Maeryth

Shrouded in fog, deep in the ocean are the hidden islands of Maeryth. Few outsiders have ever set foot on these ancient islands, and even fewer have returned to tell the tale.

Maeryth has, for millennia, been home to the Aldunii. This tribe of elves thinks of themselves as the 'chosen of Illia,' and Maeryth as their goddess's sacred domain. As a result the Aldunii are highly suspicious, even violent, towards outsiders. Rumors abound on the mainland concerning the elves of Maeryth. Some say they worship demons. Others claim the Aldunii are cannibals. From the outside it's hard to parse the truth from rumor, but most everyone agrees that the Aldunii are dangerous.

The Clans
The politics of the islands are as varied as any other culture. The clans are separated between the 9 islands that make up the Maeryth chain. Of those 9 islands only 5 are considered 'Spero Aldun,' or the descendents of the first Aldunii.

The first clan, and most powerful, are The Green Circle who safeguard the ancient temples of Illia on the main island of Maera'dun. The most rigid of the clans, the Green Circle, values priesthood above all else. Matriarchal, like most other Aldunii clans, the Green Circle is led by their Chosen Priestess. Uniquely, once a priestess dies her sucessor must earn her position through ordeal. She is brought out, naked, to a lonely reef in the middle of the ocean. She must prove Illia's favor by surviving the violent waves and elements of the open ocean. Those who survive to become their Priestess are treated like living avatars of Illia. Few survive.

The White Sparrow take their name from the thousands of sparrows who call their rocky island home. Inspired by the resourcefulness of their avian neighbors the White Sparrow are prehaps the most curious of the Aldunii. Most repeat visitors to Maeryth choose the White Sparrow island of Cieraba to land because they rarely attack outsiders. Instead they invite outsiders to stay with the clan, forcing them to undergo a grueling multi-day celebration in which every tribe member is given a chance to ask questions of the Outsiders. If at the end of this interrogation the outsiders are found worthy the White Sparrow will let them walk free.