Elenis Tuath
This small, self-governing spiritual community, built in the ruins of an ancient elven city, is of great import to the surrounding Green Warden Nations and often serves as a place of mediation for disputes. The order’s elected leader, known as the Gardener, has also now and again been sought for judgment on important crimes or invested with very high temporary authority by the various dukes and monarchs of the surrounding fragmented Green Warden peoples.
This is done because Elenis Tuath is seen as owing allegiance only to the forest as a whole, and as being above mundane political squabbles. This perception in turn makes control of Elenis Tuath a potentially very powerful position, despite all appearances. As a consequence, the residents of Elenis Tuath never accept any form of money for any reason: They seek to avoid undue influence or even the appearance of undue influence over the Gardener from anyone, from anywhere.
The remains of the old city, and especially its fair temple, are a marvel of structural and magical engineering, full of sweeping arches, lace-like flying buttresses, and gloriously intricate (though now shattered) glass-paned windows. Though much of the ruins are indistinguishable from natural rocks, or buried in ivy, it is impressive how much remains upright — of the temple especially — despite the damage taken over the centuries.
The crowning glory of the temple (and indeed of the whole city) is the great statue of Arialee, which is carved into a nearby hillside and seamlessly appears to be emerging from the earth. Though somewhat stylized in the manner of its era, this classic example of the reclining Arialee — great with child in a local variation of her “Spring” iconography — remains one of the world’s greatest works of art.
History and People
Once the summer capital of the Court of the Green Realm, Elenis Tuath (a name meaning, very roughly, Oneness with Nature) was mostly abandoned long before humans came to the region. The architecture and materials were constructed using technology that the elves had lost ages ago, and as the capital fell slowly into disrepair, the court found it more and more a painful reminder of former glory.
As Elenis Tuath’s population thinned ever further and the court became less likely to visit each summer, the former grand community shrank until little remained but its greatest and most beautiful structure, even lovelier than the court’s summer palace: a proud, ancient temple to the fey goddess of nature, Arialee. Today, even that great temple is now a crumbling ruin, a bitter reminder to the elves of the Green Warden Forest of their culture's decline.
By the time diplomatic relations broke down between the Green Warden elves and the Castorhagi settlers on the coast, and the Great Road crawled ever deeper into the heart of the forest, the Green Realm’s old summer capital was already mostly empty, and even the worship of the goddess Arialee had dwindled at that time among the northern wild elves. As Elenis Tuath had become entirely indefensible, the Green Realm leaders chose to evacuate the few remaining residents rather than fight to defend a place that caused them only pain.
The temple, by then, was sparsely tended by only a few monks, all of whom lacked the necessary ability to keep the statue from being covered in foliage without harming the plants, which their religion at the time forbade outside strictly nutritional needs. Thus, the statue was overgrown and largely forgotten. Nevertheless, the monks refused to evacuate and chose to stay with the temple as emissaries of peace.
Due to a freak misunderstanding and poor leadership among the Castorhagi forces, the near-abandoned temple was not only unable to serve as a peaceful embassy, it was outright sacked. The forest around it was cruelly burned, and the resident monks were slaughtered. When other elves came to investigate the forest fire, besides the charred evidence of this terrible crime, they found the newly uncovered statue of Arialee marred by the flames to forever appear as if tears streaked her face as she gazed out over the now-ruined temple and city.
The monks’ remains were laid reverently to rest, and the statue became a potent symbol of elven pride and grief forever after. Once the elves retook that part of the forest, it didn’t take long for a new order of priests, druids, and monks to spring up — an eclectic group of different local orders united by a dedication to preserving the natural forest and what remains of elven culture.
This new and revitalized Order of Remembrance still tends to the statue, once again training the foliage to enhance it rather than ever obscure or damage it, and many Green Warden elves make pilgrimages each spring to give offerings at the simple stone shrines now built at the ever-weeping Arialee’s feet. The ruined temple, however, is left untouched, as a monument to grief and loss. The resident faithful make their homes in deliberately temporary little huts among the nearby city ruins. They rebuild the huts each fall to serve as winter shelter and burn them in controlled summer bonfires as a ritual of the eternal sorrow of impermanence.
Religion
Nature is the key unifying element of the religions observed by the Order of Remembrance. Animism holds the most sway among the residents, and the current Gardener is primarily an animist himself. Worship of Arialee is almost as prevalent as direct communion with the land, and many members of the order preach that the two outlooks are simply different ways of looking at the same thing. Other nature and healing deities are occasionally revered by individuals within the order.
The Order of Remembrance is profoundly anti-materialistic. In addition to the preservation of nature and the forest, the order values honesty, hard work, accountability, and knowledge of history.
Loyalties and Diplomacy
Owing fealty to only the land itself, the Order of Remembrance remains carefully neutral among all the various Green Warden Nations. During times of war, one of the Nations’ leaders is selected as a temporary High King; in matters of diplomacy or peaceful trade, the Green Warden Nations’ leaders have been known to transfer much of their authority to the Gardener at Elenis Tuath and empower this holy individual to make major decisions and sign documents on behalf of the entire Green Warden realm. During such periods, it could be said that all the nations of the Green Warden owe their fealty to Elenis Tuath, but the Order of Remembrance deliberately gives itself no means to capitalize on such a circumstance.
The current Gardener, Findolel, has never been granted such authority. He gives no sign of coveting power of any kind.
Government
The Order of Remembrance is highly organized, with the Gardener at the head supported by the elders, who are in turn supported by the watchers. Elders are all members of the order at least 250 years of age, so long as they have ever been watchers. The Gardener (always an elder) is elected to 20-year terms by the elders, with no term limits. Watchers are members of the order who have been fully vested for at least 20 years. The structure beyond that is quite complicated, with each elder or watcher having authority over different aspects of daily life and pilgrim-management in Elenis Tuath.
Within the bounds of the Elenis Tuath ruins, the Gardener’s word is absolute law, enforced by the elders and watchers. The Gardener can be removed from office early if found to be guilty of deliberately (or through criminal negligence) harming the forest. Detailed scriptural history itemizes what sorts of events could be or have in the past been deemed to harm the forest.
Military
Elenis Tuath has no military as such, and bearing arms is not permissible anywhere within the limits of the old city. However, the order does boast many clerics, druids, monks, and any number of sympathetic local monsters, animals, and magical creatures. When the person telling you to leave your weapons at the gate is petting a six-foot tiger at the time, the presence of a military is often considered to be unnecessary.
Major Threats
While Elenis Tuath is sometimes considered to be “dangerously” close to the human-dominated territory of the Tycho Free States, it is unlikely to be threatened by humans or other foreigners any time soon. The Green Warden Forest is very well defended. A much greater threat to the region is posed by the rest of the Green Warden Nations surrounding them. Should any of the surrounding dukes and monarchs see a chance to exert inappropriate influence over Elenis Tuath in any way, it could have disastrous effects on the stability of the entire region.
Gardener Findolel has held his position for 30 years and is widely respected. Thus far, he seems to be adept as a mediator and diplomat and also entirely incorruptible. His mild demeanor and grandfatherly smile, however, have made it difficult for some to take him seriously. Such people worry that his appearance of “softness” already undermines the unity of the Green Warden Nations, though many others find his even temper and objectivity to make him the worthiest Gardener that has been seen in centuries. Only time will tell if his leadership will ever be of more than passing import to the loosely allied nations around him.
Wilderness and Adventure
The Order of Remembrance is located on the south side of the ruins of the city, clustered in little huts and a small natural grotto between the remains of the Temple of Arialee and Arialee’s weeping statue. Even in spring, when the order sees its highest influx of visiting pilgrims, the elven population of Elenis Tuath rarely spills out over the former temple grounds. The rest of the city, though watched over and lightly gardened by the order, belongs to the plants, animals, fey, and other creatures. It is a quite dangerous place to explore without a local or druid guide.
Dangerous, yes, but fascinating. Most of the ruins have been examined thoroughly by the order over the centuries, but plenty of nooks and crannies could have been overlooked that contain the gods only know what ancient elven mysteries, not to mention the potential for harmful or corrupted creatures taking up residence in some crumbling structure or other without the order having noticed.
Finally, on the southeast edge of the ruined city, one can find the crumbling and overgrown remains of the Castorhagi Great Road project. This stretch of the Great Road is famously haunted. Undead found there are always incorporeal and rarely more than sad or disturbing apparitions with no power to affect the living, but now and again something might trigger a change in one of the restless dead, from mere messenger of sorrow to active instrument of vengeance, especially if a human were to return to Elenis Tuath.
Settlement
Elenis Tuath
Type
Village
Owning Organization
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