Vayazza
General description
The Vayazza were a historical people living along the eastern shores of the continant of Auchulpa. They were Mdûlûn, sea elves, that built a confederation of small states with a central seat of power in a city called Namak. Their confederation was made up of small kingdoms run by vice kings or minor kings who pledge allegiance to the high king who resided in Namak. Communication between the different parts of the Vayazza state mainly took place via the sea, as like most sea elves the Vayazza don't establish themselves too far from the coast. While being stretched out, their state was restricted to some coastal cities and stretches of land in between them and a considerable number of islands along the eastern coast of Auchulpa.
History
While the Len were literate from their very inception, the Vayazza Mdûlûn did not engange in historiography until well into the Era of the Trees. So their early history is somewhat shrouded. They were believed to stem directly from the first Mdûlûn to have existed. Their most notable city was Namak, which also became seat of the government of the Vayazza kingdom. Other than other kingdoms, the Vayazza kingdom was a confederation of all the local kingships of the Vayazza that developped during the prehistory of their people. The confederation seems to heva formed not by outward pressure, but rather by the interest to facilitate trade and exchange of goods, ideas and people. Being of the same origin and supposedly not having developped a history of conflict and strife unlike other Mdûlûn people like the Messellat Mdûlûn, the transition from individual kingdoms to a confederation went on smoothly. This was reflected until the Vayazza kingdom was erased by the Asargam Empire and the remaining Vayazza fled north to reestablish themselves on the Skeresey Archipelago at the end of the Era of the Trees.
Organization
Due to the poor preservation state of Vayazza sources and the great distance in time, not much can be said about how the Vayazza organised themselves. It is known, that they had a high king residing in Namak who ruled the confederation of mostly small kingdoms. At least one part of the confederation, the state of Qatu, seems not to have been run by a monarch, but rather an oligarchy that made up a senate. The exact modalities of how Qatu worked stay also unknown. Some fragments of Qatu historiography, that are still extant, tell of elections of high kings though. Wether those high kings stem exclusively from Namak or from all of the city states stays a mystery. As the few texts also tell about a Qatu army, it can be inferred, that the military was not organised centrally from the seat of government, but rather, that all of the states were responsible for their own military.
Beliefs, cult and festivities
As most Mdûlûn, the Vayazza also worshipped deities of the night, celestial bodies and of course, the ocean. Many ruins of temples and altars can still be observed in the former area of the Vayazza kingdom. These show decorations hinting at a preference to worship gods and godesses of the stars, probably because they played a paramount role in navigation.
Only the state of Qatu left some texts from which their individual religious beliefs can be inferred. Considering the archeological evidence that can be found elsewhere, we can be sure that te religious system was relatively uniform all across the area of the Vayazza kingdom. The main deity was in most cases that of a certain star, either the Mimmaz Yatola or the Hikkuass Yatola. One still completely intact altar to the Mimmaz Yatola is located on the highest hill just off of the former city of Namak.
International politics and outward contacts
As far as we know, the only major people around the Vayazza were the Thujha to the South. When the Asargam empire started to expand westward to the continent of Auchulpa, the Thujha and Vayazza were discovered at around the same time. No sources tell about the Thujha and the Vayazza banding together against the Asargam threat. As the Asargam Empire was completely obliterated by the Great Scourching, brought about by the gods to punish them for their hybris, there are no written sources about their interactions with the Vayazza. The Vayazza on the other hand have left some historical notes about their losing battles against the Asargam Empire, especially the Vimãna, a huge airship used by the Asargam invading forces.
The Asargam Empire overpowered the Vayazza kingdom within a few years. Only after their ultimate defeat did the Thujha manage to drive them back, employing Raijonneen mercenaries. The Days of the Vayazza kingdom and all of its constituents were counted though. The remaining Vayazza went north and never regained their old strength. They are now living in small settlements far up north on the Skeresey Archipelago, where they compete with the local Luak.
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