Knori

Originating from a melting pot between the Sinan and Slintan civilizations, the Knori are a mysterious people that excel in bartering, espionage, and strategy.

Home Region: "The Western Gateway"

Origin: Cities of Illa and Cytos, founded in 350 BR

Presence: Small, but steadfast

Common Religions: Western Gate Pantheon

Real World Influence: Phoenician, Venetian

5e Additions:

Magic Proficiency: Air/Arcane Evocation

Non-Magic Proficiency: Insight

History

The Knori emerged as a distinct culture at the turn of the era, having previously existed on the fringes of Slintan and Sinese cultures.  The Knori take their name from the founding of Knoros, the Barakon sister city to Cytos that sits on the western tip of Severon.  Cytos and Knoros were founded in 05 BR and 22 AR, respectively, and famously guard the region known as The Western Gateway. The Knori are technically split into two distinct republics, with Cytos and Knoros serving as the capitals and namesakes. They were at one time ruled under a Duel Trade Council, but Knoros and Cytos operated independently on matters outside of mutual commerce.

Cytos had many dealings with the Slintan state of Tyros and the Rhalan principality of Dmitrov, and even militarily conquered as far north as the Rhalan town of Otsalich. Meanwhile, Knoros fought extensively fending off the Dresnid hordes to the south as well as the ancient kingdom of Sina. Over the centuries, Knoros and Sina, along with the old Kingdom of Espidon, formed a triple alliance against the Dresnid hordes that constantly raided and invaded their lands.

In 260 AR, Knoros, Sina, and Espidon conjointly garrisoned a fortress called Tri Kastron that lay at a strategic point on the Knoros-Dresnid border. This fortress proved its worth for 50 years before succumbing to a massive Dresnid invasion led by the Aljerem clan in 334 AR. The fortress would by retaken by the Makan Empire and its Sinan vassals by 391 AR, but quickly fall into neglect and ruin. In 840 AR, Novi Kastron was founded about 100 miles north of Tri Kastron as a new defensive fortress, now manned mainly by soldiers of Knoros.

Makan Invasion

The Mako made their famous landfall on Severon in 218 AR, taking the port town of Mydonti from Tyros. They would later have their first landfall on Barakon around 340 AR in a war with Sina. Just 10 years later, the Makan Empire would invade Cytos under the pretense that the Knori had financially aided Tyros in its wars against the Mako. The validity of this claim was questionable, but it did not matter when the Makan armies reached the outskirts of Cytos before a peace was brokered.

Knoros and Cytos banded together over the next century to fight the Mako on several occasions, but never made progress in expelling the invaders for good. Then, around 440 AR, The Makan Empire launched an invasion that saw the complete capitulation of Cytos and Knoros under the Makan dominion, now taking the name of The Great Empire of the West.

Despite some initial unrest, the Knori lived under Makan dominance from 500 to 800 AR, enjoying a strange era of peace and prosperity for a people who were relatively oppressed.

Knori role in the fall of the Makan Empire

In 805 AR, the cities of Knoros and Cytos were strangely among the first to learn about the ascension of the Seikan man Mao Guo Aly-a-Song to the Makan throne as Emperor. Knori lords and merchants quickly went about sowing dissent where they could throughout the empire, but Knoros and Cytos as polities remained complacent to the Empire for several more years. They officially seized the opportunity to secede in 808 AR, coinciding with Liang Fu's coup that overthrew Emperor Mao Guo. There was little Makan resistance to the resurgence of Knoros and Cytos, and indeed the new republics were a haven for refugees in the chaos that had engulfed the empire.

Over the next century, the Knori rebuilt their reputation as the sole power controlling trade in and out of The Western Gateway, to lands far beyond- yet unknown to any other peoples on Kronis.

Traditions

The Knori grew their traditions largely separate from the Slintan and Sinan cultures from which they evolved from. The Knori, of course, place trade and prosperity as the highest priority as well as family. Many festivals and first meetings are celebrated with lavish goods, along with a degree of pomp and circumstance. Guests are welcomed at nearly all times, and equally celebrated and respected throughout Knori culture.

Sailors perform rituals before setting off on voyages, such as sprinkling wine over the bow or leaving offerings to their gods. Trade ships are heavily guarded with convoys, with a system of warning and reinforcement even in foreign waters.

Every Knori merchant family knows of the existence of at least one continent far off to the west, but these places are closely guarded secrets. About half of the Knori themselves do not even believe in these "secrets". Indeed, the merchant families only pass on this secret within their own households, as they are valuable contacts that they trade with exclusively. And indeed, merchants will often laden their ships and sail out west - but it could all be a ruse where they then turn north or south to go to the Rhalans or Podrusans, respectively.

Mythos

Myths and tales claim that the Knori made a deal with the sea titans by the cursed coast, and it is the reason they have been known to go south, even when cultures on the southern coasts would never send ships back west.

The Knori are very knowledgeable humans, elves, and half elves. They learned to adapt their magical mastery of air just like the neighboring Slintans, but use it less effectively than a native Slintan. The only krakens known to exist on Kronis are said to have all been slain by the Knori, and traders selling parts of a kraken often show up in places recently visited by Knori merchants. Tons of other sea legends are known amongst the Knori, which they hold most sacred and secret from outside cultures, for as welcoming of guests as they are. There are reports of at least 1 Triton man being spotted in Knoros, but any detail beyond that has not been given.

Naming Traditions

Knori names are tied deeply to either their families, location, or guild associations. Common examples:

Male: Lycaon of Serathos, Marcion of the Galeonari guild, Timaon of the Sailmakers, Nerion Sestari

Female: Selene Eirenide, Zophina Tavronis, Thalassa of the Harbor Masters, Callista of the Banking Guild