Yllvalion (Yill-vall-yon)

Snow-Covered Outpost of the Elves

Against a desolate landscape of white, a shimmering citadel reaches up against the backdrop of the jagged Spine of Kallex, its windows the only shimmer of light on the edges of the wild and endless Neither Tundra. People in fur-lined armor scurried between the buildings, the castle the centerpiece of their dealings as they moved through their lives, often stopping to look at the great fortress that draped them in shadows. The stunning citadel was their protection and solace, the safety of the north encapsulated in thick stone and towering spires, an oasis in the desolation that marked the divide between the Elves of the south and the Giants of the north.
Much of the northern Elven Forest is known as the Northern Outposts, a series of towns, villages, and overlooks that serve to keep the Elven Kingdom safe from the dangers that had once wandered from the snowy stretches of the Neither Tundra. Here in these towns and villages stood pillars of safety, Paladins of the Knights of Yggdrasil that made these wastes their homes and protected all through the orders of the white citadel. While leagues away from the capital of Alfensil, the white city served as its own capital, its own place of knowledge, leadership, and service.
Yllvalion is considered to be the central hub of the northern Elven Forest, under the preview of the Ylyndar Clan and the renowned Paladin order, the Knights of Yggdrasil. Built upon an outcrop of stone at the base of the Spine of Kallex, the white citadel provides a manner of safety for those who live within the Northern Outposts while also serving as a base of operations for all military engagements between the Giants and the Elves. For over five millennia, the white city of the Elves has stood as a monolith, a reminder of a victory past and engagements to come.

Demographics

While the population of Yllvalion is small compared to the majority of cities in the Elven Forest, it is the largest city in the Northern Outposts and most of the northern portion of the forest. While more of a military outpost, it is a popular hub of trade and knowledge for those who wish to enter the Spine of Kallex or search for the home of the Metallic Dragons.
Most inhabitants of the city are Emerald Elves, but there are also a number of Humans and Silver Elves that make their home there. Many other races inhabit the city as merchants or part of the Knights of Yggdrasil. It is uncommon to see Dwarves or Halflings here, but one or two of any race can often be seen in Yllvalion.

Quick Facts

Population Breakdown

Children

567

Elderly

285

Adults

1328

Ill/Infirm

20

Other Information

Primary Occupants

Emerald Elves

General Attitude

Confident & Wary

Other Occupants

Humans & Silver Elves

Population Type

Rural

The majority of those who call Yllvalion home serve as Paladins in the Knights of Yggdrasil. In many cases, the men will join the order as a Paladin and serve their lives as part of the protection force while the women may choose to become Rangers, Fighters, Warriors, or take on other professions that can serve either the order or the city. While this is not always the case, all who live in Yllvalion are well-versed in hunting, tracking, trapping, and surviving in the harsh environment, no matter what profession they choose.
Other than the innate magic that most Elves have, magic users are numbered within the walls of Yllvalion. Purple Magic is the most common as it is utilized by the Paladins and some Clerics who are part of the order. The current Ylyndar matron, Naya Ylyndar, is a user of White Magic and a handful of the younger generation of Elves in the city have taken to learning the ways of academic magic through the use of the Ylyndar's personal library.

Knights of Yggdrasil Crest

Knights of Yggdrasil Crest by Crest via Armoria, created by RiverFang

One of the longest-standing orders of its type, the Knights of Yggdrasil serve as one part of the military forces of the Elven Kingdom, governing the Northern Outposts and protecting those in the surrounding areas.

Government

Outside of the Deep Forest and the Elderwood, the northern and southern parts of the Elven Forest govern themselves freely, outside of the more complete control of the Elven King. While the Outlanders of the south are more removed from the politics of Alfensil, the Northern Outposts and along with them, Yllvalion, serve the Kingdom but have been given a measure of autonomy to govern themselves as they see fit. As the Northern Outposts would not exist without the Knights of Yggdrasil, the northern reaches of the Elven Forest are governed by the order and the clan that leads it.
Currently, the Knights of Yggdrasil and the Ylyndar Clan are led by Elduin Ylyndar, an elder Paladin who fought for the order during the days of the Eldritch War. Considered to be a stoic man, he gained his renown by leading a group of his fellow Paladins through a number of battles during the war relatively unscathed. His quick thinking and strategy allowed Yllvalion and most of the Northern Outposts to see few casualties when most of the world was heavily decimated. Elduin rose to his seat only fifty years before the Eldritch War, taking over for his aging father Haemir.
Having autonomy from the Elven King does grant a measure of freedom to the people of Yllvalion, but some laws are strictly enforced. Due to the white city's location near both the Spine of Kallex and the Neither Tundra, a curfew is enforced. With the days being long and the nights short, creatures that hunt during the night are considered to be more dangerous. Extreme storms that sometimes blanket the area also see the curfew in place in order to make sure that all are safe within the walls, whether when night falls or a storm begins. Once curfew is called, roll is taken to make sure that all are accounted for and if not, a search party can be sent for whomever may be missing.

Industry & Trade

Trade is a necessity of Yllvalion and the north as while a handful of merchants do call the area home, there are not enough to supply the people that call the Northern Outposts home. Items such as weapons and armor are sourced from both the Elves and Dwarves while cloth goods tend to come from the weavers of the Fairy King's Wood.

The growing season in Yllvalion is short, causing many fruits, vegetables, and grains to be brought in on caravans, often in preserved states. Parts of the deeper floors of the Ylmaris Citadel and some outlying buildings have been turned into makeshift greenhouses through the help of the Clay Giants, but most foodstuffs come from the Cradle of Clay or the Little Greenwood when possible.

Infrastructure

Yllvalion is the largest city in the Northern Outposts and boasts a wide range of amenities, even if the location and its people are often considered to be somewhat "uncivilized." Utilizing the magic developed by the Unending Scroll, the few streets that can be found within the walls have an invisible sewer and irrigation system that runs beneath the city. This is also useful when the deep snows of the winter melt, causing what could be catastrophic flooding without proper drainage.
A number of small shops can be found within the walls of Yllvalion, but a majority of the space not taken up by the Ylmaris Citadel is occupied by private homes. Merchants set up their shops on the lower floors of the castle, allowing easy access to any number of goods, including blacksmiths, general wares, mounts, and even the stables. The reasoning behind keeping all merchants within the castle allows for business to continue during the worst storms where the entire city and parts of the Northern Outposts reside within the Ylmaris Citadel.
The walls themselves are a hundred feet high in places and roughly five feet

Yllvalion in Winter

Yllvalion in Winter by Image via Midjourney, created by Riverfang

thick. Various types of stone were quarried from the fringes of the Spine of Kallex to build this massive city and enchantments were put in place as each layer of the wall rose. Guard towers were established along the perimeter that are constantly manned by Paladins and others of the Knights of Yggdrasil that are versed in magic and long-range tactics.

History

5,000 years before the Eldritch War began, the Elves had constructed a grand stronghold in the north, where the trees grew thin and the air carried a deadly frost from the north. Here the Elven Kingdom drew the line that Giants could not cross, forbidding them to enter the forest of good folk and confining them to rule over the Neither Tundra as the Humans and Clay Giants had also decided. Here, the Paladin order, the Knights of Yggdrasil, were commissioned by the Elven King Cyllin to act as guardians of the northern border so that no danger might cross over into the gentler forest. Exactly a year after the order was founded, a grand fortress had been built near the mountains, east of the Spine of Kallex and the groundwork for outposts all across the northern reaches of the forest as they began to push the Giants back into the north. Too long had the world suffered at the hands of the Storm Giants and their lesser brethren. Despite the grand kingdom they controlled, they were a culture that instigated war so that they might expand.
With the support of the Metallic Dragons from the mountains, the Elves made a show of force that deterred outright invasion while they continued to establish their presence in the area. Soon after, a town sprang up around the castle and Elves from the area sought out the high stone walls, partly out of fear of their abrasive neighbors to the north and partly because of the artifact that the Metallic Dragons gave to the Elves. In order to ensure their fortress would stand for many years to come, a Silver Dragon by the name of Kiklin gave the order of Paladins a large and ancient crystal, fished from the depths of the ocean, a relic of some forgotten civilization. He charged the Elves with the safekeeping of the treasure and placed it within their courtyards on a pedestal. While the sun shone, the gem was rather unremarkable save for how incredibly clear and large it was, as tall as a Clay Giant and too wide to fit through any door in the keep. When the days began to grow short and light would seldom touch the northern slopes was when the secret of the gem was revealed, it shone with the brightness of the stars overhead. The less the sun shone the brighter the gem would shine with a piercing, white light that cut through both fog and storm. The fortress soon became a source of hope for the surrounding inhabitants, even the Silver Elves would come up from the depths of the mountains to examine it from time to time.
Yllvalion stood without great incident for a thousand years, perfecting their training and patrolling the northern border. Orcs and Barbarians were repelled into the Tundra and smaller variations of Giant were pushed back with ease. They stood ready to support the Silver Elves under the mountains and to hold their own above ground. However, their quiet existence was to be tested. In the year 4,000 IM, the Giants moved to expand southward once again, setting fire to the forest and coming up over the mountain but they would not come directly over the mountains for it was too near the "Metallic Council". They feared the power of the ancient Dragons. The Elves however, were tested in open combat all along the northern border, they raided the outposts to see how much fight the Elves had, and they were not disappointed. The Elven warriors were Paladins, Knights that stood ageless in their training, wielded powerful magic and strong weapons that allowed them to drive the Giants back and forth for several years in a conflict known as the Giant Wars. Unfortunately, the Elven border was not the only one tested, the Clay Giants and Humans rallied on their own borders to carry out the same fight across thousands of miles of the Neither Tundra.
Hundreds of years passed, the fighting would only be intense for a year or so at a time and great battles would ensue. The borders were secured, never falling past the line of the Northern Outposts but any attempt to push the line forward was always crushed immediately. In the year 3,500 IM, a prince of the Cloud Giants, Krojak, led a campaign of intent against the northern border. A long and harsh war ensued that lasted all winter in which all races involved lost many lives and led to the construction of a burial ground far to the east of where the fortress lies. This long and bloody campaign was ended in a final battle where Krojak himself pushed towards the fortress and met his end on the battlefield when he faced the master of the keep. Armed with a deadly blade, enchanted by the Elven King, he destroyed the Giant's claymore in one strike with an empowered smite. What could have been a monstrous defeat was turned into a felling of the enemy commander while his army fled from the presence of the Paladin who resided as master of the fortress.
The broken bits of this blade still reside at a small settlement today, the area is called Krojak's End.

Crest of Yllvalion

Crest of Yllvalion by Crest via Armoria, created by RiverFang

Following the precedent set in Alfensil, a crest was created upon the completion of the white citadel to mark the goods and objects that were created within the city's walls. While most of these goods never leave the city or the Northern Outposts, this crest is a symbol of creation through hardship and the successes that the people of Yllvalion have found in the shadow of possible war.

Founding Date

4999 IM

Founders

• Eldrin Ylyndar

Type

Citadel

Population

2200

Location under

Elven Forest

Included Locations

• Snowcaps Inn
• Ylmaris Citadel

Owner/Ruler

Elduin Ylyndar

Owning Organization

Knights of Yggdrasil

Related Tradition (Primary)

• Day of Shadow
• Snowfell

Related Historical Events

• 5000 IM
  Formation of the Knights of Yggdrasil
• 4995 IM
  Construction of the Ylmaris Citadel
• 4999 IM
  Founding of Yllvalion

Ylmaris Citadel

The first structure to be established in Yllvalion was the Ylmaris Citadel. Once the basis for the massive castle was created, masons and others began creating the walls that would provide safety to the fledgling order and the buildings within. The intention of building the citadel at such a size was to make sure that all parts of the Northern Outposts and the Knights of Yggdrasil could be run from one central, stalwart location. Shops, smithies, and all manner of businesses could find a place among the bottom floors of the castle while administrative offices and the leading family could live above.
The building of the Ylmaris Citadel was swift, but the thick walls surrounding Yllvalion were completed months before the final spires of the castle were built. With the completion of the walls, families began building homes and shops around the castle, but not without establishing their places on the lower floors of the citadel itself.
While the first in Yllvalion, the Ylyndar Clan were the last to move into the citadel, choosing to aid those that would make up the order and the various families that found a measure of safety within the walls. For the years of construction, the leading clan lived in little more than a wooden hut just outside the construction zone, setting in place the teachings and duties that would come to define the city and order in the coming centuries.