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Von Alantris

Player Culture

Of Alantris, a land now lost to time. The lasting culture is strangely well documented from before the collapse.

Introduction

At the end of the Golden Era, Von Alantris were a people chased to the edge of the known world as if to escape the impending doom. Cast from the mainland as atrocities began to arise and the people began to change from what they were once known. The laymen of fishers, seafarers, and carpenters followed, swiftly creating what they thought was a utopia. Houses and guilds built into the sides of stone pillars that reached to the heavens and cascaded back into the oceans, rebuilding their homelands.

Those who lived amongst these arches hardened to the weather, palms hardening with callouses and shoes abandoned to grip the wet rocks as they would descend to the waters to gather foods and use what was left of shipwrecks to repurpose. Life would flourish once again as they adapted to exile.

Then the collapse came.

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The sky would rain down unto the world, the oceans would drain and then rise- drowning those who sought it’s mercy from the rampaging flames. The cold froze their bones as the inferno would scorch their skin. Once a proud people cast from the eyes of their god as their forms would mutate with the rise of a new Era, reborn as something unlike what they once were.

The People

Von Alantris were a proud people of Moon Elves, boasting a hardiness unseen in their kind before. They had a firm belief in their blood, believing that all who shared it were one in the same. Homes housed multiple families, each with a room dedicated to the spirits of their ancestors and their god.

With the new Era, those who survived would abandon their homeland- few escaping to Sanctuary with their life in tact and even fewer who remained as Moon Elves. As if their was cursed many of Von Alantris who escaped the collapse had transformed into Naiads.

It is said that the water-like pattern on Naiads resemble the former Elven birth marks of their people, some Von Alantris believing the Naiads are only born of Moon Elves.

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Social Structure

With the belief that all are equal within Von Alantris, the hierarchy of power came from their roots within Nobility. Houses that were once notable on the mainland would be hoisted into power once again, this time as a voice of the people. Each head had agreed to house their families on separate pillars, calling their new groupings “Coves”. The oldest of the bloodline, regardless of gender, would be the face of their respective cove. These Elders would be decorated in tribalistic headdresses, adorned of netting and sea bird feathers, their bodies painted to show the lunar markings at all hours of the day. These headdresses are woven  by the mothers within the cove.

When a new Elder is chosen, they are expected to rest within the home of each family for one night until each family has been visited. From there, they move to a home at the top of the pillar to be closer to the Old God and the stars. All events of the cove are hosted within the building, and any without a family resides within their walls.

Faiths, Traditions, and Beliefs

Few traditions are still known and carried on by those who survived, by as the generations continue fewer of the community pass along these teachings.

Traditional Attire

It is noted that the Von Alantris wore very little clothing, often adoring themselves in sheer fabrics over a covering body suit. To show wealth, these fabrics would be sewn with string of gold. Many accessorise with useful materials such a belt made of rolled up netting and sharpened shells. Most jewelry would be crafted of pearls and coral, or any other precious materials that could be scoured from the oceans floor nearest them. The traditional outfits distinctly lacked shoes, grounded in the belief that it made their ability to traverse their land worse.

Worship

Von Alantris are a people of Enkindled, faithful to the creator from before the collapse. They do not look kindly upon those who follow the new godlings, but have a particular hatred for those who worship The Children of the Forest due to the ruination of their bloodlines

As Enkindled, they believe that the use of Astrium is the only way to commune with the Old God. The surviving Elders from the first generation often believe that only Von Alantris who remained as Moon Elves were pure enough to undergo Ignition.

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The Reunion

Bi-annually, coves would gather at the top of their pillar to commune with their Ancestors as a people. Sat in a circle with hands laid upon the shoulders of their neighbour, they would sing hymns to the old god under the moonlight. These trances would last for three days, for which the cove would undergo a period of fasting. During this time, they would offer prayers for those recently passed and seek guidance from those in eons past.

With the connection to their ancestors severed by divine intervention, this tradition is only carried on by the most devout of Von Alantris that remained unchanged.

The Feast

At the end of every marked year, a feast would be held atop the largest of pillars for all coves to attend, a time used to revisit old ties and share foods laid out on a sitting table. In the current generation, Von Alantris will gather at the largest of homes to celebrate the survival of their people, Elders taking turns telling the vocal history of their homeland.

These feasts were often filled with aquatic dishes and it was the only time that the people would partake in consuming poultry- seeing avians as a delicacy due to the scarcity. 

The Passage

Once every two years, the Von Alantris would host wedding parties for multiple coves known to them as “the passage”. Those who were eligible and desired to marry would be sent across temporary rope bridges to another pillar to find a partner from a separate family to strengthen bonds and ensure the continuation of shared blood.

These rope bridges were built by the siblings of the ones crossing over the course of a week. To signify the start of the passage long and thick ropes were tied to the off to the divers before they would jump from the cliff faces into the water below. Over the course of the week they would climb the stone pillars on the opposite side before being able to finally tie off their rope.

House Mene

Noble House, Landless

Prior to Collapse

Known as one of the oldest bloodlines of Von Alantris, through the generations House Mene was known to have inhabited the tallest pillar, and often produced Elders in multiple coves through marriage and continued bloodlines. They were well known for their isolationist tendencies, something that can be traced to the current era, taking it upon themselves to preserve history, either through written text or memorization. While deeply respected, their opinion on matters that concerned those not of Von Alantris were often taken lightly if at all. They were the last the flee from the collapse, and suffered many losses for this act. 

Third Generation

Within Sanctuary House Mene holds little sway, though still nobility in name and title they are without land.

The Elders

To this day, the Elder of House Mene is Hestia, formerly rarely seen individual. In the recent times she can be found within the sanctuary hospital, though rarely attends to patients personally. She is the only known member of her house to have made a public appearance at all, with rumors of no other of her bloodline remain alive.