Telrae’dor

Fiction Parallels.

Where is the city located geographically.
What is the architecture like
How do they gather food

Personality

Dyrling personality is complex and diverse. Dyrling nobles, the Gentry, hold the theory that they are the ancestors of the Tuatha de Dannan, a powerful fae race. While this seems unlikely to the average Zephrin scholar the Dyrling Gentry do seem to be possessed of a deeply alien mindset. Luckily for the rest of Essealas, Dyrlings are probably human and at least outwardly, most Gentry are upbeat, outgoing, and curious, sometimes too curious.

Dyrling nobles (the Gentry) have a tendency towards narcissism at worst and self-absorption at best, with an underlying fissure of cruelty that can be activated by doing a Gentry wrong. In general, Dyrlings can be divided into two categories; Dark and Light. The Dubh (Dark) personality is charming, ambitious, and dominant. While the Ban (Light) personality is frivolous, vain, flighty, fiercely loyal, and protective.

Noble families, many centuries old, exist as the backbone of the federal region. In one way or another, every Dyrling belongs to or works for one of 300 noble families. The current royal house has been on the throne for the last four hundred years.

Dyrlings will tell you that "they get along with everyone", while the people of Essealas have learned never to be in debt to a Dyrling, and expect them to hold to the letter of the law, not the spirit. To the average Dyrling nobleman or political agent “The end always justifies the means” and they are often confused as to why anyone would think otherwise.

Appearance

What is their physical appearance
How do they dress

Light Gentry stand between 5 and 7 feet in height. Willowy of build, with fine noble features that include incredible dexterity, their skin color ranges from Irish pale to natural beige. They have a range of medium to light hair, and light eyes. Light hair may be very soft pastel shades; please see Pinterest. Gentry may have two different colored eyes; lavender, gold and silver eye color is acceptable.

Physical AppearanceGentryears.jpg Bán Gentry have light-medium skin tone, light hair color and light eye color. Read more. Bán Gentry are "human normal" with slightly pointed ears, optional eyes of two different colors, optional pastel hair color. See picture to right for ear reference. Bán Gentry are of standard and petite Height and a Slender Body Type. Dark Gentry (or Dubh Gentry)[edit]

Dark Gentry stand between 5 and 7.75 feet in height and are more physically imposing than Bán gentry with limited dexterity. Skin ranges from Irish pale to natural beige. They have a range of dark hair and even black hair with purple, red, green and blue highlights (the color accents in the Dubh Gentry are less obvious than in the Light Gentry). They may have two different colored eyes. Their eyes should be from medium to dark colored, one of those eyes may be red.

Physical Appearance Dubh Gentry have light-medium skin tone, dark-darkest hair color and medium-dark eye color. Read more. Dubh Gentry are "human normal" and may have slightly pointed ears, optional eyes of two different colors, optional one red eye, optional unusual hair color in dark shades. See picture to right for ear reference. Dubh Gentry are of standard and giant Height and a Slender-Athletic Body Type.

Gentry will wear just about anything that happens to be in fashion at the time. Women have been known to bring more than one dress to a feast, just in case. In general, they like long floating delicate fairy and elven like styles with stylized floral accents. Accessories will include such things as pearls, cut gemstones, woven gold, lace, beading, embroidery, brocades, velvets, silk, short-haired fur, etc. Things such as bustles, crinolines, petticoats, panniers, wigs, makeup, and bum rolls have gone in and out of fashion along with every Dyrling "upgrade" on Alfarian, Zephrin and Euresu styles. Gentryfashion.jpgWhen the fashion goes too far in a particular direction, older women will often refrain from following the fashion, both for themselves and for the young girls who have not yet had their coming-out ball. When this happens, these women will choose fashion they feel looks best on them, and is appropriately modest for a very young woman. When at home, most women prefer elven style robes without corsets (this style is also seen in most of the dresses worn by Cersei Lannister). Men's styles follow three basic styles; knee length tunics are usually worn with a laced or closed doublet over it (in the manner of most of GoT shows), ankle and floor-length robes, and doublets with tight pants or hose.

Travelrobe.jpgThis simple robe is worn by many women of all three kingdoms when travelling and often at home. There are many examples of this robe on marketplace if you search "hooded robe", there is a free one available at the landing.

Religion

What are their gods
What is their burial and afterlife
What are some traditions

The Dyrling people worship a triple aspect god known as Athlendyr. His aspects are the Warrior, the Father, and the Shadow. The cleric is divided between the salt of the earth Heargweard Monks and the sophisticated and worldly Maessere Priests. Local monasteries are called Colleges, as in the College of Paths in White Briar. The cleric headquarters is known as the Den of Athlendyr and is found on How Island. Friartuck.jpgThe religion of Athlendry is based on the concept of “deep magic” also known as the Law. To the Gentry, this deep magic is part of their ancient genetic heritage from the Tuatha De Danann. To the Smallfolk this law is the law of nature and the inherent concept of good and evil. Athlendyr does not claim to have written the law but to have been there when it was. The Dyrlings are the only people who have a complete creation myth. The other religions have only fragments of creation theories.

During the Fall, when the Formorians and other people of the known world pushed the Tuatha De Danann back to White Briar, the Silver Queen demanded the life of a traitor, according to the Ancient Law. In a tale that may seem familiar to you, the Great Lion offered up himself in exchange for the half-bred Gentry boy. He was sacrificed on the great stone altar of How Island. The blade that was used to kill him, remained deeply embedded in the stone altar, and the Silver Queen sunk beneath the waves in the Lady’s Fountain.

The Lion was never publically seen in Telrae’dor again. A hundred years later, during the wars and disease and famine, the dragon-mounted Alfarian warlord Vortigern attacked and destroyed White Briar. For more than thirty years, the Gentry and Smallfolk toiled under the weight of Alfarian rulership.

A boy of uncertain birth who had been living with the monks at the Den of Athlendyr on How Island turned 14, and in that same summer, pulled the silver blade, Gwyndfwlch, from the stone altar. The priests of Athlendyr, recognizing what this might mean had the boy raised up and trained as a holy knight.

This great king and warrior would become associated with the god Athlendry, and would be worshipped as the Warrior, in compliment to the image of the lion as the Father. Five hundred years later, the legends of Ealdor Lioncourt's reign would birth the Golden Rennaissance in Telrae'dor, a period of history that would last to present day, bringing culture, fashion, and education to a broad spectrum of the Dyrling people. (Similar to the Carolingian Rennaissance)

After the Golden Rennaissance[edit]

Priest.jpgThe religion of Athlendyr became more liturgical and was updated from the original Adûnaic. Large cathedrals and formalized services would begin to win out over local pagan style worship.

The heargweard, traveling and monastic monks, skilled in combat, agriculture, medicine, astronomy, and mediation, would take a back seat to the more highly educated and ambitious priests.

Mæssere Priests were trained in politics, oration, art, literature, philosophy, and finances, and less so in other skills designed to support small farming villages.

The priests also started and benefitted from the holy law that claimed it is not murder to kill an infidel, thus allowing the Crusaders to atone for killing. The sin of killing could be absolved by a specific amount of prayer and tithing. The Maessere Priests were more than happy to perform this expensive service on behalf of the Gentry.

Luckily, the poor smallfolk who had gotten caught up in the crusades were more commonly serviced by the Heargweard Monks who considered charging for prayer to be appalling.

This dichotomy of styles has been the cause for many a debate amount the Dyrling priests, and while the monks became obligated to perform weekly liturgical services, ancient traditions continued afterward during the regular after service feast. It is not uncommon to find a Dyrling monk sitting under the great oak near to the church, dispensing stories, offering marital advice, blessing babies, and predicting one’s love prospects.

To this day, it is the monks who are most likely to teach the children and care for the sick. The priests instead prefer to pray over the patient, for a cost of course. This change has opened the way for Zuben surgeons to set up practices in the larger towns of Telrae'dor. Gentry now prefer to see a Zuberi doctor rather than one of the monks.