Arcadians (▸ˌaːrˈkeɪdiːɛnz ◂)
Arcadians are an Ahdequin Race, and nation, that claim the Continent of Thrace as their native range. They are highly adaptable, through the application of magick and technology, and are able to thrive in nearly every environment. They're tall, regarded for their arresting appearance and charismatic deportment, and believe their racial superiority derives from a divine origin. While religion is intrinsic to their heredity, Arcadians are passively monotheistic, shirking regular liturgical service for personal ritual reverence of Heroes and Divinities canonically subject to the Mother Deity, Enigma, but still venerate The Church as an institution, having integrated it as a department of the state. They have also institutionalized the exploitation of Maneau, being peerless in its control, cultivation, and development, and have produced the world's most advanced and renowned spellcasters. Arcadians control one of the world's three prominent empires and were major belligerents in the Ages Wars, that resulted in vast devastation and the collapse of the Old World Order. They are a contracting party to the Treaties of Ahdequin, and thus have agreed to support the post-racial ideologies set forth therein and work together with the other nations of the world to ensure the success of the New World Order.
It is most likely that Arcadians were simply one of many Human Ethnicities that lived in the shadow of the Dacian Kingdom during the Elven Awakening, and were taken to Thrace as slaves as Dacian Colonists expanded their influence during the twilight of the Ruinous Age. Dacians are notorious for the mistreatment of their slave populations, and there is abundant evidence that slave revolts were common place in their colonial holdings. These conditions, coupled with persistent exposure to the wild dweomers of the Essex Swamp, likely had a combined effect; cultivating the Arcadian's deep ire for the Elven race, and elevating them beyond their Human origins.
Arcadian's hold their legends dear, and consider them to be an integral part of their racial identity, but it is important that we consider the voice and biases of any historians who wrote before the rigorous academic standards of the modern era, and that we approach their bodies of work with careful and critical prejudice so that we my better discern the truth from the tale.
The legend continues by placing the descendants of the first Arcadians at the forefront of a world-consuming conflict with The Kin Plague during the dark ages of the Gorgan Era. Here ancient Arcadian poets borrow heavily from older Dacian legends as they weave their own identity into their semi-historical narratives. These traditions elevate Arcadians to prominence, laying claim to the ultimate demise of many of the known and nefarious kindoms that preceded the Dacian Awakening. They are full of mythical heroes, divine interventions, and further betrayals from malevolent Dacians, who are placed in questionable allegiances with notorious villains that exist at the fringes of history.
This era of the Arcadian tradition ends in their defeat and enslavement after a Dacian betrayal. From here the narrative shifts to one of austerity, suffering, and sacrifice; and tells the tale of a band of Arcadian survivors, led by a group of angelic warriors, as they journey to free, and reunite with their cousins in bondage.
The Legend of the Great Wander unites the idealism of Arcadian Exceptionalism with an aggrandized sense of entitlement. It serves to justify their societal inequalities while also attempting to elevate themselves for having them. This legend serves as the foundation of primary education in modern imperial Arcadia and is codified numerous times through the many and varied laws, treaties, edicts, and rulings that has constituted Arcadian governance throughout history.
History
Arcadians are a magic-using society whose racial identity is inextricably linked with the use and exploitation of Maneau. They are fanatical in their belief that they are the heirs of the legendary Age of Quen and they have crafted an intricate myth of Arcadian Exceptionalism that is rooted in their historical traditions. Arcadians have a history of entrenched conflict with their Elven neighbors since the ending of Dacian rule on Thrace, and had worked tirelessly to extirpate Elven presence in, and around, their lands. Arcadian culture came to dominate their Human neighbors, assimilating or destroying the disparate kingdoms of Thrace during the Homeric Age, and they tirelessly work to support Human resistance to the encroachment of the Elven Hegemony. Arcadians have risen from obscurity and isolation to control the largest empire in the world, and are actively spreading their influence across Caditian Space through the dominance of their spacefaring capabilities.Historical Revisionism and the Mythical Ages of Arcadia
The Arcadian Creation Myth, the Great Wander, and the Legendary Age of the First Archændom are wonderous tales of fantasy, heroism, and sacrifice, that primarily exist in the innumerable romantic histories written over a millennium after the purported arrival of the Arcadian people on Thrace. They are derived from oral traditions developed over many centuries, during the dark and destructive dolor of the Gorgan Era, and are not supported by any quality archeological evidence. These stories are further convoluted by the novelization of history, undertaken by the many opportunistic Arcadian adventures during the Romantic Age of Adventuring; which co-opted the Legends of the Arcadian Heroic Past, the gullibility of the Arcadian Mob, and the intrinsic mystery of the vast and unexplored wildernesses of the world, to construct fanciful narratives that placed themselves in authoritative positions, to bolster their claims over the unknown truths, of the curious and arcane ruins and artifacts, that populate the wider world. No authentic record exists to shed light on these mysterious times and is widely relegated in academia as racial propaganda that is used to support the myth of Arcadian Exceptionalism.It is most likely that Arcadians were simply one of many Human Ethnicities that lived in the shadow of the Dacian Kingdom during the Elven Awakening, and were taken to Thrace as slaves as Dacian Colonists expanded their influence during the twilight of the Ruinous Age. Dacians are notorious for the mistreatment of their slave populations, and there is abundant evidence that slave revolts were common place in their colonial holdings. These conditions, coupled with persistent exposure to the wild dweomers of the Essex Swamp, likely had a combined effect; cultivating the Arcadian's deep ire for the Elven race, and elevating them beyond their Human origins.
Arcadian's hold their legends dear, and consider them to be an integral part of their racial identity, but it is important that we consider the voice and biases of any historians who wrote before the rigorous academic standards of the modern era, and that we approach their bodies of work with careful and critical prejudice so that we my better discern the truth from the tale.
Origins and Heroism
Arcadian tradition begins with the Legend of Kae and Chase; siblings born of their Divine Mother, Enigma during the Legendary Age of Quen. They are portrayed as fierce, conspicuous, and redoubtable, and are positioned amongst the elites of Quen society. The legend attributes to the twins great feats of strength, courage, and charisma that embody virtues idolized in modern Arcadians society; and also vindicates them in their Elven racism as the twins are hunted and killed by powerful Dacian families who succumbed to their own vanity. This lagend sits at the hart of Arcadian identity and likely originated during their captivity in the Age of Dacia. The legend of Kae and Chase also establishes that they parented children with legendary Quen figures, thus creating the belief that Arcadians are both the heirs of the Quen legacy, and a quasi-divine race in their lineage to a divine mother.The legend continues by placing the descendants of the first Arcadians at the forefront of a world-consuming conflict with The Kin Plague during the dark ages of the Gorgan Era. Here ancient Arcadian poets borrow heavily from older Dacian legends as they weave their own identity into their semi-historical narratives. These traditions elevate Arcadians to prominence, laying claim to the ultimate demise of many of the known and nefarious kindoms that preceded the Dacian Awakening. They are full of mythical heroes, divine interventions, and further betrayals from malevolent Dacians, who are placed in questionable allegiances with notorious villains that exist at the fringes of history.
This era of the Arcadian tradition ends in their defeat and enslavement after a Dacian betrayal. From here the narrative shifts to one of austerity, suffering, and sacrifice; and tells the tale of a band of Arcadian survivors, led by a group of angelic warriors, as they journey to free, and reunite with their cousins in bondage.
The Great Wander
The Great Wander is a collection of epic poems, derived from oral traditions, that originate sometime near the end of the Ruinous Age. They center on a series of named characters, who are portrayed as having magical qualities, that lead the Arcadians through many trials and tribulations. These magical characters, referred to as Moonknights, serve as guides and teachers, passing on knowledge and wisdom as they lead the Arcadians through a ruined world toward a prophesized promised land, and a reunification with their enslaved cousins. The Great Wander establishes a foundation for the social divisions prominent in Arcadian society through themes of prophecy, strength, virtue, righteousness, and dominance. It clearly proposes that the tried and tested Wanderers are an elevated class of Arcadians, whose virtues are now intrinsically held. They overcome the Dacians enemies using the lessons imparted by their Moonknight teachers, and save the disenfranchised mob, who in turn submit themselves to their enlightened kin. The Wanderers become the elite and ruling class, guarantied providence over Arcadian society by their virtues, earned through their suffering, bound to them by the magic of the Moonknights, and intrinsically tied to their bloodline; while the mob is relegated into submission by their inability to break their Dacian bonds, highlighting their dependency to the Wanderers, and justifying their subjugation.The Legend of the Great Wander unites the idealism of Arcadian Exceptionalism with an aggrandized sense of entitlement. It serves to justify their societal inequalities while also attempting to elevate themselves for having them. This legend serves as the foundation of primary education in modern imperial Arcadia and is codified numerous times through the many and varied laws, treaties, edicts, and rulings that has constituted Arcadian governance throughout history.