Athalon

United in Purpose

Athalon is not a governing or political entity in any way. Alverion declared it a kingdom and granted Yunesa Zinwain the title of Queen after the Crusade of Light, but those became just words almost immediately. Yunesa had no interest in a centralized government and she had even less interest in the task of managing one. Despite this, from an external prospective Athalon is extremely united. The Fenvar's in-born love of the forest and Yunesa's decree that her people would defend it override any and all internal conflicts.

Clans

Athalonian society is divided into clans. Each clan controls their own portion of the great forest. It is difficult to get an exact count of the clans for two reasons. One, the Fenvar are are an insular people and getting them to share such information is nearly impossible. Two, it is not a static number. The Fenvar love nature, and in nature the strong prey on the weak. This is not to say that Athalon is in a constant state of savage warfare. Many clans are allied with each other, or at the very least acknowledge each other's strength and co-exist peacefully. Those clans that grow weak, however, often find themselves subsumed by their stronger neighbors.

Now that it's over I'll admit it. My beard was a bit twitchy at the thought of having all that nothing above me. Wasted thought, that was. Our trade route comes up past the foothills, inside the timberlands. The trees are so thick I never even saw the sky. Oh, yes, commence the shipments; they agreed to the deal. I don't think they like their neighbors much, and apparently dwarven steel is good at mediating Fenvar disputes.

— Thane of Kaz Lodar

Leadership of clans can vary. The strongest hunter, an elder, or an elder council are just some examples. Fenvar tend to be very slightly matriarchal, but overall leadership among the clans sees a roughly equal number of men and women.

The Queen

Queen Arnkatla
"The Autumn Queen"

Due to the nature of Alverion's decrees when he formed Bastion, all the kingdoms must have a monarch. In Athalon they choose to always have a queen for the express purpose of annoying the severely patriarchal Arlvar of Nove Rezaan. The queen, however, is figurehead with no actual power.

That said, the queen is typically well respected. Various queens throughout Bastion's history have swayed events in Athalon more than others, but never by force. Not even the Vahry or the Bahkahl, which exist outside the clan structure, answer to the queen.

Urval

The Urval is the method of selecting the new queen of Athalon. The exact nature of the Urval is a entirely unknown to outsiders. When a queen dies, each clan can, but is not rquired to, send one female representative. They tend to be roughly 50 to 100 years old, though there appears to be no lower or upper age limit. There also appears to be no set time frame either, as some have taken only a few days and it once lasted over a month. No outsider has ever been allowed to witness any part of the Urval, and questions on the topic are ignored.

Wardens of the Forest

Most citizens of Bastion think of the goliaths and the dwarves when they consider martial prowess, and rightly so. The mistake most make is not thinking of the Fenvar, but they can be forgiven for it considering how isolated Athalon is.

Having grown up human, in a human society, Yunesa knew full well the damage a nation of men could do to nature if left unchecked. She resolved that her beautiful new forest realm would not suffer that damage and so she decreed that the Fenvar would be Wardens of the Forest. She spent her long years as Athalon's first queen instilling in her people a culture of defense.
During her life she created a rigorous training program that all Fenvar are compelled to take part in. While they do receive some training in a wide variety of weapons, there are three main areas of focus: archery, spear with shield, and stealth. Fenvar are most often trained by their own clan, though in some cases allied clans will unify their training.

Of course we respect Yunessa. Our cause is her cause. She just couldn't see far enough. She grew up human, it made her sympathetic to their ways. It held her back from making Athalon would it should have always been. Not just a defender of this forest, but a weapon to keep the humans and the foul spawn of her brother in check.

— Spears of the Forest recruiter

Those who choose to continue their martial training beyond the requirements go down one of two paths: Vahry or Bahkahl. These two groups are the only cross-clan organizations in Athalon. They each have a headquarters in Sundilin, and control small areas throughout Athalon for training. While all Fenvar are trained to defend the forest, the Vahry and Bahkahl are the first line of defense. Membership in either group does not remove a person from their clan, and if their clans come into conflict they will take part.

Vahry

The Vahry focus on mastery of the spear and shield as well as fighting in small groups. A singular vahry can be a formidable opponent for any enemy, but in a pair or pack their coordination can overwhelm superior numbers. Vahry train to fight as a pack without the need for communication, relying on trust and experience with each other to act in concert. In the rare cases of outsiders witnessing vahry in combat, many come away believing there must be some sort of magical or mental communication between them.

Bahkahl

Bahkahl are masters of stealth. They, of course, excel in the forest where they often move among the high branches of trees to come at their prey from above. What is much less known, however, is that Bahkahl account for the majority of Fenvar who have traveled outside Athalon, which they do to train in other environments. They often adapt their preference for ambush from above wherever they can, using buildings or terrain in place of trees. Few outside Athalon know of the Bahkahl, but those who do attribute a number of high profile assassinations throughout history to them.

They specialize in the use of daggers or other short blades, carved from bones. The blades are then hardened using secrets the Fenvar do not share, which makes them as sharp and durable as any steel.

Athalon

Structure	Military
Clans	Vahry
The Queen	Bahkahl
Urval

Capital: Sundilin
Current Ruler: Queen Arnkatla
Succession: Unknown

Estimated Population: Unknown
Demographics: Fenvar
Demonym: Athalonian