Avendar

The Eternal Empire of Daphoa is the ancestral home and birthplace of the aelin, and the oldest nation-state in the world.

Geography

Daphoa is a large island chain in the Sea of Lidraeu to the west of Gaald. It is marked by low rolling countrysides in Ipora and Siael, while the Ialidae mountains stretch from Litirya to Illata, dividing the main landmass in half. It is dominated by a cool maritime climate, with little temperature variation throughout the year.

History

Daphoa was founded in far antiquity, before the rise of mankind but after the Sundering, by the flightless proto-aelin. This land-mass became the central focus of their early efforts, divided into four territories. These four territories were eventually unified beneath the governance of the senate, a bureaucratic body found within its floating capital city.

The floating disc of Ilodaiya and the city which was already upon it survived the Sundering more or less intact. However, its ominous silence and the inability to reach it despite it often blotting out the sun made the young lineage believe it was cursed. This myth persisted until a group led by Linphori the Fearless made the perilous trek to the highest peak and encountered Alia, radiant goddess of the skies. It is said that She gifted to the aelin their characteristic wings and named Linayla the Open Heart as Her first chosen. Together, along with Judessa the Scholar, Telanei the Muse, Ishtae the Builder, Eolodeu the Valiant, and Lenahiri the Assessor claimed the cursed disc for their respective houses. They would become known ever after as the Seven Sentinels.

Demographics

Daphoa is ruled by an elected senate who draft and vote on laws. All aelin who belong to Daphoan houses, as tracked by the Senate Heritage Authority, are citizens; all citizens have the right to participate in elections and other political processes. Strict laws exist regarding rights to house affiliation, making it very difficult (but not impossible) for citizens of the empire to become disenfranchised. Universal, free, and equal access to education, healthcare, and housing are all innate rights to all citizens of the empire.

Ilodaiya

Ilodaiya's most iconic feature is its spires: massive, spiraling towers which permanently levitate from the surface of the disc. This left much of the disc's surface empty, and aelin would learn to use the negative space to insert flora, artistic structures, and other beautification. Indeed, Ilodaiya itself is verdant enough that one would be surprised at how limited and shallow its actual soil. The imperial court, the grand senate, and Estrelle Gallery are all in close proximity to the Plaza of the Seven Sentinels, the symbolic heart of the city.

Litirya

One of the first of the strongholds of the aelin, it is here that the portal to the Courtyard of the Gallant was discovered. Its climate is cool, affording it lush forests and grasslands. Houses Eolodeu and Ishtae have their strongholds here, the former commanding the artifice of the Aeolian Priesthood, and the latter ruling educational and governance domains. The great rose gardens which surround the Courtyard are maintained by the Sentinels who live in the province, and dueling is a prized method of adjudication and distinguishment within its borders.

Illata

To the southwest of the mountains, the province of Illata was shattered into a chain of small, mountainous islands and rendered utterly lifeless by the Scouring at the close of the War of Fire. Generations of aelin re-cultivated the land back to fertility, aided by Jolinnites wielding the power of the Chalice of Jolinn, although the region remains somewhat arid even into the modern era, and the Chalice changed the manner of life that flourishes there. Its capital city is Orguei, where its Grand Temple venerates Alil under the management of house Linphori. House Linayla also has its holdings here, from which they mastermind the foreign silk trade. Illata is considered to be the most rugged of the provinces, giving a certain implied toughness to its residents.

Siael

The cosmopolitan province of Siael serves as the ancestral home of house Judessa, and the capital city of Phirala-Yutei houses an academy of arcane studies famed throughout the empire; it similarly serves as a center for the study of and execution of imperial law. The climate is primarily coastal, blocked as it is by the encroachment of the mountains and the push of the Sea of Lidraeu. House Lenahiri, traditionally, had its holdings here-- but after its transition in leadership, its powerbase spans the Sunset Sea, mostly within Gaald. Siael's ports provide access to the rest of the world.

Ipora

Known within the empire as The Last Kingdom, Ipora was the final independent aelin monarchy to be brought under the Senate's governance. They were not conquered, but instead joined by choice, enshrining themselves as romantic outsiders even amongst Daphoans. House Telanei has its holdings here, primarily centered in the capital city of Ilaroiya. It is here that house Telanei hosted the Aeolian priesthood during the coronation of the last Rose consort, Keiari Telanei. Coastal and remote, castle-like spires and fantastic artistic displays are common sights.

Vechiae

The doomed province of Vechiae was once found within the Brintor mountains, and encompassed the farthest reach of the empire before the War of Fire. Built atop chaja structures and settlements, the locale boasted the Sacred Shrine of Rinlaea and is said to have worshipped the enigmatic deity Serachel. After the invasion and sacking of its capital city, Ilithas, the local government rapidly collapsed, and within a decade aelin had entirely departed the region by choice or force. The social changes which followed would seed the fabled Dalae era, which coincided with the War of Night.

Aehiori

A volcanic island to the northeast of Ashta Harrud known to the Harrudim and the ethron as Endeqil, "provincial candidate #4" has been the subject of recent imperial scrutiny. Rendered lifeless in an echo of the Scouring due to the actions of house Linphori, a joint effort between they, house Lenahiri, house Ilaephos, and house Ashana is providing the central impetus to terraform the landmass for the construction of its capital, New Illata. The support of the Ilodaiyan senate has been limited, due to in-fighting between the Sentinel houses and financial politics. So far from the rest of the empire, its existence is controversial and indeed threatening to the denizens of the Crimson Sands.