Yevela
The Land Of Shining Darkness
Yevela is a large continent covered with a massive jungle comprised of bone-white Ialalon Trees with vibrant green leaves reaching thousands of feet into the sky, and being up to 150 feet in diameter. The native yetrisi call this jungle Vambath or the bone cage. Among this dense jungle are some small dense pockets of civilization, as Yevelian settlers have slowly cleared away small areas of the jungle; in these clear areas, they have constructed massive towering buildings housing thousands of people. They can make these buildings with the incredibly hard stone of the Ringpeaks and the unnaturally strong wood of the surrounding jungle. All of these cities are built by and under the dominion of The Democratic Conglomerate of Yevela, which stands as the only centralized government on the continent.
Geography
despite the entire continent being near unexplorable and unobservable, it can still be broken down into 5 primary regions;
The Coast is the region containing most cities, settlements, and open land. Despite its name the coast does not include all yevelian coastline, rather it contains the section stretching from Iorrel to Syer -roughly half the continent. It's grouped like this because this section of coastline is distinct from its primary region. Overall the coast is divided into two subregions, the Moonglow coast, and the beszkemic coast; the former extends from Iorrel to Aetrif and gets its name from several glowing meteorites, that fell in 1702 in an event known as the rain of glass, wherein western Yevela and southern Calelac were showered with debris from The Moons. The latter extends from Aetrif to Syer and was named by the Sarvosi for its proximity to the land of beszkem in Grathil. Generally, the topography along the coast is flatter and freer of trees, with more open beaches and even fields.
The Yevelian Heartland is the most prominent region; this is the densest, darkest, most well-known, and the largest region on yevela. It covers the central portion of the southern half of the continent. This is the sole location where the ialalon trees are known to grow naturally, and they grow in abundance here. The entire region fully blanketed by the tree canopy and is where the Yetrisi live.
The Sfarin sparselands make up the northwestern part of yevela its sandwiched between The Ringpeaks in the east, The Yevelian Heartland to the south, and The Moonglow Strait to the west. The sparselands get their name from noted explorer Sevoln Sfarin who is said to have discovered it in 1674 by sailing along the moonglow coast. The actual sparselands are dotted by clusters of a less dense version of ialalon trees, that stretch only 300 - 400 ft into the air. These thinner trees (called sfarin trees) lightly blanket the region provide a kind of permanent twilight, they also grow less densely the further north you go, giving way to clearings and even fields.
The Isle Of Drukela lies to the northwest of mainland Yevela, it is located in the middle of The Caleian Moonglow Strait. The actual island of drukela is rather temperate and is dotted by gently rolling hills, forests, and trees that do not blot out the sun, as well as slow smooth rivers. Overall it's a pleasant gentler compliment to yevela, of little specific note.
The Ringpeaks are a series of massive mountain ranges that encircle every continent including Yevela. They stretch nearly 5 miles into the sky, they also cover just over a 5th of the continent and are separated from mainland Yevela (the same holds for every other continent) by a near impossibly deep gorge several miles across that fills with water during The Empty Sea's swelling phases. Atop these mountains lay a craggy wasteland of towering Spires, steep dropping gorges, and tall plateaus home to The Tunvavvaki people, united in The Great Ubrashana.
The Coast is the region containing most cities, settlements, and open land. Despite its name the coast does not include all yevelian coastline, rather it contains the section stretching from Iorrel to Syer -roughly half the continent. It's grouped like this because this section of coastline is distinct from its primary region. Overall the coast is divided into two subregions, the Moonglow coast, and the beszkemic coast; the former extends from Iorrel to Aetrif and gets its name from several glowing meteorites, that fell in 1702 in an event known as the rain of glass, wherein western Yevela and southern Calelac were showered with debris from The Moons. The latter extends from Aetrif to Syer and was named by the Sarvosi for its proximity to the land of beszkem in Grathil. Generally, the topography along the coast is flatter and freer of trees, with more open beaches and even fields.
The Yevelian Heartland is the most prominent region; this is the densest, darkest, most well-known, and the largest region on yevela. It covers the central portion of the southern half of the continent. This is the sole location where the ialalon trees are known to grow naturally, and they grow in abundance here. The entire region fully blanketed by the tree canopy and is where the Yetrisi live.
The Sfarin sparselands make up the northwestern part of yevela its sandwiched between The Ringpeaks in the east, The Yevelian Heartland to the south, and The Moonglow Strait to the west. The sparselands get their name from noted explorer Sevoln Sfarin who is said to have discovered it in 1674 by sailing along the moonglow coast. The actual sparselands are dotted by clusters of a less dense version of ialalon trees, that stretch only 300 - 400 ft into the air. These thinner trees (called sfarin trees) lightly blanket the region provide a kind of permanent twilight, they also grow less densely the further north you go, giving way to clearings and even fields.
The Isle Of Drukela lies to the northwest of mainland Yevela, it is located in the middle of The Caleian Moonglow Strait. The actual island of drukela is rather temperate and is dotted by gently rolling hills, forests, and trees that do not blot out the sun, as well as slow smooth rivers. Overall it's a pleasant gentler compliment to yevela, of little specific note.
The Ringpeaks are a series of massive mountain ranges that encircle every continent including Yevela. They stretch nearly 5 miles into the sky, they also cover just over a 5th of the continent and are separated from mainland Yevela (the same holds for every other continent) by a near impossibly deep gorge several miles across that fills with water during The Empty Sea's swelling phases. Atop these mountains lay a craggy wasteland of towering Spires, steep dropping gorges, and tall plateaus home to The Tunvavvaki people, united in The Great Ubrashana.
Fauna & Flora
Flora
- Ialalon Trees are by far the most prominent flora on Yevela; these massive towering pure white trees are typically 100ft in diameter and 2-3 thousand feet in height. Aside from their impressive size, The Ialalon Trees are also known for the strange properties of their leaves. When not exposed to Water regularly, they shrink slightly and turn from vibrant green to a dark rust-brown, also greatly hardening to become a ceramic-like material used in various arts, zephrin machines, and other assorted strange circumstances. Ialalon Trees also produce fist-sized, red magoli berries,used in luxury wines and jams.
- Hallnen Vines are a species of carnivores plant found occasionally on the yevelian forest floor or attached to the side of an Ialalon Tree. The plant is made up primarily of 50-100 trap arms, tentacle-like vines that rest on the ground, lying in wait for an incautious creature to tread on it. Once stepped on the trap arm rapidly restrains the creature and begins dragging it back to the bulb, a large mass of twisting vines and digestive organs where all the trap arms converge.
- Orchhal Lilies are small floating plants found deep in the yevelian jungle, known to be found in large clusters called "Orchchal Swamps." The plants themselves look like small flower buds 2-4 inches wide attached to the peak of sloped pads 1ft in diameter. The Orchhal Lilies are primarily known for their blooms, wherein an entire swamp of orchhals opens their buds, based on an unknown cycle, and excretes a blueish brightly glowing substance called Blue Nectar which is used in many Yetrisi medicines and rituals.
- Elro Flowers are found on the outskirts of The Yevelian Heartland, standing up to 3ft off the ground they appear as a large blue-purple five-pedaled flower in a trumpet-like shape, with a thick tough stalk that attaches itself to the roots of ialalon trees. The Elro Flower is notable for being the source of the drug Essal, produced via the steeping of the flower's leaves in water. Essal is occasionally used by the Yevelian upper class, as it is rather popular for its calming effects as well as its semi-mediastinal properties that help reduce stress and anxiety, however, it must be taken in small doses, otherwise, it is often lethal.
Fauna
- Siers are a species of six-legged carnivores that live throughout The Yevelian Heartland. They hunt in packs of 10-14 and rove across the dark jungle not settling in a territory. They are believed to do this because if they were to stay in one place for an extended period, they would rapidly decimate the local ecosystem. The Sier's are known most notably for their extremely distinctive howl, described as a deep sucking sound, like a pool of tar or mud being drained, followed by a loud bellowing cry. They release this howl when close to suspected prey as a means to frighten or confuse them. This accomplishes this task via spreading out in a half-circle around the prey and releasing their cries at various times, creating a cacophony of confusion, leaving their prey uncertain how many there are and where they are attacking from.
- Aakins are a species of large slug-like creatures that roam and scavenge on the yevelian jungle floor. Their body is on average 30ft in width, 90ft in length, and 25ft in height. the aakin spends most of its time slithering its flabby body across the forest floor searching out edible plants and animals. Its upper half is fully coated in long sharp blueish grey spines, which can prove quite deadly. The lower half is comparable to that of a slug, it is coated in thick sticky mucus which also gives off a faint blue luminescent glow; the aakin uses this, in combination with its spines, to lure in and trap unwary prey.
- Nyoranernia (often simply called nyori) are large eight-armed apes known to live on the outermost parts of The Yevelian Jungle, feeding off the Magoli Berries and assorted insects. Their physiology is comparable to that of the great apes found in Omwela, mixed with that of a spider. They have 2 arms on the front, for grabbing fruit and larger insects along with four arms located on their back for clinging and swinging from branch to branch. The other particularly notable feature of a Nyori's body is its sharp shovel-like mouth, its lower jaw separating into two scopes, made for carving holes through Ialalon leaves and bark. The former for ease of travel in the higher branches, and the latter for digging small holes in the ialalon trees to reach certain pockets of insects living inside them.
Natural Resources
Ialalon Wood, native only to Yevela, is and has long been one of The DCY's largest exports due to its extreme strength and usefulness for large-scale construction projects. Thanks to its striking color and general exotic nature, it's also exceedingly popular among the upper classes of Asena, Omwela, and parts of Hocier and Grathil.
Ialalon Sap is a corrosive substance found naturally in Ialalon Trees. It's long been a favored item for alchemists and the like, however, it has recently been put to the application of war as a projectile weapon. Fired from a zephrin gun or cannon and exploding in the air showering all in the area with corrosive sap. Other than the newfound martial uses, Ialalon Sap is primarily a costly acid and a nuisance to construction in the Yevelian jungle.
Ialalon Leaves hold a strange property, when not exposed to water regularly they shrink slightly and turn from vibrant green to a dark rust-brown, also greatly hardening to become a ceramic-like material. This ceramic material is used as a writing material or an alternative to paper, so before reading you might "wet" an old book.
Magoli Berries are fist-sized bright red fruit grown only on the Ialalon Trees. Their taste is described as pungently sweet and their texture to be fleshy and strange. These berries do however sell for quite a bit because of their application as a powerful flavoring agent, as well as their variety of other uses. Such as magoli jams that are not a particularly major export, though they have their place as -like most magoli items- an expensive high-end product, enjoyed by the upper class of Yevela, Asena, and Omwela. Magoli jams typically have a soft sweet flavor and hold a smooth, creamy texture. There are also magoli wines, well known for their potent flavor and high alcohol content, enjoyed by the upper classes in Holy Asena, Salnarae, and Beszkem.
History
The earliest non-Yetrisi settlements on Yevela were from The Nyoric Empire of Calelac and were on Drukela and The Sfarin Sparselands. Those built on mainland Yevela were primarily established to harvest Ialalon Wood and other natural resources, while those on drukela were more geared towards permanent habitation. These small colonies established from the 1400s - 1600s were left to their own devices as the nyorics collapsed in 1702. Those on the mainland quickly starved or fled back to Drukela or Nyoricer, while Drukela split into the kingdoms of Weltheim and Lelor.
The next non-Yetrisi settlements on Yevela came from The Sarvosi, primarily to the south along the Moonglow coast. The most notable settlement was Exflaria near modern-day aetrif; it was the largest and most lucrative colony for the Sarvosi, however, in 1667, the sarvosi empire collapsed in The First War of Pride. This begins what is known as The Vanished Century, a period lasting from 1667 to 1740, from which there are no historical accounts. We know the city of exflaria was abandoned shortly after the collapse of sarvos. The proto-yevelians living there left the city for unknown reasons and moved to the southwest to found the city of aetrif. They survived presumably by hunting and foraging in the jungle, however for unknown reasons, there are no written accounts from this period. This is where drelism first emerged how it did so is still a major mystery given oral history is also surprisingly lacking.
For most of Yetrisi history next to nothing changed. People lived in the same settlements, technology barely improved or changed, and few conflicts were fought. And so it stayed essentially like this for thousands of years until an expedition from a sarvosi outpost chanced upon a yetrisi village in 1657 SE. the details of their meeting are primarily lost to history, but we know conflict somehow broke out and the sarvosi, led by noted explorer sevoln sfarin, were forced to flee and returned telling tales of "pale savages" in a "lightless land." No other expeditions into the jungle were made until after the vanished century.
For most of Yetrisi history next to nothing changed. People lived in the same settlements, technology barely improved or changed, and few conflicts were fought. And so it stayed essentially like this for thousands of years until an expedition from a sarvosi outpost chanced upon a yetrisi village in 1657 SE. the details of their meeting are primarily lost to history, but we know conflict somehow broke out and the sarvosi, led by noted explorer sevoln sfarin, were forced to flee and returned telling tales of "pale savages" in a "lightless land." No other expeditions into the jungle were made until after the vanished century.
Alternative Name(s)
"vambath"- a term used by the native yetrisi people. the term yevela originates from prince yevel of sarvos, for whom the land was named
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