Nestled in the highlands of the Oraniad Mountains, the Skola Vale is blessed by Nylea, covered in lush grass, and dotted with copses of trees. Satyrs roam the comfortable valley with no need for permanent settlements, all their needs provided for by the valley’s magic. According to legend, Nylea was so taken with the valley’s beauty that she poured the contents of her wineskin onto the vale to make it flourish forever. When wild goats drank of this wine, they became the first satyrs who made the magical land their home.
While the Skola Vale is a place of revelry, it isn’t without its dangers. The satyrs themselves can become too raucous in their merrymaking, and monsters lurk in the shadows of the trees and the surrounding mountains.
Satyrs of the Skola Vale
The satyrs of the Skola Vale are wild and free. They have taboos, but not laws, influence fluctuates constantly, and all are free to make merry in any way they please, so long as it doesn’t impede on others’ ability to do the same. Disagreements are typically turned into opportunities for public competition. Irreconcilable issues are usually solved by a strict application of “you go over there, and you go over there.” True intentional crimes, however, are violations known deep in the satyr soul. If needs be, revelry can halt in an instant to help someone who’s been hurt, and true criminals are exiled from the Skola Vale for life. Satyrs quickly bury negative thoughts, though, and the loss of one friend merely leads them to redouble efforts to make more.
Distinctions are few among satyrs, but several notable groups are detailed here.
Dawngreets
Dawngreets are satyr emissaries, explorers, and storytellers sent to other communities throughout the world. They arrange satyr-style celebrations wherever they go, spreading their people’s carefree philosophies, praising Nylea, sharing news, and creating friends the Skola Vale can rely on when necessary.
Nylea’s Favored
A circle of satyr druids, Nylea’s Favored protect the Skola Vale, restoring nature after damage by wildfires or too rowdy satyr parties. They also defend the vale by growing dense underbrush and supporting populations of wild beasts at their territory’s borders.
Sibyls
The closest people satyrs have to leaders are their sibyls, who are blessed with limited ability to see into the future. Sibyls warn the community when danger threatens the valley, select dawngreets, and oversee the “initiation rites” of the Cult of Horns. The oldest sibyl is a gray-furred satyr named Cresa. She insists that the more she drinks, the further she can see into the future.
Skola Vale Revels
Satyrs hold regular revels called rollick nights. These lengthy festivals are full of merrymaking, contests, impromptu performances, and song, all accompanied by good food and sweet drinks. Beyond these celebrations, tales are also told of bakkeia, revels that occur in deep caves and that involve ancient sacrificial rites. Most satyrs say these traditions were abandoned ages ago, though.
Cult of Horns
Some non-satyrs looking for pleasure without consequences visit the Skola Vale, encouraged by dawngreets and tales of wild revels. After spending some time with the satyrs, dark-humored sibyls might invite outsiders to join the Cult of Horns. If they agree, the non-satyr might be crowned with a circlet of horns, marking them as “stubs” (for their crown’s stubby horns). A period of hazing follows, where the stubs are enticed to perform menial or humiliating tasks. When the satyrs grow bored—or a respected, sober satyr steps in—the hazing ends, which typically results in the stub later waking up alone in the mountains. Most satyrs who participate in such ungenerous behavior are chided and are themselves made to serve at the next revel, but the satyr memory for consequences is short and the tradition persists. As for former stubs, most never share details about their experiences, their secrecy contributing to tales of dark rites and sinister enchantments in the vale.
Features of the Skola Vale
The Skola Vale is a wild place where majestic animals run free, trees, vines, and bushes provide fruit, and Nylea’s magic enhances the land. Plants and animals grow rapidly in the valley. The chaotic satyrs may upend a copse of trees one night only to have it regrow by morning. Most of the Skola Vale consists of greenery rolling over gentle hills. During the day, the vale’s residents hunt small game and gather wild fruit for wine. Other predators, such as bears, lions, and rocs, hunt the region as well. Some of these beasts, whether predator or prey, have become Nyxborn legends that appear again and again through the generations, either as threats or the stuff of incredible meals. Satyrs speak of both Kexosrexsos the Braided Lion and Hulp the Pork Bird with equal awe.
Woodlands
The Skola Vale’s trees grow in twisted, climbable shapes allowing inhabitants shady places to play and sleep. Dryads protect the largest of these trees, especially from drunken satyr antics. During the day, the copses are idyllic forests, filled with the music of panpipes. At night, though, the forests grow more menacing. Nocturnal monsters roam the wood—particularly chimeras, cockatrices, and harpies—striving to pick off drunken satyrs wandering alone after a revel. Satyrs rarely travel alone at night, believing that noise and music scare away evil, but revelers aren’t always as wary as they should be.
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