Halaema

The Halaema is a group of elves that used to live in what is now Principality of Clifia. Like many elven people, they were steeped in traditions and unique craftsmanship and enjoyed a connection to the natural world. They would face increasing opposition from the Principality. When the Principality arrived on their land, they would begin to strip their forests for resources, their sacred groves would be desecrated, and their larger cities would be reduced to ruins. Within 100 years of the Principalities' arrival, the Halaema people would be reduced to just a shadow of their former selves. The Halaema were once renowned for their arcane archery, where they would use their magic to give their bows an almost impossible amount of precision, this would also make their archers deadly in a conflict, but the Principality countered this by burning the forests when they entered an area which would make it hard for the elven archers to fight effectively. Once conquered, the Halaema were subject to persecution and discrimination. The Principality tried to suppress their rituals, and their mages were arrested and would often not be seen again.

A NEW HOPE

During the final years of The war of Western expansion, the Principality of Clifia were suffering from a drought that resulted in a food shortage which resulted in the Principality turning the persecution of elves up to a new level. When the Empire of Dercia learned of this from refugees that had made it to the border, they arranged for the Halaema that they could migrate to the Empire were they would be given a new land and the only requirement would be that they would, once they had settled into their new lives, that they would swear loyalty to the Dercian queen if they did that they would be allowed to live their lives as they saw fit. Within a human lifetime, the Halaema had honed their arcane crafts, their workers producing exquite works of art, tapestries and jewelry that they would trade with the rest of the empire.