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The Realm of Elysia
The realm of Elysia was created in 6,300 XA (1700 BC) as a refuge from the persecutions Xanth's Children suffered at the hands of their human ancestors back on Earth. The would-be Eden did not remain so for long, of course, as tensions within and between the races spilled over into bloody wars, but despite their differences Elysians have thrived here and have even accepted some of their human brethren back into their midst. Still, this proud and untamed land is far from being safe. AstronomyAstronomy is not a commonly pursued subject in Elysia so little is known about the cosmos, though it is safe to say Elysia is the third planet in a system of five. The most interesting thing to note about Elysia's sun, Hel, is that it emits fewer ultraviolet rays than Earth's sun, making Elysia a much less dangerous place for Vampires so that they can walk about during the day. Likewise, skin cancer is uncommon. Of Elysia's two moons, only the smooth ice-blue Neme is large enough and close enough to be visible to the naked eye. Her sister, Selene, is slightly smaller and follows a slow elliptical orbit such that she can only be seen once a year. That and her red-orange colouring and black pockmarks give her the name "Blood Moon". GeographyElysia has five continents. Two of these are the ice caps, 10,810,860 square miles of land at the north and south poles covered in ice hundreds of feet thick. The poles are largely uninhabited by humanoids as they're far too cold even during their long summers to sustain a civilisation (though there are rumours of some small tribes living there). Most of the population is spread sparsely across the mainland, which is the largest of the continents at approximately 9,920,000 square miles and has the only working portals on the planet. However, the highly volcanic Dardanos, at 4,200,000 square miles, has a much smaller and much more self-reliant populations despite its hazards and the lack of portals. OceanographyElysia's oceans make up approximately 58% of its surface yet is split into just two named parts, with the Nereid Ocean being that water north of the equator and the Ao Sea being the south. Sadly, there has not been much official exploration of the oceans because of the many dangers of the open water, so the majority of oceanic maps are terribly incomplete (though Elysia's pirates are rumoured to have a much better idea of what's out there). Only the waters surrounding the continents and along the established trade routes are mapped in detail, and even open-water fishing boats tend to stick fairly close to shore. Yet despite its many dangers, the sea is the only connection between the mainland and Dardanos (certainly it is for merchants and their cargo). Thankfully, the two port towns of Espur and Marport are relatively close (despite the near-circuitous 400-mile route ships are forced to take across the channel), so such journeys are fairly simple. The PeopleThough smaller than Earth, Elysia probably seems much bigger simply for the fact that there are so few people living here (just 5.12 million compared to Earth's 6.9 billion), and because most of the inhabitants are spread far and wide across the realm. The majority of Elysia is rich with life and resources, and there's plenty of space for everyone. Combine this with the frontier lifestyle and lack of overall government, and it's possible for each and every Elysian to claim their own piece of the pie — if only they're willing to work for it. The peoples of Elysia are not as quaint or as peaceable as Xanth would probably have liked, however. She makes sure that no pollutive technology can work here so Elysians instead rely on beasts of burden, crystal-based technology and their own skills to get things done, but life is still very labour-intensive. In fact, in many ways Elysia is much closer to a Medieval Earth than a modern one. Ethnicity and RaceIn most places, tensions between the races are avoided simply because they tend not to mingle too much. You'll be hard-pressed to find a Zanaryan settling in an Anyeli village or a Vampire allowed to live in Therian territory. Even in the larger towns and cities where the races are forced to mix, and where conflict and intolerance are unavoidable, individuals often cluster together into culture-specific neighbourhoods (like the Anyeli Lίgεlοs or the Sylvan Konεrά, both being small neighbourhoods in Espur) but it's natural that tensions within the cities are much greater. PoliticsElysia is a land of city-states, meaning that there is no one government to oversee its peoples or even any kingdoms or nations (with the exception of Alexshire, but even then it's really just a bigger version of the city-state). It's every man for himself here, and thus each city is responsible for its own management, defence and citizens. Nearby villages may come under the jurisdiction of a city, but this only means they can call for help from the Town Guard or Magistrate if they need it; otherwise, they're on their own. MilitaryElysia has no organised military to speak of (save for Anyeli soldiers who are too preoccupied with their own internal affairs to bother with the realm as a whole), but it does have individual combatants trained as warriors and hunters. In times of peace, the Town Guard serves as a police force sworn to prevent (though not investigate) crime, but they are normally only available in towns large enough to both warrant and afford their salaries (see Crime and Punishment for more). Fortunately, Elysia's inhabitants are normally too busy with their own lives and concerns to plot any hostile takeovers, but during those times where an army is required, its soldiers are drawn (by draft if need be) first from the Town Guard and any experienced combateers (such as bounty hunters, assassins and their ilk), then from those with even limited combat training, and finally from the untrained commoners. Such military forces, steered by experienced strategists, are governed by either the city-state or racial leader (such as the Oroboros of the Dracovari) responsible for calling them to arms, depending on the army's purpose. Foreign RelationsElysia is connected to most of the Known Realms, and is actually quite vulnerable to attack (those portals could expand to fit an army, after all!). However, as with many things, the majority of the other realms are far too concerned with themselves to bother with any grand plans for conquest — especially of a world created by a goddess quite capable of zapping them all to smithereens if they ever stepped out of line. But neither does Elysia really have any allies, either. This is largely because there is no one government to forge such alliances (though some towns have managed to forge trade agreements with other realms), but is perhaps also due to the general attitude among both Elysians and the other realms of minding ones' own business. As the saying goes: "Stay out of my barn and I won't milk your cow." Perhaps the worst threat of modern times, however, is not war within or without, or even the monsters that rule the wilderness. Instead, it's the pirates who rule the high seas and who seem to think that any ship on their ocean belongs to them — a huge problem for merchants and travellers alike because the only sustainable means (at present) of leaving the mainland is by boat. EconomyElysia as a whole is fairly simple-minded in terms of economy. There are no department stores, no factories, nor even machines (barring certain crystal-based technology) to make the daily grind easier. It's all about the physical, hard, manual labour and about keeping what you earn. As a result, shops and businesses usually run in the family. Trades and crafts are passed down from parent to child or master to apprentice, and most require years-long training (see Occupations). Cottage industry1 is the name of the game here, so nothing is mass produced and everything is hand-made using natural or easily processed materials. This of course means that everyone has the opportunity for employment regardless of their origins. There's also a lot of mobility between classes: If you're willing to work hard and have the skills, you can raise yourself up from poverty to the middle or even upper echelons of society. It's not easy, but it's certainly doable. BankingElysian money is called xanthai but while it's an important commodity in the cities and large towns where there are small banks to safely store savings2, many villagers trade goods and services rather than having a chest of coins or a wallet full of paper at home that can be easily stolen. Rules of OwnershipThe general rule in Elysia is "Finder's Keepers", whereby the first person to discover something gets to claim ownership of it (for instance, if you're the first to unearth a new vein of alastis then it and any money to be made from it belongs to you). There are caveats, of course (like the one that says the vein of alastis would actually belong to the owner of the mine in which it was found, unless that owner happens to be you anyway, or the mine is currently unclaimed). It's also far too easy to "remove" the rightful owner to claim something for yourself, especially outside of a town's boundaries where there are no deeds or records of ownership, but in general the system does work. CultureElysia is a multicultural hodgepodge made up of the various races and their internal intricacies. As a result, culture can vary dramatically not only between regions but even within a single town (see the races for cultural information specific to them). That said, Elysians do share commonalities, be they religious festivals (like Xanth Day) or cultural traits that originated in one area or with one people that over time was adopted by the rest (such as the wearing of white during death rites, which originated in Sylvan communes, or the Harvest Moon festivals originally celebrated only by farmers). Culture varies as well between rural and urban areas. Life beyond the city limits is normally very simple and quiet (though not necessarily peaceful thanks to the bandits on the roads and the monsters lurking in the wild), whereas life in the towns can be hectic and chaotic. Despite efforts to the contrary, city folk have lost some of the respect for the natural cycle that rural inhabitants still maintain, which can lead to a clash of views if ever the two meet. LanguagesAs a result of the differences in governence and the distances between settlements, regional accents and dialects can vary quite a bit (especially where there are no portals to connect the two closely). Interestingly, most settlers in and southwest of the Apolli Mountains speak Anyeli or Sylvan respectively, since those make up the majority of the inhabitants there, but the most common language globally-speaking is Elysian. Note: Other racial languages are of course spoken in Elysia, but are much less common and often localised (for instance, Zanaryan is usually only heard in Zanaryan neighbourhoods). Likewise, note that Earth languages (even English) are very rare.
Gender and SexualityPerhaps because of the hyper-sexuality of the Nymphs, same-sex relationships are treated in much the same way as heterosexuality across the realm, yet surprisingly most citizens are still monogamist and you can only legally bind yourself to one person at a time. Furthermore, the genders are equal in almost all things, and always have been. While some jobs that involve a lot of physical work can be tougher on the females of certain races, others are just as capable as their males. Certainly when it comes to their skills, women can be just as powerful — if not more so. Fashion trendsEverything in Elysia is hand-made and that extends to clothing. As a result, most garments for daily use are simple affairs and made of handspun or woven materials, especially those worn by rural inhabitants like farmers and miners. Wealthier and urban citizens have a much broader range to choose from, of course, but because there are such vast differences in height and build between the races, most clothing must be tailored to fit. With that said, urbanwear tends not to be as simple as those clothes found on wildlanders, and some fashions can mirror those found on Earth. Magic and ReligionMagic and religion are interminably intertwined in Elysia (see Magic and Religion for more). The majority of Elysians firmly believe the stories that say all things came from Xanth, and it then follows that their abilities are also a gift from Her. Yet while many maintain this faith, society as a whole still drew further and further away from both Xanth and her Priesthood. There has been a recent and growing revival of the Voice but, in the interim centuries, religion and religious practises (barring a select few festivals) fell by the wayside, and this left Elysians open to other religions and cults (some of which came from the other realms). That said, there have been constant reminders throughout history of Xanth's presence and deeds, so those new faiths have always been short-lived. TransportationTransportation in Elysia is largely limited to mounts and driven carriages; getting there under your own steam (be it on foot or by wing); or by a variety of ships both sailed, rowed and drawn. There are experimental aircraft, powered by crystals and/or simple mechanisms to utilise extremes in temperature, but these are mostly restricted to mountainous areas where land routes are often difficult to traverse and maintain. (See Transportation for more.) HistoryElysia's calendar follows the (approximate) date of Xanth's Arrival (XA) some twelve thousand years ago, even though Elysia itself was created just thirty-seven hundred years ago. A great deal has happened in those twelve thousand years, and while much of it occurred on Earth before the migration, it is still considered Elysian history because of the people involved.
Major holidays
1 Cottage industry is "[a]n industry where the creation of products and services is home-based, rather than factory-based… products and services created by cottage industry are often unique and distinctive given the fact that they are … not mass-produced" from Investor Words. ⇑ 2 Elysian banks are small, single-branch, privately-owned affairs most commonly run by wealthy merchants and are essentially just storehouses for money. There are no electronics involved so if you deposit money in one bank, you can't withdraw that money from another. They really are geared more towards storing large savings deposits and not for managing weekly wages and bills, but security can be lax so choose your bank wisely. If your money is stolen, there's no insurance to get it back. ⇑ Page last modified on February 18, 2012, at 08:50 AM |
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