA:
RACE: bloodwolves. LEADER: Alpha Haldor (NPC).LANGUAGE(S): Common. ALLEGIANCE: Anquil.
APPEARANCE: As a pack that's a mixture of bloodwolves and Anquil unicorns, Trinksa is a sprawling settlement of dens built in the remnants of large, old bones that are said to have been some sort of massive ribcage, long and thin, but many stories tall. No matter how deep the dens are dug, the end of the large bones have not been reached. The entire settlement is formed in a semi-circle, and the ribs are evenly spaced apart without tapering for a neck or tail. It's estimated to be at least three leagues long if stretched out, though scholars who have braved the pack to study it claim the beast it came from was much longer still.
Multiple camps surround the gigantic partial skeleton, crafted from the harvested bone of the ancient ribs. Known to be resourceful, the city finds purpose for each piece carved out of the dead colossus. More resourceful members of the pack craft armor and attachable weaponry from these, and it isn't uncommon to see scoring along many of the bones. However, the giant ribs slowly regenerate over time, and old scars disappear no matter how deeply they are cut in a matter of months to years.
CULTURE: The 'wolves and unicorns work together as a cohesive and deadly unit, though minor fights do occur. They often send out hunting parties through portals to other Realms, where they capture prey and bring it back to the rest of Trinksa. The majority of the hunters and fighters that roam are larger males, while the females and either foals or cubs stay behind; they form the majority of the smiths and crafters, though none are entirely as helpless as they might initially seem. Any bloodwolf or Anquil unicorn that hunts the foal or cub of Trinksa is subjected to the fury of both races, and none survive the bloodbath that follows. In similar fashion, intruders are ill-met and are often made sport of, chased through the bones and tortured for the entertainment of the citizenry.
Over the years, the inhabitants have come to believe the skeleton to have been a now-extinct sea monster, a type of gargantuan leviathan, due to the coastline being such a short distance away. Sacrificial blood-tributes are held to honor - and keep away - any similar creatures of the deep by the pack, and motifs in bone carvings, armor and horn/claw coverings often depict the monster in a variety of forms. Any who claim that the creature is different than they assume is rebuffed, often in violent fashion.
Landmarks:
These are the landmarks and important places scattered through this area. They can be anything from forests and rivers to special caverns, monuments, ruins, and more.
Hightower Ruins
The crumbling remains of an old Halgian stronghold, never completed, long abandoned, and left at the mercies of the violent magestorms of Anquil. Part of the great central tower still stands, though it offers little shelter from the elements and none from the storms. A once-mighty wall surrounds most of the tower, though it was never fully completed before the tower was abandoned, and great gaps have long since formed. As the tower has crumbled and blackened over time, chunks of rock have fallen to the ground, littering the surrounding area in rubble. If one lingers long enough, bones of the occasional unlucky traveler can be spotted pinned under the fallen blocks.
As the structure is so tall, originally made to be a watchtower for the Empire and a place of refuge against Anquil's dangers, many who brave the dangers of this place for vantage points from the lofty ledges. However, the stone is liable to crumble under one's feet, and there is no easy way to reach the top without climbing the outer walls. Much of its ancient protections are gone, as well - the wardstones have largely been broken or corrupted, offering no salvation from the storms overhead. Corrupted wards may make the magestorms' effects even worse, and can be spotted from a distance by the evil-looking plants and glowing lichen surrounding them.
Lightsong Spire
A towering, white spire nestled inside a hollowed out mountain. Several peaks of stone still jut up around the spire's base and extend up beside it, although the spire towers above these peaks. The spire itself glows with its own light, and its top is a broad platform on top of which stands an ornate shrine. At its base, and within, are simple quarters reserved for wanderers. Crafted and up-kept by ansar, the spire is a sanctuary for anyone unfortunate enough to have gotten lost in Anquil, and can be seen from far away. Despite the dangers, Lightsong Spire is a place of pilgrimage for may Halgians.
All along the walls, in both interior and exterior, lay enchanted gemstones and wardstones to protect against the magestorms at all times. This gives the spire a twinkling, ethereal quality that can be seen from many miles away, and they are well maintained so that they are never left to breakage or corruption.
Plains of Remorse
A large, crawling grassland with rolling hills that back up to the Spearpoints just behind. Home to large and ravenous packs of bloodwolves, as well as packs of Anquil unicorns, flocks of horrorbirds, and the occasional sect of traveling ansar, who seek to protect those traveling on pilgrimages or trying to escape the magestorms that reign above. Beautiful, yet dangerous wildflowers bloom here year-round due to the magestorms' influence, often harvested by mages and alchemists for their magical properties. No trees or large shrubs can grow, however - those that begin seem to wither within the first year.
The ansar have built small, largely hidden buildings that appear as semi-natural domes of stone, warded against the storms and outfitted with sleeping places and supplies. While these supplies don't last for more than a few days, they resupply often, and make sure any who are currently sheltering are hale and not hungry. However, they serve as temporary residences only - any ansar that comes across the same traveler in one of these huts more than a few times will escort them, often bodily, out of the Plains.
Re'ein Sekka
Re'ein Sekka is the name given to an expansive series of pits where lava constantly bubbles close to the surface, located at the outskirts of the Plains of Remorse. The volcanic soil around the Sekka is so fertile that things grow better around them than anywhere else in Anquil, making a visit worth the risk, but with every eruption, everything is destroyed. Thus, there are no permanent dwellings or residents, and farmers, crafters and gatherers that seek to use the Sekka only periodically come to check on their small plots and gather what they can before the next eruption. The pits may surge without warning, and deaths are commonplace.
The northern reaches of the Sekka are rocky and difficult to access, but holds veins of crystals and minerals that cannot be found anywhere else in the Realm. Gemstones with unique magical properties can be mined here, due to the nature of the Re'ein Sekka pits, though doing so is a very dangerous - almost impossible - task.
Spearpoint Mountains
A range of jagged, twisted mountains that jut upwards like pieces of broken glass. Formed of black obsidian, they are sharp as spears and many have fallen to their wicked peaks, slipping to their deaths far below. The horrorbirds of this region have adapted to navigate the rocks with ease, and have developed a heavy resistance to the strong magestorms that crash up against the mountains. Little else lives on the surface, and remains of those who have tried litter the foothills at the base. Beneath, caverns and cave systems stretch their fingers into the earth; however, navigating these is more often to end up in a dead end or getting lost than finding a tunnel that reaches all the way to the other side.
Statue of the Corrupted God
An ancient statue of a spread-winged phoenix slanted askew sits perched upon a ridgeline overlooking much of Anquil; once, its feathers were shimmering tiger's eye, ruby, and topaz, but it has since blackened and corroded with both corruption and age. An ancient inscription lay along the statue's base in a long-forgotten language, though its meaning has since been lost to time. Skeletons, bones, and a multitude of skulls lay scattered all around it, and more buried in the black sands beneath.
It is said that once, it would purify those tainted by the magestorms - and once, it did. Now the statue of the Old God only corrupts, and kills any that cannot withstand its powerful, chaotic magic. Those that survive are permanently and acutely changed, most often for the worse and scored with debilitating magical afflictions that cannot be purged with further magecraft.
Valley of Rot
The Valley of Rot is a deep, nigh-uncrossable chasm that spans both long and wide. Rotting flesh and ancient bones litter the valley, there either due to victims of accidental falling, or due to purposeful dumping as a manner of funeral for those lost to age or sickness. Only the winged can navigate the putrid valley safely (and may do so if pickings are slim for food); to fall in means death by starvation, if not by impact first.
Anquil-corrupted scavengers have adapted well to the area, and such dangerous animals can be found roaming along the canyon's walls and the carcass-littered bottom. Most do not live long, and their populations are unstable, due to the magical contamination of the storms and the sicknesses brought by so many rotting bodies. However, murders of crows and ravens - oddly untouched by the magestorms above - are a common sight all across the Valley. Their eggs are magically attuned, and both mages and alchemists seek them for ingredients, catalysts, and even to raise as familiars. This is because the crows and ravens that hatch from the Anquil-touched eggs are seemingly immune to most magics. The reason behind this is currently unknown.
About Evylon
Evylon has long been called the land of magic; a Realm of Wonders and intrigue surpassing even that of Felnova. Many mysteries still lay hidden in its depths, coursing through veins of power buried in the earth. The strong reiatsu held by this world affects even the creatures who live there. It's considered one of the few Realms to have created its own, unique species; most notably the elves and the changed dragons who live alongside them.
Rarest among the Realms, only a very small portion of Evylon is inhabited; the middle continent, called Shi'vrann'aeli in the elven tongue, holds the only hospitable portion of them all. The rest is wild and untamed, scorched by mage-storms to the wicked north and cruel west. The sea that borders where the Heartwoodian elves make their home is called the Drowned Sea, for its reputation of sinking anything that attempts to float - or fly - over its raging surface. To the south, unnamed monsters roam, locked on a continent some scholars worry will someday collide with Shi'vrann'aeli, invading the helpless North.
This Realm is found to have no true gods. Therefore, the populace has taken to worship Daama, scion of light, their Ether Spirit and guardian. As leader of the Ethers, she is only made stronger by the faith of her followers and the strength of her Realm, as close to a goddess as any can be.
Realm Contributors: Verridith, Fyfergrund, and Nechesa
