Empire of Tamous

What was once the Kingdom of Tamous has become styled the Empire of Tamous in the last fifty years. Though this southern nation has always had an expansionistic, militaristic streak, the Accord of Liminal and its allied military forces formed something of a buffer between Tamous and the rest of Rinhony. With the Shattering of Liminal, King Ædelann declared himself Emperor and immediately launched into the seizure of yet more territory. This act was immediately hailed as a heroic act by an embattled people - not unusual, in that the Tamousan people consider themselves to be a civilizing influence, bringing true civilization to lawless wilds or desperate frontiers.

The people of Tamous are a proud people, prickly when it comes to their sense of honor. Duels are common among the upper classes. The Tamousans are a military culture - their nobility are all fighting nobility, and the best warriors of the society are not limited in how high they can rise in society due to the knightly orders. Any man or woman with skill at arms can find their way into one of the knightly orders, who frequently mingle among the nobles.

Indeed, outside of the noble Houses themselves, the knightly orders are probably the single largest source of spouses and lovers for the nobility. A skilled warrior can readily find his way into a squireship, then a knighthood and then marriage into a powerful noble family in under a decade. In this way, the culture of Tamous ensures that its finest warriors remain its most active leaders.

Given the nearness of Tamous to what is perhaps the single largest cluster of ruins on the continent - the Thundering Range with all of its dwarven ruins - it is no surprise that adventurers are quite welcome among its folk. While those whose lives are solely dedicated to combing ruins and battling monsters are looked on with some curiosity, adventuring into the ruins of the Thundering Range, exploring the monster-haunted valleys of the Ilandor Mountains to the south or (most recently) venturing north into the Field of Incursion around Liminal are all considered worthy undertakings for knights and bored nobles.

There is only trouble when groups of adventurers grow too much in power without becoming part of the established order of things: when they refuse to purchase an adventuring company's charter from the crown, join the knightly orders or marry into the nobility. Such individuals are seen as dangerous iconoclasts.

The Imperial House of Ylrannin

The ruling House of Tamous is House Ylrannin, a lineage of nobles that have ruled Tamous for a dynasty of just over three hundred years, displacing the old Gwiseth Dynasty of nearly five hundred years previous. The insignia of House Ylrannin is a two-headed hawk, their heads facing in opposite directions, in red on a field of black.

The current master of the House - and thus ruler of Tamous - is Ædelann Ylrannin. Inheriting his title from his father Ædomyr twenty-five years ago, Ædelann is every inch the military expansionist his father was in his heydey, only without the pacifying influence of Liminal's Accord to help rein him in. As a result, Tamous has seen unprecedented expansion in recent years, most notably extending deep into the Delannwood, laying claim to much of the territory the elves of the forest ceded to the shifter tribes. Though the shifters fought fiercely, they are all but extinct in this day and age.

Ædelann is in his fifties, born just before the Shattering. He is currently a widower, having lost his wife the Empress Xanisara three years ago. He has five children: his heir Ævaris (32), and four other children: Walvær (28), his second son; Benæra (24), his eldest daughter; Vænnia (21), his youngest daughter; and his youngest son Porædis (17). He also has a number of outlying cousins, as well, some two dozen in number, but most of them are actually further from the throne than some of the other House nobility.

Though once House Ylrannin held an estate called Hawkhold in the Noble Quintain of Liminal, they lost everyone and everything in it with the Shattering.

The Old Houses of Tamous

The four Houses of Tamous - once five, before the exile of House Gwiseth three hundred years ago - are families of particularly ancient lineage. Their blood have produced knights, priests and wizards of no small skill over the years, and they are direct leaders for the people of Tamous.

Each House has a massive estate just outside of Eledir City. This is the House's seat, and where its lord and heir are required to make their residences at least half the weeks of a year. Though they are opulent estates, the nobility understand that these estates are elaborate hostage holdings: they are guarded exclusively by the soldiers of House Ylrannin, after all, and more than once House Ylrannin has used that leverage to ensure that a House bubbling on the edge of rebellion changes its mind.

Outside of Eledir City's orbit, however, the Houses of Tamous wield tremendous power. The nation is effectively sliced up among them, with portions of it here and there shifting between one House and the next as the Emperor shows his favor and disfavor by giving lands with one hand, and taking them from another House with the other.

One of the privileges of nobility is that its lords (any of the men of noble blood, not just those who rule the House) may marry multiple spouses. The primary wife is called the Name-wife, and she acts as his spouse in terms of lineage and running the House as a whole. She is also considered higher in station than his other spouses, who are called "holdwives" (or "holdmen" in the case of male hold-spouses). The term comes from the days when a lord might keep a different spouse at each of his holdings, but that is an uncommon arrangement in these days.

Any child born to a holdwife may be acknowledged by the lord, but failing that, they simply remain as retainers to the House, or go on to serve in knightly orders sponsored by their father's House. While once this put pressure on a Name-wife to produce legitimate heirs, in modern Tamous, it often means the opposite - the Name-wife worries little about children if she is disinclined towards them, and expects her husband to simply weed through "the best" of his hold-gotten children (or "hold-get" in the vulgar slang of the day) and acknowledge children he likes, leaving her to pursue the affairs of the House and her own interests. A holdspouse is required by law to maintain fidelitous relationships with their lord, although it is both common and legal for holdspouses to act as one anothers' lovers, so long as no children are produced from the union.

The Name-wife is herself entitled by law to lovers and paramours as well - a benefit that befits her station - but these must either be women or men rendered infertile by what is called "partial castration" (a procedure by which the tubes connecting the testes to the rest of the reproductive system are severed, but otherwise remain intact). This surgical procedure was once considered unmanning, but is relatively common in this age among the nobility, particularly for sons who know they have no lands to inherit. Such young men are the only socially appropriate lovers a married woman may take. The slang term for both the state of having had such a surgery, and for those men who have it is "sweet-scar" - as in, "it is sweet to a lady of worth to see such a scar on her paramour."

It is worth noting that these complex relationships - often referred to as "constellations" - are considered a privilege of the nobility. Though the lower classes sometimes mimic their betters by taking lovers (often with the permission or even encouragement of their spouses), such relationships are personal only, having no social standing or legal interconnections.

Name-wives who outlive their husbands are referred to as "Dowager Ladies." Though such women may remain in their House's estates if they please or are of ill health, the majority do not. Instead, once their husbands are properly interred, they usually travel to the capital city, stopping in small settlements along the way to give coin to the poor in their dead husbands' names. When they reach Eledir City, usually resplendent in their mourning finery, they go immediately to the House of Winter Flowers, a grand palace that once served as the estate for House Gwiseth.

The House of Winter Flowers is home to the Parliament of Dowagers, a legal body made up of the Dowager Ladies of Tamous, who are required by law to be consulted in the passing or altering of any new laws made by the Throne. This is the only direct feedback the Houses have in terms of advising in the governance of the nation, so the role of the Dowager Ladies is one of tremendous importance - the irony of a "mere wife's" role being of more importance once her husband has died than her husband's was when he lived has not escaped the notice of those outside of Tamous, either. Unkind minstrels sing songs of the henpecked master of Tamous, and his "garden of wilted flowers." Such gleemen know better than to sing such songs in Tamous, however.

House Dunmæril

Arguably the most ancient of the Tamousan Houses - including House Ylrannin - House Dunmæril once ruled the nation. The Dunmæril Dynasty occupies a place in Tamousan history before the rise of the Gwiseth, and it was the Dunmæril who aided House Ylrannin in seizing the Great Throne of Eledir.

The exchange for their aid was simple: the Dunmæril foreswore any claim on the Great Throne and lent their aid against the old Gwiseth kings, and in return the Ylrannin would grant them not only a portion of the old Gwiseth holdings, but those of House Ylrannin in their entirety as well (as the royal House governs no holdings save Eledir City directly). The bargain was struck, and the Gwiseth kings fell to the potent forces House Dunmaeril brought to bear. In the end, the city of Ervidor - once the seat of House Ylrannin - was given over to the governance of the Dunmæril.

The current lord of the Dunmæril primary line is Lord Mæridall, a man in his early fourties, and his lovely half-elven wife Ithia, a singer and dancer of no small skill. They have a pair of young children - a girl and a boy - neither of whom are at their age of majority yet. House Dunmæril lays claim to the majority of western Tamous (including Sunfield), and it is they who push for expanding the borders northward. Their heraldry is a white sun on a green field.

House Wadayan

House Wadayan is perhaps one of the least militaristic of Tamous' Houses. Unsurprising, considering that it is proably House Wadayan that interacts most commonly withou those outside of Tamous. House Wadayan has extensive financial interests in with the Guild, and it is House tradition that those sons who do not inherit lands to govern undertake apprenticeships with the Mercantilists' Guild.

The House is easily one of the richest in Tamous, and they know how to use that money to keep the other Houses happy and unenvious: which is to say, they spread the wealth around extravagantly, being willing to invest in the efforts of the other Houses even when doing so results in a loss. The overall good will generated is worth the investment. House Wadayan lays claim to the central portions of Tamous north of the Imperial Road, including Hælfan and Thrandkeep. Their heraldry is a black tower with a white crescent above it, on a blue field.

House Xaran

The newest of the Houses of Tamous, House Xaran was founded with the Shifter Wars of 816, after the general who managed to snatch victory from bad situations over and over. Rather than hand the newly-acquired territories over to the old Houses, the king elected to reward his best strategist and the man who ensured victory, Sir Xaran of the Order of Steel.

House Xaran is now in the hands of Sir Xaran's son, Lord Eldorus Xaran. Though Eldorus was Xaran's second son, Xaran's he inherited when his eldest fell ill of a sickness of the brain, and died twelve years ago. Lord Eldorus is hardly a favorite of his House, which is staunchly military. Lord Eldorus is a wizard, however, having studied with a selection of fine magicians throughout Tamous. He also married a foreigner, Ilidaranna, a sorceress that belongs to an outland sisterhood of some kind. House Xaran lays claim to the easternmost portion of Tamous, including Redtooth and Sothwood. Their heraldry is a griffin, colored green, on a field of yellow.

House Periqall

A minor House in Tamous, the Periqalls have a reputation as country rubes unconcerned with the niceties of civilized culture. Their lands are hardy frontiers, and the lords of those lands are better suited to ruling them. The Periqall estate in Elidor City remains almost unpopulated most of the year round, save when a lady of the House is expecting, and chooses to retire to its luxuries for that period.

House Periqall is ruled by Lord Edomus Periqall, an immense man with immense appetites. He is built like a bull, with a beard that would do a dwarf proud (a marked departure from the current Tamousan preference for clean-shaving among its men). He is said to lay a feast-like table nearly every day, and his holdwives number more than a dozen. His Lady Destacia is a woman of prodigious appetites herself, with several sweet-scarred lovers among the House's knights and other retainers.

House Periqall lays claim to the southeastern portion of Tamous including Peakwatch, its lands stretching halfway across its southern border. Their heraldry is a mountain peak, stone grey, against a field of umber.

The Faith of the Holy Throne

It should come as no surprise that a nation as expansionistic as Tamous should foster a faith that not only supports such endeavors, but makes of them a virtue. That is the Faith of the Holy Throne: a religious movement that teaches that the reward of virtue and piety in the eyes of the Faith is land and power to one's lords, and thus prosperity to oneself. It teaches that it is the duty of all folk to aid their lords, to uphold the sanctity of the nobility, and to give all one can to war efforts. Military service is accorded almost as highly as ecclesial service, for both are said to be in the direct service of the Gods of the Faith: Aevo, Khoro and Sacrista (as the Red Lady is called locally).

History

The Faith of the Holy Throne came into being almost as early as Tamous itself did. The lands that King Tamous joined together included a large temple to Aevo, while the king himself was a devotee of Khoro, to the point where he was almost always accompanied by his royal chaplain, the mighty cleric Saint Audæris of Khoro. While those faiths were content to dwell with one another peaceably (typical for Empyrean faiths), it was when his conquests led him to absorb an convent of warrior-nuns dedicated to the Red Lady - whom they knew and revered as Sacrista, the Battlemaid - that things became rocky.

It is said that King Tamous became fascinated with the disciplines of the Abbey of Sacrista (and perhaps even with the beauty of one or more of the war-nuns themselves). As much of his reign involved active warfare, he turned to them often for their tactical advice, and was said to be enchanted with their bloodlust. According to history, It was his wife, Queen Væsiara who approached the patriarch of Aevo and Saint Audæris about some kind of unifying religious structure with room for them all.

Thus was born the first Council of the Holy Throne, with Patriarch Bandur (called Silverhelm for his hair of shining silver hair) and Saint Audæris approaching the Mother-General of Sacrista, the Reverend Ællina of the Blade. She agreed to their proposal and the three set to work. To this day, the Faith of the Throne reveres these three founders as the Three Wisdoms of the Holy Throne, founding saints of the faith.

Theology

The Faith of the Holy Throne focuses exclusively on the Gods of the Holy Throne: Aevo, Khoro and Sacrista. These three deities bring to the world divine order by virtue of each of their gifts. It maintains that Aevo (spelled Ævo in the local dialect) is the Father and Lawgiver, and that his daughters Khoro and Sacrista take his Law and apply it in peace and war, respectively.

In many ways, the Faith of the Holy Throne is clearly a sect intended to bolster up the expansionistic tendencies of Tamous. Not only is the Faith of the Holy Throne aware of this, though, they turn the tables and claim that Tamous' warlike nature is a virtue and delight unto the gods. It is a holy undertaking to bring the light of civilization to the wilderness (defined by the Faith as any nation that isn't Tamous, or any unsettled areas).

The Faith of the Throne acknowledges the other gods, Empyrean and Talion alike, but consider them unworthy of reverence by those who revere the Light of the Law. The worship of other gods is not opposed, though the people of Tamous are expected to hold to the Faith of the Holy Throne first, and any other gods second. Even the priests of other gods are expected to attend services of the Faith - any citizen who fails to do so is considered guilty of treason by the nation's laws. Nor may other religions establish organizations or orders within the nation of Tamous - all temples to other gods must be independent and unaffiliated with one another.

The Faith of the Holy Throne considers the worship of heretical sects to also be treason, particularly that of the Primal Spirits revered by the elves and shifters of the Delannwood. The Faith of the Holy Throne conflates the Primordials with the Primal Spirits often in sermons, particularly during times of war with the Delannwood, assuring its faithful that as the victory of the gods over the Primordials was inevitable, so too is their victory over those who worship them.

Tenets

The Faith of the Holy Throne fosters a belief that there are Three Foundations of all civilization: the Scepter, the Sword and the Sun. These symbols form the basis for all civilized and virtuous behavior in the Faith, and are used in its symbolism over and over. • The Virtue of the Scepter: Also called the Precept of Lords, this virtue upholds the proper authority of Tamous' lordly Houses as rulers, affirming that they were put in their place not merely by accident of birth, but by divine appointment. It calls on the faithful to serve these lords as they serve the nation. • The Virtue of the Sword: Also called the Precept of Knights, this virtue holds that it is by war that the virtuous conquer the uncivilized and bring to them not just proper culture, but the Faith of the Holy Throne. It calls on the faithful to aid the war effort to their best ability, whether as soldier or simply someone who produces food and clothing for those soldiers. • The Virtue of the Sun: Also called the Precept of the People, this virtue holds that it is the building of civilization that brings divine order to the world, which is the highest good to which one can aspire. It calls on the faithful to perform their duties in life with skill, diligence, and good cheer, whether they be lord, clerk or serf.

Hierarchy

Priests of the Faith are not dedicated to singular deities within the sect - an ordained priest of the Holy Throne is a priest to Aevo, Khoro, and Sacrista alike. The head of the Faith of the Holy Throne is the Blessed Patriarch, a powerful and influential archpriest of the faith, who is based out of the Cathedral of the Holy Throne and its surrounding estates. He (as the role has never been filled by a woman) is advised by three priests of high degree, the Preceptors: the Preceptor of the Scepter, the Preceptor of the Sword and the Preceptor of the Sun. Before the Blessed Patriarch dies, he appoints his own heir. If he dies without naming an heir, then the Preceptors choose among themselves, so long as they are in united agreement; if they cannot come to such an agreement within one week, it falls to the emperor to make the choice from among them.

The Preceptor of the Scepter oversees the ecclesial needs of the nobility, and the priests who serve in his preceptory (as his order is called) act as confessors and chaplains to the noble Houses, serving in household chapels and assisting in the education of the youth. The Preceptory of the Scepter also serves in the Cathedral of the Holy Throne, fulfilling every role there from the meanest acolytes to its upper priesthood. Because they are accustomed to governance and are all literate, its priests are also given positions of authority over monasteries of the Faith, although the monks themselves belong to none of the preceptories. Priests of this preceptory are called reverend, both as a noun and as a title, with their high priests being called most reverend. The proper title of address is "your reverence."

The Preceptor of the Sword oversees the ecclesial needs of the military, and are the foremost allies and advocates of the knightly orders in Tamous. The priests of the Preceptory of the Sword accompany fighting men into battle, acting as battle-field chaplains and invokers of the blessings of the Holy Throne on the righteous soldiers of Tamous. The Preceptor of the Sword makes his headquarters in the chapel of one of the knightly orders. This is a different order each year, although the choice is only made from among those that extend an invitation, something that those without the room for the Preceptor's household of a level of luxury fitting to his station would never do. Priests of this preceptory are called chaplain, both as a noun and as a title, with their high priests being called high chaplain. The proper form of address is "your eminence."

The Preceptor of the Sun oversees the ecclesial needs of the people who are neither soldier nor noble. This preceptory is the most populous of the preceptories in Tamous, for the common temples of the Faith fall under their bulwark. Whether a modest country chapel or one of the grand arch-cathedrals, these temples are overseen by the Preceptory of the Sun. The Preceptor of the Sun's headquarters is the great monastery-keep called the Halls of the New Day, just outside of Candorall, from which he oversees the governance of the temples in his keeping. Priests of this preceptory are called radiant, both as a noun and a title, with their high priests being called most radiant. The proper form of address is "your radiance."

The least of the Faith's clergy are the monks and nuns of the myriad monasteries and convents scattered around the empire, who are called the Cloistered as a body. Though they are governed by the Preceptor of the Scepter, these cloistered belong to no one preceptory, but indeed offer their aid to the Faith as a whole where they may. Monasteries and convents are sponsored by the Preceptories, however, so the Cloistered cannot afford to alienate the priesthood. Any facet of church life that requires a degree of separation from society might be undertaken by a cloistered enclave - there are scriptora and healing retreats for nobility sponsored by the Preceptory of the Scepter, smithy-monasteries and convents of warrior-nuns sponsored by the Preceptory of the Sword, and plague hospitals, simple farming enclaves and orphanage-cloisters run by the Preceptory of the Sun. It is a point of understanding among the people of Tamous that if one cannot make it through life as a noble, a soldier or a serf, then the cloistered life awaits, and service to the Holy Throne may come in another way.

The last place of hierarchy in the church is its roster of living saints. The Sainted are those special men and women with proven miraculous gifts from the Holy Throne, such as clerics and paladins. The Sainted answer to the Blessed Patriarch alone, though they may come from and even possibly still work as a part of any of the other preceptories or even among the Cloistered. Those who are dedicated members of the Preceptories often find themselves pushed into positions of importance to the Faith and their preceptory quickly, and when the Blessed Patriarch can justify it, are given roles as Preceptors for the Faith as quickly as possible.

Rituals

Each Preceptory has its own set of rituals, but there are those common to the Faith as a whole. • Confession: A member in good standing with his temple may attend a ritual declaration of personal violations against the Precepts, attended by a priest of the Preceptory to which the individual belongs. Confessions are required before attendance at most important rites of the church, including an individual's wedding or confirmation. • Weddings: Unlike many such traditions, marriages are not overseen by the Faith, save in a role as one of three witnesses. • Confirmation of Adulthood: The Faith does oversee specific rites for those young men and women entering adulthood. These rites are performed by each of the Preceptories for congregants associated with that Preceptory - thus, merchant parents would seek out a radiant to perform their child's confirmation, a knight would seek out a chaplain for his child, and a noble mother arranges for a reverend to oversee that of her child. The age at which these happen tend to be fourteen among the common classes, and sixteen among the nobility and soldiering families. • Vigil Consecration: When someone is about to be elevated to a position of importance in their society - craftsmen made a master, a noble about to be coronated, a soldier or squire about to be knighted - the Faith requires that person to undertake a holy vigil, remaining awake in a temple all night, and then receiving a ritual consecration the day of their rite. Though these rites are performed by secular authorities, by Tamousan law, they cannot be performed if the individual in question has not undergone Vigil Consecration.

The Holy Throne

After the founding of Tamous, the Three Saints of Tamous - Patriarch Bandur Silverhelm, Saint Audæris of Khoro, and Reverend Ællina of the Blade - oversaw the creation and consecration of the Holy Throne, gifting it to King Tamous I as a reminder that his rulership was a gift to him from Aevo, Khoro and Sacrista. It is crafted of gold-engraved white stone, inset with gems, and its surfaces etched with holy sigils. Fine quilted velvets and furs are laid across its seat for comfort, and at the feet of the monarch are six gemstones, each blessed by each of the Saints: the diamond of Vigilance, the opal of Wisdom, the emerald of Patience, the ruby of Cunning, the citrine of Piety and the onyx of Generosity.

This throne has stood in the throne-room of the Tamousan capital since its founding, and is rumored to be the center of various blessings, miracles and magical emanations over the years. The Faith of the Holy Throne treats it as a legitimately holy relic of the faith, so much so that there is even a knightly order - the Knights of the Holy Throne - whose duty to the emperor involves not merely service to the ruler, but to safeguard the Holy Throne itself.

Observances

Individual Preceptories take charge of the organization of each of these observances and holy days, but they are observed by the Faith as a whole.

Ecclesial Orders

Though the Faith of the Holy Throne has no individual knightly orders among its number, all Tamousan knightly orders are required to have sponsorship from the Faith, meaning that they have some say and hand in every knightly order in the land. Indeed, a knightly order may lose its imperial commission if the Faith withdraws its sponsorship, so the orders take great care to retain the favor of the Faith in general, and the Preceptor of the Sword in particular.

While there are no individual orders within the Preceptories, there are a few "holy brotherhoods of recognition and accomplishment" that transcend the Preceptories as a whole. These include the Blessed of the Holy Kiss, the best and brightest of each of the Preceptories acknowledged for individual contributions to the Faith, acknowledged in a ritual that permits them to approach the Holy Throne of Tamous and place a kiss upon the gemstone at its base which represents Piety. Others include the Brotherhood of the Sandal, or "Sandalites" for short, an honor give to those priests who venture outside of Tamous to learn of the faiths of other lands and spread the Faith of the Holy Throne to those who wish to know of it.

Finally, over the years, a variety of monastic orders have developed, always based around influential Saints of the Faith. The Ællinian Order, an order of warrior-nuns who follow the teachings of Ællina of the Blade, are the oldest of the orders, established even before their founder died. The Moscuval Order, made up of monks and nuns clad in the order's distinctive green vestments, are dedicated gardeners and wanderers in wilderness, who are skilled growers and tenders of green things, often showing up when blight threatens farming communities to help out. In contrast, many folk dread seeing the grey-clad Domani Order, who travel in groups of ten to twenty and set up camps outside of settled areas where they can take in the sick. They frequently show up to areas that are in the grips of plague, or have been recently.

The Scrivenati Order are small but influential, an order of Scepter-sponsored scriveners, illuminators, and bookbinders who copy the important texts of the realm and keep vast archives of their own. Finally, the Lantern Order was founded by the unnamed Great Pilgrim, a paladin who protected the faithful on pilgrimages from holy site to holy site in the history of Tamous, and the monks and nuns who take up the lantern swear oaths of silence and protection in his memory.

Other Worship

• Primal Spirits: Worship of the Primal Spirits is put down violently wherever it is found. For the most part, though, this isn't considered an element of Tamousan culture - it is the blasphemies practiced by the shifters and elves of the Delannwood. That said, there are constant rumors that some among the southern settlements that abut the Ilandor Mountains occasionally fall to the debased worship of some kind of powerful mountain spirit that haunts those deadly peaks. Popular stories talk about entire hidden communities of these perverse, inbred hillfolk. • Dark Powers: Over the years, the Faith of the Throne has become aware, time and again, of strange cults dedicated to a figure who is only called Dancer in Shadows. Her cultists give themselves over to a dark passion, to intoxication by strange mushrooms that come from the Shadowfell, and to unholy passions of the flesh that are as indiscriminate as they are sinful. Those aware of such things know that a Dark Lord by the same name rules the Shadowfell lands that abut Tamous. The priests of Khoro in the Faith have taken it upon themselves to hunt down these debased cultists. • Vestiges of Power: The Faith has records of generations of witches found in Tamous. Some are native, but just as many claim to have followed dreams that led them there. All have spoken of binding their pacts with an entity that they call the Nightmare Hag, a terrifying witch-spirit who chokes the life from the living, blasts pregnant women and livestock barren and sours milk. These servants of the Hag do not form cults, but are always secretive and hidden, often remaining part of communities for generations.

Knightly Orders

Knightly orders are a way of life in Tamous. Military orders that require an imperial (once royal) charter in order to be formed at all, the orders of Tamous field all the military in the nation. Indeed, it is not permitted for the Houses to field military in any capacity - that is a right reserved exclusively for the Imperial House.

Instead, Houses are expected to help sponsor knightly orders, seeing that their needs are met. In return, the head of the orders - the knight-commanders - see that part of the order's military strength is funneled to aid the Houses out of gratitude. Some of the prominent knightly orders include: • Knights of the Holy Throne: The foremost knights in Tamous, the Knights of the Holy Throne are inducted into the direct service of the emperor. No knights are dubbed into this order - every one became a knight as part of another order, and was invited to join this one out of deference for his skill and achievements. • The Griffin Knights of Eledir: The griffin knights are an order of fighting men and women who act as the guardians for the capital of Eledir City. Griffin Knights lower in the order act as commanders for the city watch patrols or are in command of guardians along the city walls, but the highest-ranking of them are taught to ride the city's griffins in its elite airborne cavalry. • The Order of the Shattered Peak: An order of knights dedicated to patrolling the southern and western borders of Tamous, preventing the creatures from those wild highlands from rampaging through the border settlements. The knights of the Shattered Peak tend to be knights-errant, traveling alone, with squires, or as part of adventuring companies. • Knights of the Blood Wood: The newest of the knightly orders, the Knights of the Blood Wood are an integral part of the empire's forward push into the Delannwood. They are front-line combatants against the shifters and elves of the Delannwood. • The Sworn of Saint Audæris: Named for the sainted chaplain-guardian who accompanied King Tamous in the founding of their great nation, these knights are the sworn defenders and personal guard of the royal - now imperial - House that rules Tamous. Because the loyalties in this order run strong, its upper membership have been killed twice, both when new Houses took the Holy Throne.

Eledir City (Capital)

The capital city of Eledir is a grand city, beautiful and refined. Its architecture is distinctive and proud, the inspiration for the rest of the empire of Tamous to mimic. Its people know they live in one of the safest and most prosperous cities on the continent (particularly after the fall of Liminal). It is known as the City of the Griffin, as local lore says that it used to be nesting spot of griffins in the days before the city was built.

Population: 22,000

Government: Eledir City is the capital of the Empire of Tamous, and home to its emperor. Though he is of course the final authority, the city itself is run by the Griffin Regent, an appointed noble official that oversees the city's day-to-day functioning, serving as the emperor's formost hand and mouth in all such things.

The current Griffin Regent is Lady Sandæra Ylrannin, the younger sister of Emperor Ædelann. Lady Sandæra has a reputation of a strong will and sharp mind, as well as a reputation for securing the unwavering loyalty of those beneath her in the hierarchy. She is also a Knight of the Griffin, and frequently arrives in the city's courts astride her griffin, Thunderstorm.

Defense: The city is defended by its Watch (whose members are called "watchmen"), who act as its police force, and by the Guard (colloquially, its members are called "guardians"), who are its military. These two groups are kept very separate, with individual commanders each of whom answer to the Griffin Regent. The Watch are truncheon-wielding, leather-wearing men and women who patrol in groups of four, while the Guard are usually clad in chain and wield mace-and-shield. The Guard has no authority over the average citizen, save in times of war.

The concept of who has authority over the populace has been formalized over the years: the Watch possesses the Authority of Command, save when the city is under military danger. Then, a horn in the possession of the Griffin Regent's household is sounded, and that authority shifts to the Guard until it is passed back.

The city's defense is augmented by two knightly orders: the Knights of the Holy Throne, who have supreme authority over city defense for the Thronesward, and the Griffin Knights, who are folded into positions of command in the Watch and Guardians.

Commerce: Eledir is the mercantile center of the empire of Tamous. The Guilds maintain a large bank in the Road's Crossing district, the Griffin Vaults. This building - which is well-fortified and defended - serves as the headquarters for the Guilds in Tamous. The Throne's willingness to treat well with the Guilds has ensured an unprecedented prosperity for the nation in general, and for Eledir City in specific. The majority of the shops in the city are Guilds-owned, and its people have given over to the Guilds' ideal mentality: they trust the quality of work of the Guilds so implicitly that it is difficult for non-Guildsfolk to make a living in the city where they face competition by Guilds craftsmen.

Organizations: The three biggest power groups in the city are the Throne, the Faith, and the Guilds. Most of the other organizations - knightly orders, monastic orders, and the like - owe their service to one (or more) of those groups

Thronesward

The Thronesward is home to the massive Palace of the Throne, a many-winged palace surrounded by several fortifications that protect it from attack without having to compromise its beauty for defensibility. The grounds of the Palace are massive and labyrinthine, divided by walkways and walls, scattered with gardens and courtyards of all sorts. Towers stick up from various wall junctions as far as the eye can see, and many of those towers are interconnected by high-flying walkways that are architectural marvels.

Many organizations and bureaucracies are based out of some keep or chapterhouse of the Palace or another, including the Knights of the Holy Throne, as is a cloister of the Muscoval monks, whose green vestments are usually found tending to the sanctified gardens around the Throneward.

Clinging to the outer walls of this structure are myriad buildings that serve government purposes - or simply serve government officials, from scriveners' shops to bookbinders to inns and taverns. Several other important buildings, including the chapterhouse of the Griffin Knights, can be found in the outer edges of the Thronesward.

Templemont

This district is built up around the needs of the Faith, and its central temple, the Cathedral of the Holy Throne. Though it was originally a temple of Aevo, the Cathedral was consecrated to the three gods of the Faith at the ascension of King Tamous I, and has served as the heart of the Faith ever since. The Cathedral complex isn't quite as large as the Palace, but comes close. Its central spires - three great towers that rise from the middle of the main Cathedral proper - are certainly taller, and the great bells that toll in it occasionally can be heard for many miles around.

Around the massive temple proper are myriad small chapels and even two cloisters. The Preceptory of the Sun is based out of the Cathedral, and so it often sees nobles of all sorts treading its halls. In one portion of the Templemont is the Holy Sepulcher of the Blessed Canon, a burial ground for the majority of the Faith's saints over the years, and a major pilgrimage site for the faithful.

There are many small chapels, which are technically open to all visitors, but which are sponsored by one of the Houses of Tamous, and are the preferred destination for private spiritual reflection by members of that House. Such chapels have public areas as well as places set aside for members of the House alone. Its chaplains and priests are always part of the Preceptory of the Sun, and usually considered in service to that House directly.

At the edges of the district are many businesses that those visiting or living in the district find useful: pilgrims' inns and bedhouses, scriveners who sell Faith-approved tracts and chapbooks of prayer, tailors to provide clothing fit to enter into the Cathedral, and the like.

Road's Cross

Road's Cross is the district built up around the Crossroads Market, the central market area of Eledir City. It is the mercantile and craftsmans' district, with most of its building housing shops on its lower floors, and two to four floors worth of residences above those. The Road's Cross also houses the most inns and taverns of the city. Road's Cross is also the entertainment center of Eledir City, featuring several theaters, music halls, and other such venues in the city. It has a thriving population of artists who usually dwell in Skyheights and the Pulcher.

Skyheights

So-called for the number of very tall buildings, some of which are in excess of six stories in height, that can be found in the district, Skyheights is something of the working man's neighborhood. There are a great many residences for those who can't quite afford to live in Road's Cross, but who do too well to live in the Pulcher. It has some of the rowdier taverns in the city, though it is also well-patrolled by the city watch.

The Pulcher

When the city was much younger, this district was where the settlement's graveyard was located. Over time, as its grounds were dug up, the corpses moved to the lichyards nearby, and the ground deconsecrated, it still bore the memory of its original use in its name: the 'Pulcher, short for "the Sepulcher," as the cemetery was once called.

The Pulcher is where the city's poor and destitute live. Though this started simply out of superstition when the old graveyard was cleared - after all, anyone who could afford to live somewhere other than on that land did so - it's simply become the place where the poor are known to dwell. The Pulcher is also the only place in Eledir where watchmen patrol infrequently, allowing the homeless to sleep peacefully in its gutters.

The Pulcher is also a haven for criminal activity of all kinds, from bands of pickpockets to two full thieves' guilds to a variety of brothels and similar establishments. Its taverns are rough and seedy places, where the desperate go to seek sour wine and bitter beer that can be had plentifully for cheap.

The Estates

x

Ervidor (City)

Ervidor is

in western Tamous. It is a city notorious for its adventurers, many of whom use Ervidor as a base to strike out in exploration of the Thundering Range, well known for its ancient and abandoned dwarven citadels.

Towns of the Almanni Empire

X

Sunfield

X

Hælfan

X

Candorall

X

Redtooth

X

Sothwood

X

Peakwatch

x

Thrandkeep

x

Xorgarten

x