Númendil
The Exilic Kingdom of Númendil (Adunic: Númenaranyë) is a kingdom and nation rising with the lands of Aevos. The culture and histories of the inhabitants, known as the Númenedain, rise from the long-lost culture of Idunia and have partially homogenized with the culture and histories of the more modern Humans. The kingdom is home to Descendants of all races but is the primary home of the Adunians.
The Númenedain (singular, Númenedan) are a group of Adunians who descended from the Adunians known as the Harren’hil of Almaris. These Númenedain colonized a region marred by mysticism and necromancy known as the Barrowlands in Almaris before undergoing a cultural rebirth with influences from Idunia under their first ruler, Tar-Númenatâr (then called Tar-Uriel). Tar-Númenatâr united the fractured and wayward Adunians under the Royal House Arthalionath (then called Royal House of Pendraic) and formed the first truly independent Adunian Kingdom. Ruling for 50 years before finally abdicating the throne unto His eldest daughter Tar-Caraneth Aryantë.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
History
Almaris
The Exilic Kingdom of Númendil rose quite literally from the ashes of The Kingdom of the Barrow Marches. This kingdom was colloquially known as the Barrowlands at the time and held its singular city and capital Barrowton. An Adunian expedition led by Ser Uther Pendraic went underway in the year 108 of the Second Age which held the purpose of cleansing and quelling the rising undead that plagued the region. The errant knight and his warband would set out from The Duchy of Minitz and settle the region, founding the city of Barrowton around the year 110 S.A.
With the formation of his new city, Ser Uther would take on the feudal title of Lord Uther of House Pendraic and become Lord of the Barrowlands. Many more would answer the warband’s call for the rising threats of mysticism and necromancy outside the Adunian party the Minitzers that started. The town grew and the converted Harren’hil would now be on the path to establishing a new realm for Canondom.
As their successes piled up, a new threat would replace the dwindling concern of the Undead. Mori’quessir began small skirmishes and other attacks on the Descendants of Almaris and within the Barrowlands. In the face of that threat looming in the background, which at the time was unknown in its scale, the High Pontiff Pontian IV would recognize the efforts and progress Lord Uther had achieved in the name of Canondom and crowned the Adunic warlord as Tar-Uriel, by the Grace of God. The crowning would seal the new monarch’s title of King and Protector of the Adunians, uniting the Adunic tribes under one banner for the first time in nearly five centuries.
Time was not on the side of the newly united Adunians, nor on the side of the greater Descendants as a whole. The rising waves of a hostile and aggressive Mori’Quessir would begin to see city after city, nation after nation, be besieged and fall to their unrelenting and innumerable offense. The subjects of Tar-Uriel had long risen to the call for aid against these assaults from the other nations of Almaris. Yet mounting defeats quickly outweighed any victories and the morale of all Descendants began to wane with the all-consuming dark. In a moment of sheer defiance and Courage against the looming invaders, Tar-Uriel ordered his people to set Barrowton ablaze and deny its capture to the Mori’Quessir.
The final battle cry that Almaris would hear from the united Adunians had not yet come. The Adunians under Tar-Uriel retreated with the rest of the Descendants of Almaris to the ruined city of San Luciano in the south end of the continent. Here all Descendants would stand in the final battle of Almaris alongside the mysterious Brev, a battle hard-fought but quickly overrun by the invaders. Under the guidance of these Brev, the remaining people retreated and fled into the caverns below the city. Finding themselves displaced in the deep and dark reaches under the earth’s surface. . .
Arriving in the lands of Aevos, the Kingdom was reformed and renamed into Númendil, honoring its Aduninian origins.
Aevos
With the realm of Almaris now lost to all, Tar-Uriel would lead his united but wayward Adunians to the lands of Sharad’et’alkayaban alongside the group of Farfolk known as the Sharadûn. Here at the base of a mountain Alkayaban, the Adunian would settle for a short time. However, the Sharadûn would prove to be paranoid about the influence the Adunians had and the Imr-khagn would attempt to burn out and enslave the Adunians. With the Sharadûn raiding their encampment, Tar-Uriel would be gravely wounded in the conflict and fall comatose as he succame to the severity of his wounds. Fresh with the fears and grief that their king may soon be dead, the Adunians rose to make a final stand in this foreign land.
The story of the united Adunians and that of their leader, Tar-Uriel, was not yet done, however. The comatose king would awaken in those final moments and rise to lead a countercharge. With renewed drive and Courage, the Adunians would drive the Sharadûn back to their capital and defeat Imr-khagn. Standing in the captured city, Tar-Uriel would proclaim the lands under his own name and in the honor of Idunia and the Adunic language, they would be renamed as Númenaranyë or ‘The Royal Realm of the Númenedain’. A united Adunic people once more had a land for their home, and thus The Exilic Kingdom of Númendil rose. Tar-Uriel would now take his final name in the same tradition and become Tar-Númenatâr, ‘King of the Númenedain’.
| Full History | |
|---|---|
|
THE QUENTA NAUTHONIAD Adunians settled the land of Almaris sometime in the late 14th century, nominally for a time, under the leadership of House Marsyr, originally rulers of Canmoor who fled the isles of Al’Ildic when it fell to the undead in 1309 FA. This Marsyr-led unity shattered within the first hundred years of colonization, leading to the dispersal of the proto-Harren’hil across the breadth of the continent among independent Bowie Bands. By the time of the arrival of the Descendant Kingdoms to Almaris at the beginning of the Second Age, no Chieftain commanded more than a few dozen families. With them came the last remaining trueborn scion of House Marsyr, Nauthon, who in the common-tongue was called John. John Marsyr was a warrior of great renown, having ventured the width of Arcas as a strident ranger, and slain many beasts before enlisting in the Brotherhood of Saint Karl to fight on the frontlines of the Inferi War. During that cataclysmic conflict which heralded the end of an age, John made common-cause with, and became swift friends with Prince Fëanor Sylvaeri. When Almaris was settled, John soon undertook a quest to unite its errant Adunians, the Harren’hil. Using his friendship with the Princes of Elvendom, John was granted lands on the seacoast of Amathea, and soon began traveling Almaris, gathering through skill of arm and the power of his voice, the Harren’hil to his banner. Enough soon came to him that he was named their Chieftain and Lord, and soon came to rule Cartref Mor, the Home-By-The-Sea, wherein he dwelled for a time, and his people prospered. Inevitably however, Elvendom became divided into several warring factions, and Lord Marsyr deemed that continuing to remain in the southwest was no longer possible. John was released from his fealty to the Prince of Elvendom, and led his people north, coming into the service of the Norlandic King, and was granted the lands of Ironguard (called by the Adunians Minas Angren) in exchange for helping drive the remaining Svarling and Skanarri tribes out of Norland, and back into the frozen wastes. This Lord Marsyr did for a time, and did so fervently, for he was a warrior without peer, and among the most valiant warlords of mankind in those days, however, his warring oft left him far from home, and a disquiet had fallen on his house as a result. To rectify this, Lord Marsyr trusted his second in command, Ser Edward Thuri-Elendil to rule in his stead. This would prove a grave mistake, and one which would eventually doom Cartref Mor. Edward, now called the Ill-Ruler, was seduced by the Daelish Vampire, Sionnach, who guided him towards paranoia and greed, and caused him to abandon his duties, one of which was the raising of John’s son and heir, Aurelion. In Edward’s absence, Aurelion was instead taken in, and twisted by Witches of the Far North, who led him down the dark path that would inevitably become the doom of the Harren’hil. THE AURELIONIAD When Lord John returned to Cartref, he discovered that not all was well in his house. His son was errant and wild, his squire, Uther, was driven to sell his sword for coin, and his lands were in disrepair, all due to the mismanagement of Ser Edward and his Vampire-Consort. Incensed by this, Lord John banished Ser Edward and Sionnach from his lands, and set to work attempting to rebuild his household, summoning Uther, his son, Aurelion, and many others back to his halls. Though Aurelion was already under the sway of the darkness, he was not wholly corrupted, and instead sought to carry on his father’s work, and aided him much in the management of his household. There was a brief resurgence then among the lands of Cartref Mor, which swiftly recovered under John’s rule. Tragically however, this was not to last. Soon thereafter, Lord John perished nobly in battle against the Undead, biding time for his subjects to escape an overwhelming horde at the cost of his life. For this, and all other great-deeds accomplished by him, Lord John Marsyr is posthumously recognized as Tar-Nauthon, first king of the Adunians on Almaris. Almost immediately after assuming the Chieftaincy, Aurelion sought to prove himself and step beyond his father’s shadow, and as such, started directing the Harren’hil in a way in accordance more with his own designs than his fathers. While the Adunic rulers of yore were respected and taught of during John’s reign, they were venerated as mighty spirits during Aurelion’s, akin to gods. Likewise, Aurelion raged against the Aengudaemonica, and Malchediael in particular, who he blamed for his father’s death, and who he resented for the Adunian Templars and their refusal to follow him. Aurelion’s ancestor worship soon began taking an occult turn, wherein the blood and bones of beasts were used to summon the spirits of the dead to him and take counsel with them. The more Aurelion turned towards his ways, the greater his pride grew, and the greater that his pride grew, the more he resented his feudal overlord, the Norlandic King, Odin. In those days, Cartref Mor far surpassed the Kingdom of Norland’s capital of Alisgrad in prosperity, for that realm had fallen into disrepair ever sign the reign of Vane the Vain, and so, deciding to free his folk from the rule of unworthy Highlander rulers, descendants of those who the Kingdom of Idunia kept as slaves themselves, Aurelion raised his banner in rebellion, and sought to conquer the Raenrlands, as well as establish an independent kingdom. However, King Aurelion’s reign was not to last, for he knew little how to wage war, and instead of striking immediately, waited three months for allies who would never come to his aid. In these three months, the Norlanders marshaled their forces, fewer in number, but more skilled in force of arm, retaking Ironguard, casting King Aurelion the Faithless in gold, and driving his followers from Minas Angren, many froze to death in the rivers of Lake Hakon, or were felled by arrows as they fled. Those who survived, under the leadership of Oliver Black and Fritjof Maor fled south to the Darkspawn-led Elven Principality of Celia’nor, wherein they dwelt for a time. But the malice of Aurelion was not so easily undone, and the Adunic King defied death, choosing instead to become a revenant Necromancer, after which, he continued to influence the Adunians from the shadows through his agent, Maor, and his allies in Celia’nor. Unlike Moar, Oliver did not care for the occultic ways of Aurelion, but was powerless to stop a population that was mostly already fallen, and so, he could only despair as they slipped into damnation. Only at the very end did he begin to plot against Maor, swiftly realizing that Aurelion still lived, but it was far too late. Maor, who was well-liked among the Celianites, convinced them that Oliver was the cultist, and not he, and so, they backed Maor in a violent takeover of Cartref Mor, overthrowing Oliver, and driving his followers west. Crippled, homeless, and vagrant, the remaining Harren’hil who were not under Aurelion’s thrall were condemned, until a sudden summons arrived by one Ser Uther of Acre, a Warlord in the Heartlands, and John’s last remaining disciple. THE QUENTA UTHYRIAD Uther Gwathren, son of Lady Gwynthryth of Wealdfarthing and an Elvish Lord, stemmed from an aged line on his mother’s side. Clan Gwathren was kin to House Marsyr, descending from a bastard son of that house called Gwathor the Bloody, who was the last sheriff of Canmoor before his fellows settled on Almaris, raising a small castle and village called Wealdfarthing in the lands where Oren would eventually come to dwell. Unlike the rest of the Harren’hil, Clan Gwathren never fully degenerated into nomadic life, retaining some semblance of the feudal lifestyle until being driven from their lands by Orenian invaders at the start of the Second Age. Lady Gwynthryth, who had long since abandoned her marriage with her Elven lover, instead took one of the Orenian invaders as husband to placate the invaders, and to retain some status of nobility, though this was at the cost of disinheriting her son, served as the stableboy for her new husband, a cruel and vain man, Tancred d’Aroix, Baron of Aroix. Gwynthryth soon bore the sons of Baron d’Aroix, though these new children were not allowed kinship with her eldest, for fears that Uther might one-day seek to reclaim the land that he previously stood to inherit. What little time she was able to spend with her eldest was spent reading to him from the Holy Scrolls, to ensure his piety (as Clan Gwathren had adopted the Canonist Faith centuries earlier) and to teaching him to ride the horses he tended to, to better know them. Much love did Uther have for his mother, and great was his sorrow when she passed away of the plague when he was naught but eleven. Her dying wish would be for him to flee to Cartref Mor for his safety, for Baron d’Aroix would surely seek to kill him with his wife now absent. Uther bade his dying mother a tearful farewell, and that night, stole a horse and a rusted mail hauberk from the Baron, before fleeing west to Cartrf Mor, wherein he swore to Lord John, who took pity on him, and named young Uther as his squire. Uther swiftly took to combat as a natural, and by sixteen, had already slain half a dozen men, and proved himself a leal companion for his lord on the battlefield. When John went north to combat the hill-tribes and Svarlings, Uther remained in Cartref Mor for a time, before disgust at the actions of Edward the Ill-Ruler and his consort led Uther to leave and for a time become a sellsword and freerider. Uther returned to Almaris at the summons of Lord John, who knighted him for his valor shortly before his own death, he also bestowed upon Uther the blessings of the Aengul Machediael, and it was these blessings Uther recovered from when his lord fell. After a period of mourning was done, Uther departed Cartref Mor once more, for there was no love between him and Aurelion, and Uther was not well liked among them on account of his Canonist faith. It was then that Uther fled to the Heartlands, wherein a war had brewed against the Kingdom of Oren, a rebellion led by the Black Baron (so called for his supposed outlawry) of Acre, Gustaf de Vilain. Baron de Vilain’s lands of Acre were plagued with Undead and Neverborn both, and as a newly christened Templar, Uther immediately strove to prove himself against them, also gladly fighting with Gustaf de Vilain and his people in their war against the tyrannical King of Oren, Frederick I of House Novellen. Little large-scale battles were fought, but much raiding occurred across the Orenian Countryside, during which, Uther proved himself as one of the Black Baron’s most zealous soldiers, being one of the few Knights to fight on behalf of the smallfolk in that war. Nobles were hanged, and manors burned, and eventually the rebels stormed the royal capital of Vienne, killing Frederick and his wife both during the battle, and subsequent sack of the city. Shortly after their victory and the establishment of the Harvest Confederacy, both Baron Gustaf and his father Hannes vanished, presumed killed, but later found out to have been kidnapped and taken into slavery by the Mori’quissir, leading only Gustaf’s young children to inherit. Because of this, Uther was then named regent of those lands, to rule them until Gustaf’s heir, Volker, came of age. As those lands were lawless, and fighting still occurred in some parts of that country, Uther invited several Hedgeknights into his service to serve as his retainers in helping police Acre and the heartlands as a whole, this chivalric warband, called The Knights of Pendraic (after the Almaric-Thaudian word for Warlord) participated in driving the Undead from the Heartlands with aid from the Lectorate of Owyn (who Uther then studied under) as well as cutting down the last pockets of Orenian resistance deep in the wooded regions on the other side of the Arentinian Alps. It was during this period that the remaining Harren’hil under Oliver Black came under Uther’s protection in exchange for submitting to him. Within his House in the Barony of Acre, Uther was named Chieftain of the Harren’hil, and Protector of the Adunians, and he was promised land to house them by his overlords, the de Vilains, as a reward for his loyal service. Though this reward was never given, Uther swiftly became the greatest leader of the Adunians in Almaris, far outnumbering the houses of Rourke, Thuri-Elendil, and Elendil. During his time in the Heartlands, Uther brokered close ties with the House of Barclay, and the Lectorate of Owyn, ties which would remain for decades thereafter. Not all would remain well however, and eventually, Volker de Vilain came of age, and his heart was black. Acting on a feud with House Galbraith, Volker led the levymen of the Harvest Confederacy to storm a church in the Kingdom of Balian in an attempted assassination of the groom. He failed miserable, and in the aftermath, the Harvest Confederacy was fractured, with lands ceded to Haense, Balian’s ally, as well as Urguan, with the Confederacy as a whole ceasing to exist, as it was soon divided between the Kingdom of Aaun and the Archduchy of Petra. Acre remained, though a shadow as it once was, as one who Uther did not know was named its new Baron, and Uther, for his part, chose to depart rather than continue to serve a family he had lost respect for. Taking his share of the plunder from the Sack of Vienne, Uther dwelt for a time among the Waldenians of Minitz, ruled by House Barclay, while drumming up support to launch a great expedition into the west to claim lands for Canondom, specifically the cursed and blighted region known as the Barrowlands, where, as a Templar, Uther sought to purge, and make clean and anew, so that life and light might be restored therein. With a goal in mind, and the wealth and manpower to support it, in the 110th year of the second age, the golden wyvern of the Brotherhood of the Pendraic was raised, and a long march began to establish a hold in the Barrowlands- And after some conflict with the local undead, they did. A castle was swiftly erected, and a city around it. And it was called Barrowton. THE DAGOR ALMARIAD The city of Barrowton arose swiftly, almost accidentally, as tents arrayed around the original keep quickly sprung up, and soon turned to wood, and from wood to stone. More desperate souls had signed onto the Harrenite venture than was originally anticipated, many of whom were not even Harrenites themselves, but instead counted among the Middlemen, or even the Kindreds of Malin (of these, the Silver Elves in particular.) Though some resistance was found among the Barrows in the form of restless undead, conjured long ago and forgotten by their masters, the Expedition, soon thereafter called simply ‘the Barrowlanders’ dispatched them swiftly, and scoured that land clean, and for a time long enough, all therein dwelt in guarded peace, and new life came to the Barrowlands. More Adunians now flocked to Uther’s banner, and not all of them Harren’hil, but some rather, Orenized Adunians long-since sundered from their westron kin. Uther accepted these folk gladly, and counted them among his own. In recognition of this, and his role as both warden and protector of his folk, Uther was soon regarded as one of the princes of Canondom, a renegade and maverick no longer. Twelve years after Barrowton was built, Uther was crowned by High Pontiff Pontian IV as Tar-Uriel, King and Protector of the Adunians. This was met with some criticism, for Tar-Uriel came from no royal line, and therefore had no true claim on the Adunic Kingship beyond a common and distant ancestry to Harren that all Adunic nobility bore, however, such criticism was drowned out by support, not only among the Adunians, but also Tar-Uriel’s allies among the Middlemen, House Barclay, the Oyashimans of Tetsugawa, and many others. This was not the only joy that came from this time, for also did Tar-Uriel wed his newly returned and long-betrothed love, Orelia Darkwood, and from them would stem the new royal line of the Adunians, at first called House Pendraic in Almaric Thaudian, but later renamed as the Arthalionath, or Descendants of the Hero King, in honor of Tar-Uriel’s own achievements. Not all would be joyful and glad for long, however, for the doom of Almaris was at hand. The Elvish race known as the Mori’Quessir, long-tainted by the Spider Goddess and the Third Druidic Aspect, Nemiisae, would begin assailing the descendant realms in innumerable force, and though Barrowton stood strong, many of the other realm fell, and fled towards the southern subcontinent of Almaris. Under perpetual siege by the Mori’Quessir, Tar-Uriel decided then, overcome with zeal, to set his own city to a blaze rather than offer it up to the enemy, or lose it in the impending battle. In the perpetual night, Barrowton was set aflame, and the Barrowlanders then soon made towards the southern continent, wherein after it was planned they would flee Almaris with the rest of the descendant-realms. Yet this exodus did not come bloodlessly, for it came soon to pass that the Mori’Quessir once more darkened the doorstep. The final battle of Almaris would be fought upon the mont where stood the ruined city of San Luciano, which then had become the last refuge for all the peoples of Almaris. By blade and by spell, the remnants of Almaris’ Kingdoms fought valiantly, the Adunians not least of all. Yet at the last, even with the powerful sorceries of the Brev to aid them, all were forced into retreat, and they fled not by sea but under the earth into the domain which the enemy had since abandoned. And it was in those shadowed depths that they dwelled, until such time as they were, by providence, met with the sun’s light once more. THE FOUNDING OF NÚMENDIL Though much of this tale is told in other records, it shall be recounted here also that after arriving in Aevos the Adunians settled among a Farfolk known as the Sharadûn in the lands of Sharad'et'alkayaban, at the base of the Mountain, Alkayaban, for which those lands were named. However, fearing the influence of these Adunians, the Imr-khagn of the Sharadûn ordered their encampment burned, and its inhabitants enslaved. Tar-Uriel was gravely wounded in the initial raid, and was set into a deep coma, from which it was thought he would never awake. As the Adunians prepared to make a final stand however, Tar-Uriel awoke, and led the countercharge, harrying the Sharadûn back to their capital, which was taken, after which, the Imrîd dynasty from which the Imr-khagn descended was extinguished, and their lands taken by Tar-Uriel, who renamed them ‘the Númenaranyë’ or ‘the Royal Realm of the Númenedain’, and thus, the name was born. Tar-Uriel himself took a third and final name by which he is known now, Tar-Númenatâr, ‘King of the Númenedain’. And thus, Tar-Númenatâr the King ruled nobly and well to this day. | |
Culture and Society
This article is meant to give a small overview of Númenedain culture. For more details, click here.
Fashion
For fashion, Númenedain are typical, if albeit more conservative than most Canonist nations, stemming from Owynist influence. Both men and women are expected to dress modestly, with minimal exposed skin. Because of this, both gloves are common among both genders, and headgear specifically among the women. Due to Númenost’s southern climate, most clothing is fashioned from breathable, if concealing material, which thanks to the wealth of that region, is typically quite finely made and intricate. Because of this stance, sleeveless clothing, cleavage, or shirtlessness among either gender is highly frowned upon, and will often be met by vicious verbal mockery and condemnation.
Art
With the heavy influences that the Númenedain have from Canondom, their art is largely composed of pieces with religious expression and the impersonal translation of theology with Canondom into artistic forms. This interconnect between theology and art led to an iconographic scheme for art within the Church. Frescoes, mosaics, and murals often cover the interiors of culturally significant places, such as churches and palaces, and lead to a homogenization of architecture and pictorial expression. If not for influences from The Church of Canon and the Scrolls, Númendil takes inspiration and expression from ancient Idunia into their works of art in the modern era.
Sculpture is not heavily seen in society for the Númenedain. Most often it is seen through the use of smithing and other smaller works such as goldwork and silverwork. Some of the Númenedain take to small relief carving into materials such as ivory, wood, and stone. Illustration and illuminated manuscript are an important expression of style and iconography in Númendil. A notable exception to the lack of sculpture would be in the creation of statues and other life-size monuments to a variety of purposes including the depiction of influential Adunians, Saints within Canondom, or even iconography for the second Exalted Owyn.
Demographics
The Exilic Kingdom of Númendil and the Númenedain are composed of a variety of Descendants, however, a bulk majority of the population is Adunian. Since the earliest founding days of the Barrowland Expedition under Ser Uther Pendraic, a mix of other races have joined and been integral to the formation of the kingdom. Westron kin from the Heartlands and High Elves from The Silver State of Haelun’or answered the call of the original expedition and remained steadfast and loyal to the kingdom ever since.
Since then, a number of other Descendants from all areas of life filtered and joined the kingdom as subjects under Tar-Númenatâr. Many of these people, including the High Elves converted to Canonism through their affiliation with the kingdom and are seen as true Númenedain Typical names of Adunians can be found here.
Cuisine
The Númenedain are both practical and modest people. The Harren’hil who dwelt in the Barrowlands were known for a hearty palette consisting mostly of beef, pork and venison spiced with more northernly seasonings, on account of Barrowton being far disconnected from any main trade-routes. This was not the case after the founding of Númenost, which unlike its predecessor, was a central trading hub on the continent of Aevos thanks to its key location as a crossroads between the southern deserts, the eastern jungles, and the Mannish heartlands. Because of that, regular access to more exotic and southron spices was attained, something which the Númenedain swiftly developed a strong taste for. Likewise, some preference for spice had already been attained thanks to Barrowton’s Santegio-Hyspian community. Fish is also prevalent. Notably, Númenedain hunters are careful to avoid, and do not consume bear-meat, stemming from the usage of bear meat and blood in occult rituals during the reign of Aurelion Marsyr the Faithless of Cartref Mor.
Values
The Númenedain carry a legacy of lost traditions going back over a thousand years to Idunia of yore, and while much is gone, never to be recovered, newer, better traditions have been made, honoring the legacy of the Harrenite homeland, while disavowing the corruption and decadence that brought it to ruin. Even in wealth, Númenedain are encouraged to err towards humility and charity, though that is not to say the acquisition of wealth is discouraged, far from it, only the misuse of it. In times of peace, the Númenedain trade happily with their neighbors, chiefly in alchemical goods, for in the last century, such they have come to specialize in, but raw materials also flow from the White City.
Furthermore, though having long abandoned the woodland life of their Harren’hil ancestors, the Númenedain maintain a keen connection with their natural surroundings, viewing nature as an unmarred facet of creation, and thus, a thing worthy of protection. Though they possess the same skill in it as all men, the Númenedain are not quite so industrious, believing that such aught be tempered with a healthy respect for the natural world that the Creator made for them at the dawn of time. Because of this, animal husbandry is also a well-respected profession among them, as is hunting. Most Adunians keep pets of some form or another, typically horses, large dogs, and the occasional hunting-bird, for falconry is a common pastime also.
Herbalism and healing are also seen as favored skills among that folk, not only in keeping with their woodland roots, but also simply for practicality’s sake. Númenedain Rangers will often spend many months, if not years beyond the white-walls of the capital, and as such, identifying what plants are safe, and what plants are not safe has become a matter of some importance, as has healing injuries accrued in the wilds, a skill that doubly serves well, as a folk so prone to battle are also prone to injury.
In keeping with the belief that the natural world is an unmarred example of the Creator’s work, many landed Númenedain will keep a sacred grove in their fiefdoms known as a Godswood. A Godswood is a meditative tree garden, either walled within a keep, or kept outside of it. It is maintained by the ruling family instead of servants, in the belief that something as simple as gardening focuses the mind, keeping one humble, and strengthening their connection to the world around them. Most typically kept in a Godswood is a grove of native trees, dominated in the center of the grove by either the silver-leafed Adunic White Tree, or the red-leafed Almaric Heart Tree, however, other plants may be kept and grown at the base of these trees. It is not uncommon for alchemical reagents or berry-bushes to be grown in the Godswood, primarily though it is a place of quiet reflection.
All that having been said, one would be wise not to confuse a Númenedan’s love of nature as heathen aspectism, indeed, the Númenedain are deeply suspicious of druids, who they view as a meddling folk that serve the Fey, nature spirits who at best are mischievous, and at worst, outright malicious. While not so superstitious as to believe the Druids themselves as Faeries, they are thought to be in league with them, and thus avoided unless one wishes to court fate by dealings with the fey. To ward off these spirits, lines of salt and iron-dust are often drawn along the edges of a Godswood, or the property of a Númenedain living out in the wild.
Cultural Trials
One is considered one of the Númenedain from the moment of birth, should one or both of their parents be a Númenedan themselves, but it is a mantle one cannot claim without at least having begun their trials. Beginning at the age of eleven, the Númenedain trials prepare the youth to be contributing members of their fledgling society. Likewise, any foreign or Adunians or Middlemen wishing to embrace Númenedain must first undergo the same trials before any position of prominence can be held. Those undergoing the trials may have however long it takes to complete them, though it is expected to be finished within a decade. A foreigner embracing the culture for the first time is not expected to complete it at the age, or in the time that a Númenedan-by-birth would be.
Trial of Profession: (Suggested Ages 9-12)
The aspirant Númenedan must take up an apprenticeship in a profession deemed of service to the greater whole, something practical and worldly that they might contribute to the Númenedain Kingdom, or at the very least, provide for their family.
Trial of Service: (Suggested Ages 13-25)
Having now chosen a profession (or having had one chosen for them) the aspirant Númenedan must see their profession through until the end, and seek mastery of it, learning all they might learn from their teacher until there is nothing left to learn. When the apprenticeship is deemed concluded, the aspirant Númenedan must then prove their skill to their mentor in a test as applicable to their profession, i.e. The Smith must forge a masterwork and unique craft, the warrior must show their valor in battle, physicians must display their ability to heal and mend, and one groomed for diplomacy or to command must show themselves able to resolve disputes.
Trial of Naming: (Suggested, on completion of Trial of Service)
Having proven themselves an independent and contributing member of society, the aspirant Númenedan swears the Oath of Tar-Númenatâr anew in the eyes of a member of the Royal House, the Ruling Steward, or a member of the local clergy. Thereafter they take upon themselves a new name in the ancient Adunic tongue, or have one granted to them by those overseeing the ritual.
Religion
The Númenedain are devout and pious followers of Church of the Canon and it is the steadfast and official religion for The Exilic Kingdom of Númendil. While past ancestors for the Harren’hil could be outright against the Canonist Church, namely that of Aurelion the Black and the Xionists who gathered under his reign, Ser Uther Pendraic began converting many of the Harren’hil prior to the expedition and settlement of the Barrowlands. Those in the warband who followed Ser Uther to the Barrowlands came to hold the second Exalted Owyn into high significance and planted a firm sect of Ownists within the Harren’hil. While the sect is popular amongst the Númenedain, The Exilic Kingdom of Númendil avoids a sectarian stance and instead identifies as ‘Canonist’.
Politics
Law
Laws of State
The following are those laws which outline the hierarchy of our Kingdom’s government, as well as the laws of inheritance and succession.
I. The ruling monarch, hereafter referred to as ‘the Crown’ or ‘the White Throne’, shall hold full and unquestioned authority over the lands and titles of the Kingdom.
II. The Crown shall have the authority to dictate, enforce and alter this code at their discretion.
III. Those empowered by the Crown to enforce the law, including Knights, levies of the royal house, and others appointed to such authority by decree, shall be privileged to interpret and enforce the law as appropriate and necessary, and shall hold that IV. privilege at the pleasure of the Crown.
V. Subjects of the White Throne shall be obligated to adhere to any and all royal decrees or taxes levies.
VI. The succession of the Kingdom shall be determined by appointment of the Crown. In such an event that the monarch is slain or becomes otherwise incapable of ruling without an appointed heir, the crown shall pass to the oldest trueborn child.
VII. The recognized Houses of the realm shall have the right to dictate their own traditions of inheritance. However, should a dispute of inheritance threaten the peace, it may be settled at the Crown’s discretion.
VIII. No title held by an Adunian House or individual shall, in any circumstance other than Royal assent, pass to one not of Adunic blood.
Laws of the Crown
Listed hereafter are those laws which shall dictate the honorable conduct to which subjects of and visitors to our Kingdom are to hold themselves.
I. For a subject to act to our Kingdom’s detriment in any way, be that by the raising of arms or the aiding of Her enemies, shall be considered Treason.
II. To practice or to affiliate knowingly with those who practice the Dark Arts is strictly forbidden, and shall be considered the crime of Unholiness.
III. No individual shall willfully slay another outside of defense of self or others, and to do so shall be considered Murder.
IV. No person shall willfully do harm to another outside of defense of self or others, and to do so shall be considered Assault.
V. To make use of any magic in a manner which is harmful to the Crown’s properties or to others, or in a way that is counter to the decrees of the Crown, shall be considered the crime of Sorcery.
VI. To deprive or dispossess another of their rightfully owned property or goods shall be considered Theft.
VII. To damage the properties of the Crown shall be considered Vandalism.
VIII. To publicly encourage the practice of Pagan faiths, or to cast insult upon our Lord GOD Almighty shall be considered Blasphemy.
IX. To damage properties of the Church, or to dishonor icons of the Exalted or the Saints shall be considered Sacrilege.
X. Should one accused of a crime so desire, they may request trial by combat or to appeal to the Crown for royal trial. Those known for fact to be guilty do not receive this privilege.
Succession
The Exilic Kingdom of Númendil follows primogeniture succession, with all children of the monarch able to inherit. The first-born child of the current monarch would be next in line to the throne, though discretion is always at the behest of the leading monarch to determine the successorship and lineage. Should there be a situation where the reigning monarch has no heir-apparent or consort, the leadership of the kingdom shall fall to the Steward of Númendil. In such a scenario, if no legitimate descendants of the Royal House Arthalionath remain, the throne shall pass to whoever can win it through a bloody contest of arms.
The succession of the Royal Throne is maintained in the Royal House Arthalionath which itself is derived from King Tar-Númenatâr.
Númenedain Nobility
Adunic and Noble Houses
Royal House Arthalionath
House Glennmaer
House Thassarion
House Seregon
House O'Rourke
The White Court of the Númenaranyë
The Exilic Court of Númendil comprises the members of the Royal House Arthalionath, the Castellan, the Seneschal, the Stewards, a Cardinal with The Church of Canon serving as Court Chaplain, the Captain of the Númendil Guard, the Court Tutor, the Court Mage, and the Court Scribe. Recent modifications, as per the first gathering of the White Court, include the Royal Cupbearer, Court Witchunter, and Court Physician, among others. At the discretion of the King, the Exilic Court of Númendil may be expanded or shrunk.
Military
Knights of Númendil
The origins of the Númenedain dating back to Ser Uther and the warband that settled in the Barrowlands revere The Errant Knight’s Code and that of Hedgeknights. To the Númenedain, martial prowess and piety outweigh the value of titles and peerage so long as the hedgeknight sticks true to the chivalry laid out in the code. ‘False knights’ ie, those granted the honorific title for political reasons alone, and those lacking martial skill or moral fiber, are viewed more akin to bandits than true knights, and the Númenedain disparage those who grant them such false ‘honors’. In accordance with the laws of Númenedain, a ceremony can be held by any Knight to swear an individual deemed worthy into Knighthood.
Following the reverence that the Númenedain hold for the Knights, some expanded rights are afforded to them including being permitted to fly their own banners beneath that of their served Lord, them and their household being permitted to wear their own colors into battle, and being awarded favored treatment in the eyes of the king’s law, which they are also permitted to enforce should they be pledged to the kingdom.
Knights of Númendil are trained as heavy shock-cavalry, but are required to be capable to serve in any role. However, the Númenedain hold a duty unlike any other called ‘The Last Rite of Kings’.
The Last Rite of Kings is a clause which dictates that, should the reigning monarch of Númendil be willingly or unwillingly brought under the sway of the Forces of Darkness, it is not only expected, but commanded of all Knights of the Kingdom to either bring said monarch back into the light, or, failing that, raise their banners in rebellion and overthrow them in favor of the heir, or should succession be muddied, the High Steward. In the case where both the High Steward and the Heir are unavailable, regency is to be assumed by the eldest knight in service to the Kingdom. This is perhaps the only case among the Mannish Kingdoms in which regicide is not only permitted, but outright commanded per the founding principles of the Kingdom.
Guard of Númenost
The Guard of Númenost are the honoured local guard force for the capital of Númenost within Númendil. Commissioned under Tar-Númenatâr, they are charged with the defense of the capital and the kingdom as a whole. The Guard are also charged with the protection of the Adunic White Tree of Númendil.
Beginning with the reformation of the former Kingdom of the Barrow Marches into The Exilic Kingdom of Númendil, the soldiers with the Guard of Númenost bear the Livery of Arthalionath - a radiant silver crown with five stars above, all embroidered on a field of dark red. In reverence to the ancient Idunian, the helmets of the Guard are tall with close-fitting cheek-guards and bearing the carved wings of sea-birds.
The Guard is structured with few ranks, the Captain of the Guard leads the overall command while select duty and bravery lead particularly accomplished soldiers to be promoted to the rank of Sergeant. At the discretion of the Captain, additional specialized titles may be granted such as the duty of Siegemaster.
