Owls of Esmerelda

The Owls of Esmerelda, often shortened to the Owls, was an organization of historians that were prominent throughout the Cruel Age. They were founded with the sole purpose of amassing knowledge and cataloguing history regardless of ethnic ties; a breakthrough during a violent and bloody era where Kingdoms rose and fell to frequent warfare across Tregaron

The Cruel Age

Although events that characterised the Cruel Age have transpired long before its official founding, the founding of the Owls are often credited for making humanity aware of the era and importance of cataloguing historical events. The Cruel Age -- and countless centuries before its beginning, was an era of strife where kingdoms rose and fell across the continent of Tregaron. This lead to a power struggle of feudal kingdoms rising and falling to prominence. During this time, the Vanks ravaged the southwestern Peninsula of Tregaron, which purged and scoured historical records from a native people whose name would have been lost to time, were it not for the Owls. Esmerelda, a survivor of this war, saw to it that her people's history remained preserved, and formed a guild of antiquarians devoted to preserving the history of other civilizations to ensure that they weren't lost to the annals of time. Originally coined as the Current Era (C.E.) by the Owls, the unification of the three human kingdoms lead the era instead being marked as the Cruel Age due to its unprecedented violence and bloodshed. The era before the C.E. is referred to as Prehistory; an era that carries a distinct lack of historical records.

Crownless Birds

Kings and Queens were viewed as power-hungry tyrants to the Owls; a product of their time, where feudal lords frequently rose to prominence only to lead their people to disaster. Certain kingdoms also grew an appetite for burning away historical accounts of other nations in a bid to erase them from history, which only further fuelled the Owls' disdain for monarchs. Though the Owls still pay homage to their founder, their aversion for royalty has lead to the Owls not having a traditional leadership. The weight of one's importance is instead measured by their accrued knowledge and penned works.

Calender Makers

Human kingdoms often relied on different calendars based upon their own area; this lead to a dilemma. Due to time being measured differently across Tregaron, it caused great difficulty in accurately measuring the timeline of historical records. The Owls manufactured their own calendar that grew popular across the cruel age; this calendar used the winter solstice to measure the beginning of each year. Summers and Winters across Tregaron were particularly long compared to intermediary periods, leading to years being divided into 6 quarters. 60 Days for Summer, Midsummer, Winter, and Midwinter. This totalled 120 Days for Summer and Winter, with only 40 Days for Fall and Spring. The Owl's calendar did not keep track of days, however, which lead to it falling out of favour when compared to the Svallin or Elven calendar.

Scroll Money

The creation of the Owls also subsequently lead to an interesting bartering system. Membership with the guild meant that one could be paid through their knowledge and findings; written works or documented findings were exchanged frequently from Owl to Owl as a means of bartering. This eventually lead to an important role within the Owls. Whilst they held a staunch belief that no Owl should truly lead, Owls that managed to accrue at least thirty historical accounts were eligible to become a Mother Bird. These elected officials were held in high esteem within the Owl community. Mother Birds were given the power to use waxen seals to mark historical documents with a value based upon the color used in the wax. It was also incredibly common for Owls to make these exchanges between each other; 'A tale for a tale'. Whether fictional or not, many Owls often weighed the value of historical accounts granted this way with entertainment more than veracity.

Fairies & Falsehood

Fairies & Falsehood is a game that originated from the Owls' later tendencies to tell tall tales. Despite the organization being built upon the documentation of knowledge and history, Fairies & Falsehood's goal is to tell a believable lie.

"It's best done as a two party game, but can be played with multiple people."

"Everyone in the game makes up two 'Falsehoods'; fake tales, and attempts to make them as believable as possible."

"They then make up one true story; a 'Fairy', that is completely true."

"Each one tries to find the Fairy out of the Falsehoods. The one with the most Fairies wins; if it ends with a tie, then rinse and repeat!"

"If the Fairy is proven to be a falsehood in its own right, then you're disqualified; but if you somehow make it believable enough for everyone to assume true? Bravo to you, cunning bastard."

Public Agenda

The Owls wish to catalogue history as much as possible from an unbiased standpoint. During the Cruel Age, this was seen as a dangerous undertaking due to trespassers in many kingdoms often being seen as vagrant vagabonds. Many Owls were persecuted during their founding due to Esmerelda's forced citizenship with the Vanks -- or her Evanni heritage. While the Owls are still a known guild to this day, their primary goals lie on broader horizons. History for humans has long been an easy thing for them to track now that the three Kingdoms have settled their differences and found themselves at peace; the Owls now desire to see what the rest of the world has to offer off their island.

Founding Date

C.E. 1, 1st Day of Winter.

Demonym

Owls

Founders