Ah, Tamalir, the so-called Gem of the Accordlands, though I heard The newly crowned Emperor Tiberius the XV wishes to restore Valadir’s prominence in the realm! Read on, dear student, and learn more about the Land of Valor and Honor.
Brief History
Tamalir used to be Eastern Deverenia. As part of the land under the Dark Sun, it was ruled with an Iron Fist by three family lines, the Guinevere family, The Lot family, and the Du’Lac family. In the year 480, the three Princes of East Deverenia declared themselves an independent nation, and, with their forces combined, fought back the forces of the High King. Though it claimed the life of Llewyn Lot. Interestingly, the High King and his armies have never fully martialed themselves since.
Guinevere, Owain Lot, and Lancelot Du’Lac created a land united; where the ideals of Honor, Compassion, and Courage would rule. It would be home to all those who consider themselves champions of these ideals.
Government & Culture, though really they are intertwined
By all accounts,Tamalir is a strange place run by friendly people. It’s rulers expect the best of its citizenry, and its citizenry expects the most of their rulers. The system, though, is quite interesting.
Tamalir is divided into units of governance called Houses, but not in the traditional sense. In order to avoid the issues of Deverenia; the three founding families created a system where Deed, not Blood, would allow anyone to join the ranks of a House.
At the top are the Three Great Houses named after the founders, House Gwyn, House Lot, and House Lanzelet. The Great Houses are responsible for the affairs of the Kingdom as a whole. They are represented by Regent-Elects, whom are voted into the role by members of its constituent families.
Each Great House is made up of a web of Minor Houses, smaller units that govern a small area of Tamalir, a few holdings or area. The size means these Houses are responsible for the day-to-day welfare of its people. The Head of a Minor House is chosen by members of that House every so often.
A Minor House is created when one of the Great Houses has a member of sufficient character that it wishes to award with its own land and responsibility.
So, who is in these houses?
Any Citizen of Tamalir can become a member of a House, and they can do so through hard work and determination. Family has little to do with joining a house, and often members of the same family, siblings, children, and so on, belong to different houses. Those who are not a direct member often find work for such a House member in their specialty craft.
The House is responsible for ensuring its land has sufficient experts and laborers to fulfill needs. It does so by inviting people into the House to fulfill this role. For example, a small village’s Blacksmith is likely a member of that village’s ruling House and appointed to be that village’s blacksmith. In turn, he can employ apprentices and workers that have not yet been elevated to a position.
In truth, this system was devised to ensure balance. A House will not recognize a new member of a profession that is unneeded, for example. A House may also recommend to a citizen in its area to travel to another House in order to make their wishes come true. The downside to this system is a favoritism to experts, with those who wish to avoid politics or to live simple life being less represented in Tamalir’s affairs. However, the Great Houses take great pains to ensure the wishes of the Citizenry are heard by their ruling Minor Houses.
Festivals and Becoming a House Member
So, how does one actually join a House! There are two ways; first by deed, and second by Valor. Well, there is a third in which a person is directly invited by the Regent of that House under special circumstances!
To join by deed, the individual must wait until one of Tamalir’s great festivals. During these joyous times, many competitions and tournaments are held, and specifically competitions in areas that the House wishes to recruit new members for. For example, if a House has noticed a lack of Herbalists, then competitions and trials for Herbalists would be held at the Festival in order to spot talented people from the ranks of apprentices and laborers. Those that perform well are invited to join the House and begin their journey. Many a young apprentice awaits these festivals so they can compete for these invitations.
The other way to join is by Valor. Anyone who wishes can join the ranks of the House’s military. The Accordlands are a dangerous place, and soldiers and Knights are needed to keep towns safe and the roads clear. Those who join these ranks are offered training while they contribute labor to a House’s agricultural efforts. Unlike other Kingdoms, all agricultural endeavors are undertaken by a House directly to ensure the food supply is uninterrupted. Those who progress sufficiently are elevated to a Man-at-arms, though many are content to make up the ranks of the Farmer-Militiapeople that keep Tamalir safe in times of crisis.
When it comes to join by Valor, those with sufficient skill, either from outside Tamalir or self-taught, can end up getting invited by serving in the retinue of a Knight.
Knights of Tamalir
Despite everything we’ve covered, Tamalir is known for its flashy Knights in shining armor! There is a lot going on here so let’s break it down.
Man-at-arms are not yet knights, but trained soldiers that solely focus on their training instead of performing labor for their House. They often accompany Knights of the Realm in their activities. Those that perform admirably can be promoted to the next rank.
Knight Errant are those that the House recognizes as self-sufficient. In order to gain worldly experience and practical wisdom, Knights Errant are permitted to wander Tamalir and employ a small retinue to aid them. Knight Errants fulfill the role that adventurers or mercenaries often would do in other lands, such as providing security, taking care of threats, and even performing labor or odd errands and jobs. Additionally, because these Knights wander from place to place, they quickly became the best way to deliver news and mail from one place to another.
Knight of the Realm are Knights who have finished their wanderings and wish to spend their time directly serving their House. Knights of the Realm are given their tasks and jurisdiction from their House’s council. They are allowed to conscript any Man-at-arms OR Knights Errant of any House when needed.
Graal Knights are the highest rank, those that have continued their adventures for many years and have successfully completed one of the three great trials. These Knights are always considered to be high-ranking members of their House, and often they are given permission to start their own House. The great trials are:
They have drank from the Holy Graal, the artifact that was given to mortalkind before Yanthorine departed this world.
They have successfully located the Lady of the Lake and attained her wisdom. The mysterious Lady only appears to those she deems worthy.
They have found a shard of Excalibur, the blade wielded by Guinevere that wounded the High King.
Spirituality and the Fey
Tamalir has retained some of the old religion, in that shrines to the Yanthorine, the Lord of Justice, are still maintained. Additionally, courts of law are somewhat based on the original writings of the Thunder’s Codexes.
The bulk of Tamalir’s spirituality and superstition, though, comes from folklore and the Fey. As Tamalir is a land of Adventure and Wandering Knights, there are many stories of great heroes and their challenges. There are equally as many stories of the strange things these Knights found in their travels, creating the basis for a robust set of legends, tales, and practical advice. It is very common in Tamalir for a person to say something like, “Remember never to eat the food of a Fey spirit, lest you suffer the sorry fate of Sir Garth the Gluttonous!”
The Fey play a large part in these stories, for Tamalir is home to some of the largest Gates to the Feywild (The Dawnwood contain the other largest). Notably, the lands of Gwyn and Lanzelot have a particularly close connection in which large swaths of their land are regularly visited by the denizens of the Fey. Such areas include:
The White Forest of Gwyn
Lake Kilma of Gwyn
The Forgotten Orchards that border Gwyn and Lanzelot
The Lumina Woods of Lanzelot
The Fieg Snowfields in northern Lanzelot
These areas are known to have active, open gateways to the Fey in which travel is freely done. In most locations, benevolent Fey of the Summer Court happily guide wanderers back to their realm, but more than a few tales exist of Knights Errant becoming imprisoned or suffering worse fates at the hands of both Seelie and Unseelie Fey.
The Fey Courts
The Fey Courts often stick to themselves, but the proximity of these lands mean that both Princess Elphame of the Summer Court and King Oberon of the Winter Court are active in Tamalir politics. It is very common to see an envoy from the Courts present at major policy councils to ensure the interests of the Fey are taken into account though often to simply provide advice and wisdom from the venerable beings. For example, as distrusted as the Unseelie are, none forget that it was King Oberon’s counsel that led to the cessation of hostilities between Valadir and Tamalir.
Visits from these courts often overlap with the major festivals, as the stories go, the dates and times of these festivals are scheduled in accordance with old agreements between the Founders and the Courts, though the reason why is not quite understood.
Foreign Relationships
Deverenia is the old foe, and it continues to be to this day. The Princes and High King regularly attempt to raid and plunder neighboring lands, forcing the House of Gwyn to maintain vigilance on the Eastern border.
Frostguard is a valuable trading partner, food and other goods in exchange for the pure ore that comes from the mountains. Tamalir had once been in talks to bring in Frostguard and the northern lands into their own kingdom, but the hardy people of the North value their independence too much
Dawnguard is seen as a problematic area of mages with no oversight. The people of Tamalir fear the power wielded here, and they do not believe a Council of Magic is a trustworthy partner
Valadir is a quiet threat. Though sharing no border, Tamalir shipping shipping interests are often hampered by “pirates” which the Great Houses have long accused the Emperors of harboring. A hundred years ago Tamalir had prepared for a seafaring invasion, but ostensibly the two countries are friendly these days.
The Eastern Forests had been Tamalir’s long time foe, the people of Tamalir and the Aristocratic, controlled nation of the Calix elves, were simply too different to see eye to eye. Numerous battles on the border have claimed lives on both sides. However, recently the daughter of the Matron of House Calix has been leading the Calix Elves to more modern thinking, and hostilities have largely subsided. Whispers of a potential marriage between the Calix daughter, Arianrhod, and House Lanzelot’s Sir Tristan.
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