Thaleros
The isolationist and aloof nation of Thaleros has ruled the area of the Wyld Woods for millennia and its long-lived kings and queens have been ever content with allowing the wider world to get on with its own business, provided that they keep well away from their woodland domain.
Structure
Thaleros is an absolute monarchy which has been ruled by the Dalathan family ever since its foundation by Thrandros Dalathan in the year 1,984 of the Divine Peace. Because of the long-lived nature of Elves there have only been seven monarchs, four queens and three kings in all of the time that Thaleros has existed. The current monarch King Lucian Dalathan has been on the throne since the year 157 of the Divine War.
Whilst Elves do not procreate especially fast, the sheer length of time between rulers means that the royal family has grown large with most of the children of the royal line being employed within the government of Thaleros, something which many of the nation’s citizens are not especially happy about, though are content to live with provided that corruption doesn’t start to take hold, which to the credit of the Dalathan family it hasn’t.
Each monarch names their successor directly, so the throne does not necessarily have to pass down the direct line of succession from father or mother to son or daughter.
Demography and Population
The vast majority of Thaleros’ population are Elves, specifically Woodelves. There are other races resident in small numbers within Thaleros’ borders, mostly other sub-species of Elves, Centaurs, Satyrs and other species of Fey. Other less long-lived races have been known to reside within the Wyld Woods, most notably an enclave of Gnomes who have taken up residence in the nation’s capital Alios Glade.
Territories
Thaleros claims dominion over the entirety of the Wyld Woods, an area of woodland, glades and meadows in the central – north of the continent of Euristan, sandwiched between the Dragons' Tears Mountains to the north, the Relialo Plains to the east and The Wresmella to the west.
Military
As the vast majority of Thaleros’ citizens receive military training as part of their basic education each year 500 are selected by lot to act as the standing army for that year. This means that they are required to leave their homes and be stationed wherever they are needed within the kingdom, and they spend the year undertaking guard duties and intensive military training. Once an individual has served their year in this capacity, they return to their normal life and are exempt from service for the next five years, unless an emergency situation is declared, in which case all able bodied citizens are mobilised for military duty.
The exception to this rule are the Royal Guard, a force of around 100 full-time professional soldiers who guard the persons and residence of the royal family.
Religion
Like many Woodelves, the people of Thaleros are strong adherents of Wresmella the goddess whose domain encompasses hunting, the wilds and wilderness. Each reigning monarch of Thaleros also holds the position of the High Priest of Wresmella within the nation making them, therefore, the head of both of the temporal and spiritual guidance of their people. A large temple to Wresmella has been built within the trunk of an enormous, living oak tree in Thaleros’ capital Alios Glade with regular acts of worship being held there under the supervision of the High Priest and a flock of lesser clergy.
In addition, there are strong, though smaller cults of Menella, the goddess of life and creation and Gallena, the goddess dedicated to the preservation of life and protection of the innocent within Thaleros, though neither of these cults are directly linked with the royal family in the same way that worship of Wresmella is within the state, both cults and their temples are patronised by the royal family and the population as a whole.
Foreign Relations
Thaleros has always been an isolationist kingdom and there are few individuals, let a lone nation states or organisations which would call themselves trusted acquaintances, let alone friends of the Children of Wresmella. Thaleros only really has diplomatic relations with its nearest neighbours, the Empire of Turelion's Ferio Province to the west, and Ultaru Province to the east and the City-State of Kazkmal to the north. At best frosty relations are maintained with all three entities and whilst there has never been outright war between any of the three and Thaleros, it is not unusual for foreign citizens who trespass within the Wyld Woods to be cut down by arrows without warning, especially those who may be damaging the forest or its ecosystem through logging or hunting.
However, the people of Thaleros do adhere to the common principal that formal envoys from other lands should be allowed to pass through their lands unharmed, so it is possible for diplomats to treat with the Woodelves of Thaleros should they desire to, though none should expect an especially warm welcome. The only exception to this would be anyone who travels to the Wyld Woods claiming to represent Ymeris, for like most Elves the Children of Wresmella hate Vampires with a white hot passion, and any such envoy would be cut down immediately, lest they dare to try and spread the corruption of the Midnight Court to the peaceful glades south of the Dragons' Tears Mountains.
Beyond the nations of the Material Plane, it is rumoured that Thaleros maintains cordial, friendly even relations with many of the courts of the Feywild, though the chaotic nature of the Feywild makes any such relations hard to establish or understand for outsiders.
Agriculture & Industry
The people of Thaleros live in close harmony with the land and are experts at harvesting the seasonal bounty of their home the Wyld Woods rather than engaging in serious farming activity, which would require the clearing of land and the destruction of their woodland home. Instead of concerted agriculture, the Woodleves of Thaleros instead encourage certain species to grow in certain areas, for example scattering wild wheat seeds gathered from a previous season in large open glades to produce a harvest of wheat in and amongst other plants. The Children of Wresmella never look to keep the food of the forest exclusively to themselves either, and are happy to share the bounty of nature with the other creatures of the Wyld Woods, knowing that by helping them to thrive more meat will be available further down the line for hunting.
Little industrial level activity takes place within Thaleros, with the Woodelves restricting themselves to producing purely what they need to survive, rather than looking to produce vast surpluses of goods or products to trade on or keep in stock piles.
Trade & Transport
As Thaleros is a rather insular nation, trade with outsiders is sporadic at best and it is always instigated by the Children of Wresmella approaching outsiders rather than the other way around. Consequently transport is not a particularly serious concern for the Woodelves of Thaleros, who are able to pass through their domain with ease, without the need for formalised roads or even informal but permanent trackways. As a result it is hard for outsiders to navigate their way around Thaleros from a geographical perspective, let alone the fact that the Wyld Woods themselves exude a weird time warping influence over those who pass within their borders.
Education
The long lives of Elves mean that Thaleros has been able to establish an extensive and thorough educational system, which all of its citizens are able to participate in. For the most part, this education revolves around the teaching of forestry, wilderness survival, archery and combat skills, but it does also include reading, writing and arithmetic ensuring that all of the children of Thaleros are both literate and numerate. There is no hierarchy of educational establishments in the kingdom, with all children being given access to the same level of education and it is considered highly taboo for a family to employ the services of a private tutor, or to send their children away from Thaleros to be educated.
Additionally, higher education facilities are available in the capital Alios Glade, and there is a strong community of scholars within the city who have an extensive collective knowledge of botany, animal husbandry, divination and astronomy.
Founding Date
1984DP
Type
Geopolitical, Kingdom
Capital
Alternative Names
The Children of Wresmella
Economic System
Barter system
Currency
The monarchs of Thaleros have never really seen much use for money in form of coinage, seeing it as a tool with which other nations could begin to infiltrate and corrupt their nation. As a result, the people of Thaleros still do not use currency, but instead operate a barter based system of exchange where goods and services are traded as agreed by participants in the trade.
Legislative Body
As an absolute monarchy legislative decisions are ultimately made by the ruling monarch, but it is rare that these decisions are made without the input of a wide range of advisors from within the royal court.
Judicial Body
Rather than preside over each judicial matter that occurs, the monarchs of Thaleros appoint 10 judges, who hold court and make judicial judgements on their behalf. Normally, the rulings of these judges within their courts are deemed to be as authoritative as a ruling made by the monarch themselves, but in truly extreme or unique circumstances and appeal can be made to the monarch directly for an overturning of a sentence given.
Controlled Territories
Neighboring Nations
Related Species
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