Government
Much
of the workings of Lirynn’s government (including
Laws) can be found in the Politics/Society section of
Telgard.
Political Set-Up - Having
gone through several forms of government, Lirynn is now
ruled by a single monarch, known as the Siril’veren,
or guide of the people. The ruler is aided by a Council
of Twenty, which serves as a Cabinet. However, the Siril’veren
holds ultimate authority.
Laws of the Land - As
most elves abhor killing in any form, for any reason;
even the worse of criminals are not executed. Instead,
they are treated to lengthy or permanent stays, sealed
away inside specially-grown trees.
The Other Races
Being
the firstborn, elves have a superiority complex when it
comes to dealing with other races. That would explain
why Lirynn has virtually no foreign population, except
perhaps in Na'el.
Some races, the elves can stand, others, the elves would
rather hang than allow into their beloved country.
Humans:
The elves interact with humans the most. Aside from having
a large community in Na'el, they also look the most similar
physically. Common elves think of them as a greedy race,
but one that isn't so bad, as long as they keep their
violence to a minimum.
Official
Stance: The government calls them a "valuable
trading and military partner." Many treaties are
in place, regarding trade and alliance. Some of the trade
policies are being re-negotiated, in light of the changed
economy.
Ss'tiss:
Lirynn doesn't have many of these reptilian inhabitants,
and few elves would think of journeying to sun-drenched
Tahnn. But the elves have come into contact with these
lizards, and while their physical appearance might be
a turn-off, their loathing of magic is considered a plus.
Although they are heathens of the worst sort, because
of the glass that comes from Tahnn, they're mostly tolerated.
Official
Stance: The government views Tahnn as a "valuable
trading partner." Occasionally missionaries do try
to convert the heathen ss'tiss however.
Misharr:
In their habits, Misharr are very similar to elves. Both
races have a connection to their homelands, and both like
the forests. Unfortunately, elves find the appearance
of Misharr as strange, as well as the fact that they were
among the last born of the races.
Official
Stance: The Misharr are a race that is worth Lirynn's
attention. Mostly they are just a curiosity at this point.
Minotaurs:
Minotaurs have the most in common with elves intellectually.
Their philosophy makes them liked by many elves, although
again, their appearance is strange. The government likes
them, too, and they are generally allowed- without harassment-
into Lirynn. In fact, they even have a small settlement
in the country.
Minotaurs
are revered for their aptitude with the musical arts,
as well as their great memory. In fact the elves often
mistake different minotaurs for a single entity. As a
minotaur that may have passed through Lirynn centuries
ago may have passed down the tale of his journey to his
brethren. The memory skills of the minotaurs are such
that, the whole tale could be recanted word for word,
two centuries later without a single mistake.
Official
Stance: There is no official minotauran government.
Delfae:
Magic-users who like the caves of Garr, the delfae aren't
very welcome in Lirynn. However, the more tolerant elven
government hopes for a dialogue between the races, and
asks its populace not to lump all delfae into one, magical
group.
Official
Stance: Too little is known about them, but the government
hopes that in sending an envoy, relations can be established.
Dwarves:
The elves view their northern neighbors with some suspicion.
Although the new government wants better relations with
Korgarr, many elves still resent the role the dwarves
had to play in the Race Wars. Still, the slight tension
on the northern border is nothing compared with that in
the south.
Official
Stance: Like the delfae, there are no treaties thus
far, though the new government hopes to establish good
relations.
Goblins:
For gobs who want to enter Lirynn, two words come to mind:
DON'T COME. The common elves hate goblins, and the government
-although officially saying that it hopes the two races
can soon be friends- constantly watches the border. Elves
and gobs have come to blows before, and there isn't a
fiercer rivalry in all Lirynn.
Official
Stance: Nynel'shian hopes to re-establish peaceful
relations, but this is a distant hope at best.
NOTE:
Rumor has it that goblins and elves once lived in harmony.
The story can be found in the Legends section, under The
Bittering.
All
Matters Trade-Related
Agriculture/Industry - Lirynn
is a farming community like no other. With the aid of
the lifesong, the elves cultivate their foods within the
forest itself. Until recently, food-growing was the only
true ‘industry’ to exist within Lirynn. However,
lately other enterprises are forming, including the production
of life-songed goods, the growing of official currency,
and the production of rare plants and other items especially
from Lirynn.
Price List -
Although
certainly not everything that is for sale within Lirynn’s
borders, the pricelist offers a fairly comprehensive listing
of common items available. Keep in mind that as anywhere
else, if not more so, prices fluctuate.
Also,
information on Lirynn’s official currency and exchange
rates may be found on the webpages.
Imports/Exports - The
majority of Lirynn’s legal trade comes in and out
of Na’el. From there, the goods are dispersed across
the kingdom. The Imports/Exports/Contraband list can be
found in the Lirynn Economy
section of the webpages.
From
One End of the Woods to the Other
Roads - Roads
are marvelous devices for moving large numbers of people
and goods from place to place by the most direct route
and in the least amount of time. It is hard to imagine
anything that might interest a stereotypical elf less.
Elves don't really concern themselves with time, most
have little interest in goods, and actively dislike large
numbers of people. In addition, roads have a significant
impact on the environment around them and are very labor-intensive
to maintain. So, no roads.
Ah,
if only it were that simple. However, if you want to call
yourself a kingdom, rather than just being a bunch of
villages, you have to have a way of moving at least a
minimal amount of stuff from here to there. And there
are things produced in plenty at some locations that are
badly wanted at other locations. So, if you're an elf,
how do you do it?
Well,
if you're an elf, you've got time. And there isn't really
all that much you need to move on a regular basis. So
why not just get you and a few of your neighbors to, every
now and then, put together a big moving picnic and go
visit one of the other villages or cities. And, since
you're all going that way anyway, why not have everyone
bring along ten or twenty pounds of stuff that the other
village was wanting and pick up ten or twenty pounds of
stuff the people back home want on your way back. Do this
often enough and it gets to be a habit. Or a custom, or
a tradition. The same way that tending the food crops
in and around the village or shaping new dwellings when
the village needs to grow is. Not something you do for
compensation, but just something you do because:
1)
It needs to be done, and
2) It's always been done that way in the past.
Unfortunately,
the forest isn't always safe. Not to mention that, if
too many people cover the same ground too often you'll
wear a road into the forest whether you want to or not,
and that looks ... ugly. So, over time, and with the encouragement
of the telar and the telars of previous days, the Courier
Service has come to play a role in organizing and administering
the periodic caravans which form the backbone of "commerce"
in Lirynn.
Courier Service - The Courier Service
represents an opportunity for elves to serve the kingdom
while facing a much reduced possibility of needing to
use weapons in earnest. Originally responsible to the
teral in times of peace, and the tekal in times of war,
the service now answers to the Siril’veren and Arinsáne
(economic advisor) for the good of the kingdom. Their
purpose is to facilitate the flow of goods, services,
and information throughout Lirynn and so bind the Kingdom
together. The Courier Service actually has four related,
but distinct functions: The Guides, The Pilots, the Couriers,
and the Carriers.
Guides - The
Guides are what would in human terms be described as a
mixture of professional caravan master and river boat
pilot, but on dry land. Guides take 'command' of the periodic
goods caravans which go from city to village. They pick
the routes and are responsible for seeing that the people
and packages get safely to their destination without unduly
impacting the beloved forest.
This
means that the Guides are expected to be intimately familiar
with their chose 'territories' and able to choose routes
suitable to the time and situation. In fact Guides rarely
take the shortest and most direct route, since this spreads
the environmental impact over several routes over the
years. A Guide would know at which season it might be
safe to cross a particular clearing, and during which
seasons it should be avoided.
Guides
should also be sufficiently proficient in Lifesong that
they can "enhance" the nourishment available
in the forage they encounter along the way, and thus reduce
the demands the caravan makes on the forest plants while
en route. Of course the other elves in the caravan are
expected to follow the guide's lead and lend their strength
and skills to his endeavors, but the Guide fends for those
who can't fend for themselves. Also, of course, they make
sure that, no matter how indirect the path chosen, people
don't get lost.
Rumor
has it that Guides in an area use Lifesong to shape subtle
landmarks known only to themselves and other Guides whom
they train in the area. If so, such markings, their shape
and location, are guarded as closely as any other Guild
secrets. It is not uncommon, when a caravan is carrying
goods of a critical or military nature for the Te'anará
to send an escort of anarin to accompany said caravan.
Pilots
- The Pilots are the most like traditional professional
seamen. They command the barges which convey the majority
of bulky goods on the River Shlae between Silverdawn and
Thornmist. Casual labor, of course, comes from elves who
want to help out or are bored and looking for something
to do, but the pilots form the trained core of competency
required to keep this a going concern.
There
are also pilots in Na'el managing the traffic between
the docks on the Straits and the village proper, which
has helped convince the yrani merchants not to drive a
road system up to the doors of Na'el's warehouses. The
Pilots don't, as a rule, operate the boats that go out
of the kingdom, although individuals who learned their
skills from the pilots may choose to do so independently
if they leave the service.
Couriers - The
Couriers don't carry bulky goods, just messages. They
travel alone, and lightly and swiftly. Traditional foot
runners are the most common. These have above average
skills in forest survival and Lifesong and are watchwords
among the elves for their independent and self-sufficient
natures. They tend to be a bit anti-social and aloof,
even for elves.
Couriers
usually above-average Health scores (for elves), not to
mention their skills in Lifesong, which let them coax
vegetation out of the way, and so reduces foot travel
times by 10%. Couriers who knowingly carry urgent messages
will take the shortest, most direct route, but it is a
point of professional pride to leave as little evidence
of their passage as possible.
Carriers - The
Carriers are chosen to care for and direct the specially
bred Warracks that carry the elven "air-mail".
Some time ago an elf, seeing the need to establish swift
communications throughout the kingdom, mounted an expedition
to the desert and brought back a breeding colony of Desert
Warracks to accompany him back to Lirynn. Elvish Lifesingers
adjusted their plumage and characteristics so as to be
more suited to the moister forest climate, and ensured
that these adjustments bred true.
The
modified Warracks would probably have trouble supporting
themselves in the wild by this point, due to their domesticated
status and the difficulties of hunting in the close growth
of the old forest, but their elven partners are happy
to aid them in the hunt in exchange for the abilities
the Warracks provide. The Carriers have their own isolated
training and breeding enclave in the upper reaches of
Silverdawn. It is at this facility that young birds and
handlers are trained in their respective disciplines.
There are Courier waystations in each elven village, including
cotes for the Warracks waiting to fly and their handlers.
The
Warracks are the newest addition to the Courier system,
and as such, have not been used all that much. As Lirynn
continues to modernize, it is expected that the Warracks
and their handlers will take on an increasing importance
in the kingdom.
Caravans - For
Caravans, typically add 40% to the distance traveled,
but only 25% of the travel time, owing to the skill of
the Guides at choosing routes. Also it is within the authority
of the Guides to "improve" certain routes if,
in their judgment, the benefit to the kingdom outweighs
the impact to the forest. Thus there may be living tree-bridges
spanning rivers in certain places, or a series of stepping
stones rooted in particularly wide rivers on which a moss
grows that isn't at all slippery. Since those with the
vocation to be Guides naturally are possessed of a love
for and comfort with the forest, they are known to go
out on their own from time to time to keep their knowledge
of their territory up to date and look for opportunities
to keep the forest healthy.
