The Kingdom of Delyn Wyn (DAY-lehn WHEN)

Far to the east lies the Kingdom of Delyn Wyn, home of the elves. Villages hide in the dense forests and swamps as well as the shoreline and islands out to sea. The sparsity of these settlements might lead a foreigner to believe there is no uniting force among the residents until they see the great capital Llegyn and the beautiful castle made from living trees.
The Calamity left the nation with a devastated 5 million survivors. Between their dispersed citizenry and the slow birth rate of their race it is unknown how or if they can recover.

Structure

The term “kingdom” is used loosely in Delyn Wyn: most who live within the territory live in isolated towns or tribes far between with their own unofficial hierarchies. A single monarch can lead the people when need be and they will heed the call, but the people are mostly left to govern themselves.

Culture

With their long lives the elves of Delyn Wyn enjoy drifting in and out of all aspects of life. It’s common for romantic partners to raise their children to adulthood at around 25 years and then all go their own ways within or beyond their hometowns. The concept of citizenship is loose with residents identifying mostly with their current clans more than as subjects of the crown, though should the reigning monarch call upon them they will answer the call. Clan leaders are usually elders or those who have stayed in the settlement the longest. Settlements are usually far apart and somewhat isolated from each other, though travel between them is uncomplicated if you know the way.
Residents are mostly hunters, herders, gatherers, and horticultural farmers. Craftsmen of fine goods are held in high regard in societies. Tenders of the magical groves where enchanted trees grow are held in an almost religious regard, knowing exactly how to encourage speedy but healthy growth for harvesting and exporting as well as domestic use. Education is both practical and artistic with poetry, literature, and music being popular areas of study and pastimes.

Naming Conventions

Names are the subject of some consideration among the Delyn. Almost all individuals have a surname or clan name and no fewer than three given names: one given to them when they are a child, one that they help select themselves as part of a coming of age ceremony, and one that they use when interacting with acquaintances outside of their kin group. The child name is in the Delyn dialect of elvish, and it is typically aspirational or auspicious. This name is carefully selected in the hope that it will bring certain virtues or good fortune to the child. The adult name is also in Delyn, and is usually rooted in the young adult's personality, deeds, or features. The third name is called the "face name" or veid, and can be given in either Delyn or the common tongue. The face name is usually selected in a way that advertises the Delyn elf's intentions when interacting with strangers. In that way, it can be both aspirational and tied to one's life story. A Delyn elf may accumulate other names— honorific names, or gatamn— throughout their long lives, being granted names that are tied to noteworthy deeds and akin to titles.
The progression of one's relationship with a Delyn elf can be readily tracked by the names they have disclosed: the veid is given to outsiders, the adult name to friends, and the original child name to one's closest comrades. If a Delyn elf has other names, they will typically use a specific gatamn when interacting with social circles that granted that name.

• Aladh
• Arias
• Cullair
• Denda
• Fallayr
• Firial
• Gallas
• Glenir
• Landa
• Llenir
• Moorh
• Niahcol
• Riccal
• Shor
• Siara
• Tig
• Vardan

Assets

Delyn Wyn's primary wealth comes in the form of the magical claer trees that grow in parts of the forest. The trees themselves can be coaxed to grow into living buildings and the timber can be used for enchanted items and converted into charcoal for smelting ore.

Demography and Population

Delyn Wyn’s population is almost exclusively elves, though the legal concept of citizenship is much less defined than the other countries on the continent. Dwarves may make their way in and out of the borders but they rarely spend more time than is necessary for trade. More rugged humans have tried to make their homes within the kingdom’s range but rarely stay for more than one generation.

Territories

The kingdom's borders are defined almost entirely by geography as no formal attempt has been made to map the area. Settlements can be found from the eastern gates of the Kingdom of Slibro to the eastern sea and the islands just off shore, from the southern swamps to the northeastern peninsula.

Religion

The social glue of Delyn elves is their complex religion, which combines aspects of animism and polytheism in ways that the humans of Campmagni often find baroque and confusing. To a Delyn elf, everything— animals, plants, trees, seasonal winds— has an essence that can be communed with, understood, and even changed over time. Those changes are driven by an oscillating cycle of ebbing and flowing called the Eternal Tide, or Shor Marras. The Delyn social order thus favors understanding and gradual growth over expansion and exploitation.
Sufficiently mighty spirits, like those of mountains or rivers, might be conceptualized as something akin to a god, with intelligence, power, and will. These greater spirits can be invoked or placated, as suits the supplicant's needs. The greatest of these spirits, such as the spirits of the sun and moon, are sometimes identified by the humans of Campmagni as syncretic with their major deities. The Delyn conceptualization of the fundamental forces of the universe— the "waxing" and "waning" of Shor Marras— certainly seems to align with the Campganan tendency to cast all divine forces as pairs of contrasting opposites.
For their part, the elves of Delyn Wyn typically don't find it productive to spend time debating on what is or is not a deity, or whether the Campmagnan deities are expressions of their Eternal Tides. To the Delyn, everything has power and everything deserves respect; the distinction between "mortal", "spirit", and "god" is more of a spectrum than a series of discrete categories. Indeed, Delyn culture draws little difference between sage, shaman, and priest.
The religious rites of the Delyn focus heavily on social harmony and physical purification, with emphasis on respect and cleanliness. Salts, incense, and soaps play important roles in many of their holiday celebrations and rituals. The highest priest of the Delyn religion is the region's ruler, held to be the purest elf.

Foreign Relations

• Though separated by the mountain range Delyn Wyn and The Republic of Campmagni have been on friendly terms as trading partners: Campmagni sends their grain in exchange for magical timber, considered luxury goods by each others' cultures. Since The Calamity the countries has been mostly cut off from each other and communication has been difficult.
• The only real shared cultural value Delyn Wyn shares with The Kingdom of Slibro is a love of fine craftsmanship and they rely on each other to make such creations: Delyn Wyn trades their magical timber for ores and tools. Otherwise the kingdoms can only be thought of as at peace as neither has shown any interest in expanding into each others' territories.

Agriculture & Industry

With houses shaped from the natural environment, it should come as no surprise that many a Delyn crop is grown with minimal disruption to the local ecology. Plant spirits are persuaded to provide a bounty in large part because the Delyn elves agree to leave the environment as undisturbed as possible. Indeed, a common bar song in Slibro tells the story of a merchant who wandered through Delyn on a daylong drunken binge, passing through three farms and two villages without ever seeing a crop or a home.
In light of this minimalistic approach to agriculture, most Delyn clans and villages are very dependent on local riches. Those near lakes, rivers, or the sea will fish and practice aquaculture for sea grasses or kelp. Those in forests will collect bountiful harvests from fruit or nut trees, often multiple times a year. Animals that are domesticated are treated almost like houseguests, with slaughter requiring at least a few consecration and funerary rites.
The odd Delyn towns and cities provide opportunities for the Delyn to practice craftwork that is practical and durable, but more stylized than is strictly necessary. The long lives of Delyn artisans has created a repository of applied knowledge that is passed from master to apprentice over decades, then refined over decades more. Workaday Delyn products— like horseshoes, barrels, and nails‚— are lightweight but painstakingly crafted to stand the test of time. And woe be to any Campagnan noble who commissions an artistic tapestry from a renowned Delyn weaver: the end result may take years to produce, with each warp and weft carefully executed to conform to the crafter's exacting specifications. "Anything can be had in Delyn", the Slibro merchants say, "If you live long enough to see it made."

Type

Geopolitical, Country

Demonym

Delysh

Government System

Monarchy, Absolute

Neighboring Nations

• The Kingdom of Slibro

Related Species

• Elf
• Half Elf

Population

5 million