Evermeet
Originally populated by sun elves, Evermeet is now the refuge for the Elven Court that has withdrawn from Faerûn. Moon elves, sun elves, and some wood elves followed Queen Amlaruil when she moved the center of elven life out of its ages-old home in the forest of Cormanthor. Evermeet is a defensible location far removed from human power centers such as Cormyr and Zhentil Keep.
The magical kingdom of the elves lies eighteen hundred miles to the west of Faerûn in the Trackless Sea. Elven high magic, sea elves, vigilant wizards, and a powerful navy guard the island. Few approach Evermeet who are not already the elves’ guests.
LIFE AND SOCIETY
The dignified and gracefully evolving life of the Elven Court pivots around the carefully smoothed passage of the seasons, giving life in Evermeet a stately cadence in which the decades blur into centuries of contemplative serenity. Nothing in human Faerûn compares to it.
For the most part, the moon elves and sun elves form a single culture, though the noble houses, family lines, and clan relation ships color associations between individuals. The wood elves hold themselves somewhat apart, preferring a quieter relationship with the forest and its spirits, but individual wood elves frequently blend into the life of the Court. The sea elves are welcome to participate in the life of the Court but few do so for long. The handful of wild elves who opted to join the Court on Evermeet either carry themselves as the other elves of the court or live among the wood and forest spirits.
MAJOR GEOGRAPHICAL FEATURES
To a non-elf, Evermeet looks essentially like a single huge forest. Elves can distinguish between the forest's regions, moods, and realms by reading the messages left over centuries of symbiotic relationships between trees and their elven wardens. Humans can only see the type of geography they're accustomed to - Evermeet's occasional wide meadows, fair rivers, and some impressive hilly ranges.
Eagle Hills: From Thalikaera Rock, the highest peak of the range, lookouts can see all the way to the island of Sumbrar to the southeast. Using magic, they can see much farther.
The Farmeadows and the Horsefields: The two largest meadows on Evermeet are representative of the dozens of smaller glades tucked in among the trees. Centaurs run free through the long grasses alongside moon-horses, the intelligent horses native to the island who serve and are served by the elves.
River Ardulkh: Few humans penetrate the interior of Evermeet, much less ride a leaf boat from the River Ardulith's source high in the Silver Hills down to where it joins the River Shaelyn to flow into the sea in view of the queen's palace in Leuthilspar.
Silver Hills: Like the Eagle Hills, these three-thousand-foot, conifer-lined peaks tower over the rest of the island. Lookouts keep watch from the peaks and tend to their giant eagle mounts in nests on the crags.
IMPORTANT SITES
Evermeet brims with wonder. No human land comes close to its integration of natural beauty and supernatural splendor. The elves compose wondrous songs describing and praising the ever-changing marvels of the island. The few humans welcomed to Evermeet's shores likely only see Queen Amlaruil's crown city.
Corellon's Grove: The high temple of the chief deity of the elven pantheon can be found in the forest in the north of the island. It would be proper to say that the north quarter of the island is the high temple to Corellon, since it's impossible to know where the "normal" forest ends and the space holy to the great deity begins. More than any other place; Corellon's Grove is the heart of elven life on Toril.
Leuthilspar (Metropolis, 50,269): The capital of Evermeet is a radiant example of the elves' organic architecture, in which buildings are grown rather than built. Even the coarsest dwarven miner would catch his breath at his first glimpse of Queen Amlaruil's palace. Crystals as tall as mighty trees are riddled with spiral passageways and glass-floored living quarters. Trees grow into citadels, linked bole to bole by fluting branches. Soaring arches and shimmering fields of magical force support airy palaces that seem too fragile to exist even in a dream. Eternally vigilant warriors and mages in armor of gleaming glass guard the tranquil city.
Sumbrar: Sumbrar, a small island fifty miles to the east, serves as Evermeet's military and naval headquarters. The island is a series of interwoven magical fortresses. A thousand wizard-warriors stand ready there with their pegasus and eagle mounts. An armada of ships remains magically prepared for launch, secure in hidden sea caves. Deep below the island, the last twelve dragons of Evermeet lie sleeping alongside their riders, waiting for a threat worth their power. Uninvited vessels are warned off sternly - or, should that fail destroyed.
REGIONAL HISTORY
The overall history of the elves of Faerûn is detailed elsewhere, particularly in the description of Cormanthor (see The Dalelands). Evermeet was settled by sun elves thousands of years ago. Over the last century the, elves of Cormanthor and other realms chose to remove themselves to this idyllic land, far from the ever-growing human empires and remorseless humanoid hordes that had destroyed so many elven realms on Faerûn's mainland.
Yet now the Elven Retreat is at an end. All who were willing to abandon their lands in Faerûn have done so, and no more elves come to Evermeet to forget the human world. Although Queen Amlaruil's reign is just and fair, many elves - some of whom have been on Evermeet for centuries - find themselves dissatisfied with their withdrawal from the rest of the world.
Unlike the elves loyal to the Elven Court, both the wild elves and the drow remained on the mainland. Instead of being overrun by the humans, both subraces have flourished in recent years, thanks in part to opportunities afforded them by the emigration of the other elves to Evermeet
No one, least of all the Elven Court, has proclaimed an end to the Retreat or stated a determination to return. But more and more elves are choosing to return to Faerûn each year. Some intend to settle in Faerûn permanently or fight for ancestral lands taken by drow and other outsiders. Others intend to simply walk for a time in the lands they love, using secret portals to come or go as they please. Finally, Queen Amlaruil has quietly dispatched a number of agents and scouts to reestablish diplomatic ties with other friendly kingdoms. Evermeet no longer stands apart from events in Faerûn.
Evermeet is not as safe as its "impregnable" magical defenses might indicate. In recent years, have dared to strike at Leuthuspar through magical portals, as if to remind Amlaruil that no haven is perfect. Forty-three years ago - a mere blink of the eye to an elf -Amlaruil's husband King Zaor was murdered in the heart of his palace, surrounded by, all the strength and splendor of his realm.
Capital: Leuthilspar
Population: 1,658,880 (sun elves 50%, moon elves 30%, sea elves 10%, wood elves 9%)
Government: Monarchy Religions: Corellon Larethian and the rest of the Seldarine
Imports: Elven items retrieved from Faerûn, otherwise self-sufficient
Exports: Elven adventurers, jewelry, some exotic or magic items given as gifts
Alignment: CG, CN, NG
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