Government
The Autumn court is ruled by
Hap'Robin. He was a general during the war of the three nation, and it is thanks to his scheme that his side managed to win, as he secured his position as the future archfey. He might not be the most powerful archfey, but he definitely is a cunning one, and his scheme and brilliant mind compensate for his lack of magical power.
Culture
Justice
The autumn court is probably the one with the most actual and written law, and this due to their history. The rule however are quite basic;
- It is forbidden to cause harm, physically or mentally to another member of the autumn court.
- It is forbidden to steal from another member of the autumn court.
- Only Mapach, Vulpin and Yordles may access position in the military forces of the autumn court.
- It is forbidden for a member of the Autumn court to bargain with another archfey.
The punishment for breaking any of those laws depend on who judges, but they generally consist of giving up something precious to you.
Rules an etiquette
Travelers, when directed by a guide, are always warned about the "rules" of the Fey. These laws of conduct are seemingly ingrained into the livelihood of every feyfolk. It is uncertain where they are derived from; but regardless of where they came from, it is imperative that travelers abide by these rules, or they could put their entire lives at stake.
Rule of Reciprocity. The rule of reciprocity states that when a friend, an enemy, or stranger offers you a gift, you are obliged to accept it and offer something of comparable value (be it a gift or a service) in return. Such reciprocation need not happen immediately
By and large, fey feel strongly about quid-pro-quo and balance. If something is taken, then something of equal value must be given, and what a fey consideres to be of equal value is the big question. A fey might steal a human's beloved pet and leave in its place a brightly painted wooden effigy, or the fey might take some gold and leave a bundle of bright, yellow buttercups. These exchances satisfy the agreement of reciprocity, and a fey who makes them sleeps soundly at night, content that the exchanges were fair.
Rule of Hospitality. The rule of hospitality states that when a friend, an enemy, or stranger enters your home, you are expected to be gracious and accommodating to them until such time as they prove, by their words or actions, as undeserving of such hospitality.
Hospitality is a pillar of fey society. Treating a visitor to one's home with courtesy and generosity is important to most fey, but the visitor must show their fey host the same courtesy and not act boorishly or demonstrate blatant impropriety. Rudeness breaks the bond and frees a host fromt the obligation to be hospitable. But each fey has different ideas about what constitutes rudeness; even an ill-conceived gift to a fey host might be regarded as an insult and cause a kerfuffle, if not a revocation of the fey host's hospitality. A trusty fey guide can provide invaluable assistance in navigating such delivate situations.
"Thank You". Travelers to the Fey should absolutely avoid saying "thank you" to any fey denizen. Upon the Material Plane, a "thank you" is a typical reply to express gratitude for a good deed done or kindness shown. However, in the Fey, a "thank you" is viewed as a sign that a kindness or deed is eternally finished and will be forgotten. It is considered transactional, as if the relationship with the feyfolk meant nothing to the other.
A better response is something along the lines of, "your kindness is much appreciated and will not be forgotten."
Wheels Within Wheels. When dealing with the fey, the wiser heads realize that what they say is not necessarily what they mean. The fey are immortal creatures of whimsy and caprice. They enjoy watching mortals struggle to comprehend their true intent.
Status Matters. The courts are impenetrable labyrinths or empty shells to creatures who simply lack the status and importance required to interact with them. There are ways to increase or decrease one’s esteem in the eyes of the courts.
Harming a Servant is Dishonorable. While the fey may or may not like or trust their servants, they do rely upon the creatures to make their lives comfortable. Harming or killing a servant is therefore abhorrent to them.
The following are a dozen examples of shadow fey etiquette and mores that are mutable and might change depending on the week or month or on which court is in power at that time:
- Do not harm any beastfolks or birdlfolks outside of an honorable duel.
- You must whistle before you start working.
- Civilized folk wear powdered wigs.
- Clothing made of sackcloth is all the rage, and anyone not wearing a sackcloth dress or breeches is to be considered a fool.
- True gentlefolk duel with insults, not steel.
- Hunting is never to be done alone, as the spoil of the hunt are to be shared.
- Only pretentious twits play dices.
- All the gentleman of the court must use illusions to appear with purple fur.
- Boasting of one’s own achievements can only be done in inns, taverns and next to fountains.
- One above a certain station must have a birdfolk servant and a beastfolk servant at the very least.
Religion
Very few folks of the autumn court worship the gods, some shrine to
Valhir can be found sparsely, but most folks believe in the melody. The melody is the song of nature, a hymn that links all the creatures from the world tree to the small fish in the ocean. This inspires folks of the autumn court with respect for other living being and for nature itself.
Valour
Hap'Robin is often perceived as cunning and even tyrannical, but he knows it is best for his people to be safe, and to be united to better rule over them. Therefore, value of community are greatly promoted, helping someone else will always be cheered in the autumn court.
In addition, people of the autumn court are still fey-like creature, and their chaotic mind love to have fun, to play around. People of the autumn court tend to tell what they think without filter, to live in the moment, and to milk every precious second of their life.
To this end, their comportement can often be compared to that of a child, and similarly, once they set their mind on something, they are quite stuborn. It is why it is dangerous to make an enemy out of one of those people, as they might spend months, or even years to hunt you down for vengeance if they feel they were truly wronged.
Diplomatie
Relations
The Autumn Court is quite isolated, the capital,
Humble Town is lost in a maze-like forest, and even if the territory of the court extend beyond this forest, fewer member of the court live there.
Economy
Exchange
Coins are of no use in the Autumn court, people tend to trade an object for another or a favor for another. An adventuring Jerbeen might protect a merchant during a journey, but ask for food during the next two weeks, an inn-keeper might exchange a drink, for the latest rumors, a shopkeeper might ask for that shiny belt of your in exchange for this new sword.
History
Apparition of the beastfolk and birdfolks
Yorlde were mostly independent from the court of the Feywild, living as a clan under the name of Grispoil. Meanwhile, the Autumn Court was home to the strange and magical: unicorns, giant spiders, and cursed goblins named Faevlins all called this court their own.
The court was under the guidance of a
Unicorn whose horn was made of gold, but an old and cunning Faevlin named Veriga plotted to take over the court.
Veriga was a knowledgeable Faevlin and knew of Yordle, small creatures whose minds were said to affect the world beyond comprehension.
Aware of the physical weakness of his kind, Veriga had no hope to overtake the Autumn Court without the strength provided by numbers and started to plan how to bring goblins and other allies from the Material Plane directly into the Feywild.
Veriga started to sing songs of friendship, praising the Yordles' magical minds and sharing stories of his "friends" stuck on another plane under the spell of a tyrant, friends he described as animal-like creatures, with an emphasis on their altruism and friendship.
Over the years, Veriga befriended the Yordle clan, his stories bringing both joy and sorrow to the Yordles.
With the success of his song, Veriga initiated the final phase of his plan. He gathered fellow bards and artists to orchestrate the biggest show ever in the Feywild. Fireworks, magical effects, and music, along with the tale of how the Yordles could help him.
The show was a huge success, captivating the entire Yordle clan. Moved by Veriga's story, the ground shook, and a rift opened, dragging in those believed to be his friends. But these were not goblins; instead, numerous beast folk from the
Beastland were dragged into the Feywild; Mapach, Jerbeen, Harengon, Hedge, and Vulpin.
Brought against their will, the beastfolk spread like a plague, causing destruction, especially in the Autumn Court. The Archfey of the court opened a portal to the Beastland, but the invaders refused to leave. Seeking aid, the Archfey enlisted birdfolk from the same plane, escalating the conflict and leading to the destruction of the Autumn Court.
Seizing the opportunity, Veriga rose as the new Archfey and brokered a deal between the birdfolk and beastfolk, dividing the Autumn Court between them. As the mastermind behind the deal, Veriga ruled over both earth and sky in the Autumn Court.
The autumn court is the one that had the most recent change of all the fey court, the region used to be divided between 3 clan, the ancient autumn court, lead by a giant spider. This ancient autumn court used to be home of the Harengon, Hedge, Jerbeen and Kenku, but the Yordle clan of grispoil befriended the ancient autumn court, and quickly, they started to merge with the autumn court.
Meanwhile, tension were rising with those often referred too as predators, the Mapach and Vulpin. Those formed an independent clan, and saw the growing power of the autumn court as a threat, a threat to their lives, to their ability to hunt, to their ability to enjoy a life in those woods.
In 927 AD, the was of the 3 nations started, When the original autumn court didn't wanted an all out fight, the brave Yordle couldn't bare with the situation, and became independent again, hoping to protect the AUtumn court by fighting off the predators. The conflict between the Yordles and predators was bloody,and soon, the actual Autumn court joined in.
The balance was tipping in favor of the autumn court and the yordle, but the Kenku betrayed the Autumn court, promised greater power by the Vulpin, the kenku told the predators everything to know about the in and out of the autumn court, allowing them to win the war.
However, this betrayal lead to a curse on the whole Kenu race, their wings fell off, and their voices disappeared. To this day, kenku are often disliked by Hedge, Harengon, Jerbeen and Yordles, but the predators won the war, and their leader, Hap'Robin became the know archfey.
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