Folan Hegemony (Foh-LA)

Overview

  Fola is a land where magic rules. Founded by the infamous Blood King, the land was originally divided into 18 baronies whose borders are enforced by magical oaths sworn to their rulers. No changes may be made to this structure without the explicit permission of the king. Although no one has seen him in nearly 50 years, the Blood King’s magic lives on, binding the baronies to their current borders–and ruling families. The baronies struggle to fit the structure forced upon them in the king’s absence. Many chafe under the status quo and long to fill the gaps left behind by fallen houses and the missing king. At the time of the Blood King’s Peace, the great houses of Fola were well known and boasted full rosters. Whether from political machinations, magical experiments gone wrong, or simply a lack of heirs, many of them died out or consolidated over the course of time, either unable or unwilling to take the necessary steps to preserve their legacies. Now, the houses have become stagnant while they await the return of the Blood King, heavily restricted by the laws he enacted.   While the hegemony’s leaders keep the horrors of the post-Sundering landscape at bay, they play chess with mortal lives. The power of the great houses and the magic of the Blood King’s Peace maintain the borders of the hegemony and its citizens. Those with magic occupy the highest echelons of society; those without it, known as “Inerts” or “Nerts,” toil in the fields outside of the capital city and within the estates of the nobility. Not that Hightower takes much notice; the plight of the Nerts persists well beneath their gaze, and any ugliness of life is well hidden from the comforts of their lofty studies. Everyone knows that those who are worthy will rise on Proving Day, and those who do not are exactly where they belong.   While not all members are born to the house, the leadership follows bloodlines that date back to the retinue of the Blood King himself. The power of the great houses is tied to their strength and knowledge of magic, so competition to recruit the unmarried and gifted is particularly fierce. From the dredges of the city streets and toils of the fields, some hold out hope that their affinity for magic can earn them a seat at the table and a place inside the embrace of a great house.   At present, the hegemony is ruled by one duke and six barons from the four remaining great houses: Fel, Cal, Tor, and Nir. These nobles make up a council which renders decisions in the king’s absence.   Humans, elves, and kynn are prevalent here. Undying and drakari are exceptionally rare, although some are instructors in Hightower. A small contingent of soulforged guardians dutifully stand watch within Hightower, blocking access to the highest levels; only the Blood King and his direct descendants are permitted there, as any of these Soulforged will staunchly inform you. Recently, a group of Mothkin have taken residence at the behest of House Tor to share insights on their approach to magic (and in the hopes of setting some new fashion trend for the nobility).  

Culture

Outlook

    There is one thing upon which the baronies of Fola agree: greatness is found only through the arcane arts. All things are possible through the gift of their mastery. Why hammer at the forge when the careful manipulation of power can cut through your enemies? Why lay brick when you can command the earth to form a desired shape? Those born without affinity deserve nothing more than pity and charity. Fola is a kingdom where class and social politics frequently rule the day. As such, the concerns and lives of the various classes can differ greatly. The nobles share a love for high fashion, often setting trends or drawing upon borrowed customs that are exaggerated to extreme levels. Social standing is derived primarily from a person’s house, as displayed prominently upon their cowl, capelet, elaborate brooches, or other jewelry. These sigils on their person denote both their house and rank therein. It is a common gesture among the Duke and Barons to throw lavish social gatherings each season, signaling to the lesser-born that those in the Hegemony want for nothing, are safe, and can live in excess.   Political ambition and pursuit of magical power are the driving forces for the upper crust of Fola. The aristocratic society is vicious and marked by fawning envy to the powerful. Nobility welcome entertainers and traveling caravans with the full knowledge that any could be a threat; the thrill of outwitting a spy is a notion that the Folan aristocracy can hardly resist.   Though trust between houses is exceedingly rare, there is a strong bond between members within the same great house. The success of one member is the success of all. When they join, the oath taken by house members connects them to one another and, by extension, to the King.   In stark contrast, the lives of the peasantry are much more difficult. While all aspire to join a house via marriage or adoption, many Folan peasants are barely getting by and work as laborers or tenement farmers. Some act as servants in the manor houses of the Barons or within their estates at Hightower. The discontent of these second-class citizens breeds simmering resentment tempered only by their belief that the power of the Hegemony keeps them safe and the prospect of elevation into a house.   The middle class is made up of low-ranked or provisionally accepted house members. Although their lives are a big step up from the peasantry and they remain safe from starvation, they are left vulnerable to inter house conflict and intrigue. Common duties for the lower ranks include managing servants, acting as couriers for diplomatic missives, and other dirty work such as assassinating provisional members from other houses before they can take their oaths.   Although all forms of magic were viewed as valid and useful in the early days of the hegemony, some of the great houses now view Runic magic with disdain and favor channeling instead. While Runes remain a necessity in the daily lives of the Nerts, this shift in values has created significant social tension among the nobles. Prominent rune scribes now find themselves with less leverage and influence; rune blades, on the other hand, have largely been absorbed by House Fel, which maintains a speciality in the art. Publicly, the other nobles recognize the prowess of House Fel’s rune blades and the critical role they play in addressing the Ashtouched creatures and the Veil tears; behind closed doors, they whisper derisively about their reliance upon such old magic. Whenever the inevitable debate flares up between nobles, the common refrain is: “Your time is better spent sharpening your mind and your craft than your blade.”   Publicly, the nobles unanimously and fervently desire the return of the Blood King and the revival of the extinct houses. It is an open-secret that the nobility is split in this regard and that many prefer the current status-quo. While their motives range from political ambition and social freedom to true loyalty, each House has its own best interests in mind when it comes to the king’s return. Between the magical constraints of the Blood King’s Peace and the Oaths the Houses are bound to within the Hegemony’s borders, the ambitions of the Houses have been bottled up for decades and are a social powder-keg waiting to explode.  

Look and Feel

  There is a distinct contrast in clothing between the members of the great houses and the peasantry. The aristocracy takes care to show the luxury they can afford, sporting heavy makeup, embroidered runes, and decorative patterns or adornments that hint at magical specialties. Robes or layers of loose-fitting cloth are staples of the various seasons of fashion; while presentation is important, magic comes first, and so fashion always accounts for the practicalities of spellcasting. The further down the ranks a person is, the more plain their clothing. Peasants make due with whatever rags or woolen cloth they can stitch together, often in patchwork to make full garb.     Magic is magic, power is power, and fashion is fashion; Folan dress is expressed across the spectrum of gender and rarely aligns any one particular style with any one particular identity. The primary distinction is instead between the social classes. Further, the trends that are considered fashionable change regularly as new styles are displayed and seasons change.     The capital city is built upon a hill and arrayed into two concentric rings centered around its namesake: Hightower. The outermost wall is a massive curtain wall made of impossibly smooth stone, the only seams of which are found at the city gates. The edge of the inner ring is marked by regularly-spaced hexagonal pillars that support an arching, two-tiered aqueduct. Arches extend to the outer wall at regular intervals, standing tall above the cobblestone streets, tightly packed rowhouses, and courtyards of the city. As a result, Folans are able to tell the time based on the position of the tower’s shadow like a giant sun-dial.  

Religion

  If not for House Nir, the Nerts would be the most fervently devoted worshippers in Fola. They pray that Seren and Illom, the Twins of Fortune will look kindly upon them on Proving Day and they leave offerings to placate Illom, to keep misfortune at bay. When trying to conceive, it is commonplace for the peasants to leave offerings to Tharanis, the Harbinger and The Veilmother in hopes that their child will be blessed with great magical ability. Other gods are invoked when the need is felt for their specific influence. Members of House Tor and House Cal generally pay homage to the good fortune that brought them their station; it is commonplace to find effigies to Seren and Illom in courtyards or rooms dedicated to commerce and dealings.   House Fel regularly, loudly, and publicly chastises the other Houses for losing their way. While their statements are dismissed as “apostate” by the other Houses, House Fel believes that the gods turned their backs upon the people of Aldwa. They staunchly hold that the gods did nothing to save mortals from the suffering endured during and after the Sundering. Therefore, House Fel believes the gods are either apathetic or impotent, undeserving of worship in either case.  

Perspective on the Sundering

  Across the hegemony, many believe that the Sundering occurred when Tharanis discovered elements between the Runes. In learning to channel their power, he split into two beings: Tharanis and the Veilmother. Tharanis maintained his dominion over Runes, while the Veilmother became the patron of the newly-discovered magics that thrived in the wake of the Sundering. As such, many Folans believe that the Sundering was the direct result of a great magical work. They speak of the events that followed with awe and even some respect. Although studies continue into the Sundering and its effects, it is a commonly held belief that the world could not survive a second cataclysm of this kind. Although the Sundering itself was a global catastrophe of unimaginable proportions, it gave rise to the magics that are the very backbone of society in Fola. Without it, the Great Houses would never have formed.    

Holidays and Traditions

 

Proving Day

An annual tournament for the peasantry to show their gifts with channeling. The champion wins adoption into one of the great houses. This tournament includes core tests of competency in channeling magical power, controlling magical forces with accuracy, dealing with the unknown, and a practical examination of combat prowess. These tests help demonstrate the aspirant’s capacity for wielding magical power and their control over it. In truth, one of the tests serves the dual purpose of providing a stage for one of the great houses to demonstrate some new technique or progress from their magical experimentations. The test of combat strength ties back to the roots of the Hegemony’s formation and heavily informs the decisions of the great houses.  

The Calling of Names

The people of the Hegemony have both a “given” name and a “calling” name. Calling names are only gifted by the power of a great House. Gifted and calling names are significant in Folan traditions and follow a strict structure and convention-   Commoner: [Given First Name] [Given Last Name]   Provisional House Members: [Given First Name] [Given Last Name] ’ [House Name]   Accepted House Members: [Given First Name] [House Name] ’ [Given Last Name]   Example: Marcus Fel'Vane- Born Marcus Vane, Provisionally Marcus Vane'Fel, Accepted Marcus Fel'Vane.   Whenever a person is accepted into a House through either birth to a House member or adoption from Proving Day, they are considered a Provisional House Member. Provisional House Members are elevated to Accepted House Member status after they are allowed to have their Calling of Names Ceremony. Each House governs their own rules and criteria for selecting Provisional House Members, often delaying the ceremony until after the prospective member’s 17th birthday or beyond. Completing the ceremony and accepting a House name binds the member to the House’s cause and by extension their oath to the Blood King.  

Superstitions and Taboos

 

• Eyes Down- Your betters are always above you in Hightower; it’s impolite to look an authority figure in the eye

 

• Bound by Blood- Citizens of the Hegemony exist and persist at the pleasure of the Blood King. All members of the Great Houses are bound to him, and his magic is absolute within their borders. To defy the King would mean accepting a horrific fate for yourself and those you are connected to.

 

• Funerary Rain- Many died to establish Fola. It’s said that after the last great battle to clear the Ashtouched from the area around Hightower, it rained for nearly three months without end. Today, rain during a funeral service or a burial is considered good luck for the mourners.

 

• Stamp of Approval- All written contracts in Fola are 100% binding as long as they bear the personal stamps or seals of the parties therein and are often used to force trust between the houses. Great house members above a certain rank have a personal stamp to mark contract agreements on each page so that additions can't be made.

 

Cities and Territories

 

Hightower

  The capital of the Folan Hegemony.   It is widely known that the finest channelers in Aldwa are trained in Hightower. The tower itself holds countless classrooms and libraries. Members of the Houses study and practice their grand arts there, and may enter the tower at their leisure. Hightower is also home to the Rota, a large elliptical arena used for Proving Day and other spectacles of entertainment. Peasants are present in the city, but only in the outer ring where they’re allowed to ply their trades. The luckiest among them are employed as attendants within the estates of the great Houses.   Expansive fields stretch beyond Hightower’s walls where Nerts toil under the dominion of the Houses. Each House holds a manor within the lands granted to them by their fealty to the king and an estate within the city proper, though many of these sit vacant except for when the servitors perform maintenance.  

Great Houses

House Fel

Motto: “Nerves of Steel, Runes of Might”   The rune blades of House Fel serve as the stalwart defenders of the Hegemony and often take a utilitarian position in the debates of the council.  

House Cal

Motto: “Bound in Honor, Oath, and Blood.”   While genuinely quite altruistic in their endeavors, members of this House are often quite wealthy–likely the result of cleverly worded negotiations and contracts.  

House Nir

Motto: “Gifted by the Gods”   Best of the battle channelers, their members excel in the magic of destruction. That destructive might comes in handy when it comes to excavation and mining, the House’s main source of income.  

House Tor

Motto: “We Sow, We Nurture, We Reap.”   The naturalists of House Tor bring nature's unrivaled beauty and horror into the halls of Hightower. The gardens within their estates are impressive in both majesty and variety.    

Laws

  The Kingdom is currently managed by a council made up of representatives from each of the Great Houses. Ultimately, those of Duchal station or The Blood King himself wield the most influence and power. Despite the absence of the king, the oaths sworn to him and the rules of law he put in place continue to be enforced by his power. The titles of “Baron” and “Duke” are just that–titles. Regardless of species, gender, or other aspects of identity, the title of “Baron” and the title of “Duke” may be used by any person officially holding the position. Historically, some Houses have used “Baroness” to refer to the recognized partner(s) of a Baron, but this notion was abandoned long ago.   The council once held twenty-two seats, one for each of the eighteen barons and the four dukes; there are now officially five seats, one for each house and one for the remaining duke. Members of the council are bound by a blood oath that travels down their familial lines. These oaths also affect members that are inducted into those houses either by marriage or adoption. With the Blood King missing, the decision-making falls to the council, who are unable to advance in standing relative to one another without the approval of the King.    

Agriculture and Industry

  Beneath the heel of the nobility, the peasantry provide the goods and resources that the baronies require. The Great Houses themselves each have a grand art: the culmination of their study and refinement of magical forces. These grand arts evolve over time, often demonstrated publicly at Proving Day or in one of the Rota’s many shows. The products made through practical application of these grand arts can be valuable trade goods. While the exact particulars of how to perform the grand art techniques are a closely guarded secret within each House, the basics of agriculture and mining are met through magically enhanced labor. From Runicly-strengthened plows to forceful and explosive excavation techniques, magic pervades the everyday. Although the Hegemony’s high society would never acknowledge this, magic isn’t the cure-all answer to all problems, and the Nerts know that a hard day’s labor is needed to meet their production needs.    

History

Pre-Sundering

Records that remain are rare, scattered and often incomplete. It is well understood that the towering obelisk at the center of Hightower preceded the rise of the Hegemony.  

Post-Sundering

 

7 AF- Through the Strength of Blood and Bone

The first power to rise in the wake of the Sundering, The Folan Hegemony rose to provenance through the will and power of The Blood King. After carving out the borders of his kingdom, a strict system of magocracy was established and baronies were awarded to the great mages of the Hegemony. Within their borders, a blood oath binds the familial lines of the baronial houses, extending to those inducted into those houses and sharing their surname.  

10 AF- Hightower established

Major construction around the mystical obelisk and ruins is completed and the town named Hightower. Hightower is established as the capital of Fola.  

64 AF- The Night of Crimson Tears

Several houses formed a coalition and attempted to usurp the King, thereby violating their oaths to him and the Hegemony at large in favor of their own selfish ambitions. The heads of those houses were exsanguinated overnight and their broken, twisted corpses were discovered by household staff the next day. Minor members of those houses also perished horribly; witness accounts say the capital city was filled with agonized screams throughout the night. Ten Houses were eliminated that night.  

65 AF- The Blood King’s Peace

The Blood King performed a terrible work of magic, intervening directly in the all-consuming war between the powers of Aldwa. He magically enforced peace across the lands of Aldwa and drew its contemporary borders on the map, quite literally, with this act. This feat of magic also resulted in the obfuscation of the King’s name, now stricken from the minds of Folans.  

75 AF- The Blood King Missing

The Blood King disappeared entirely. The forces of the Hegemony quickly began to search for him, but many have long since given up.