Conquest of Elwynn

1356–1452 AN

The twelve tribes of Elwdom

By the mid 14th Century Anno Nortone twelve Elw tribes were attested as dwelling within the forested domain of Elwynn Proper. It was a relatively simple society comprised of bands of perpetually shifting subsistence farmers ruled over by clans of nomadic pastoralists known as the riders (Riddare) to whom the appellation of "knight" has been typically applied. These clans and their supporting agricultural base in turn federated into tribes ruled over by elected "Stewards" (arandurija).

Tribe	Region / Territorial range
Auschautnai	Midlands / East
Autrimpai	South
Bardoaytriuun	North
Barstuckriu	Midlands / South
Markopolu	South
Naphtali	Midlands
Ockopirinai	North
Parkunrinai	Midlands
Pergrubriuun	East
Pilenitiu	Midlands / North
Potrimpuiuun	Midlands
Suaixtixia	South

A cast of priests, dedicated to the Cult of Elwynn existed outside of the tribal structure and was increasingly influenced by and indistinguishable from the Treesian missionaries whose mission stations were amongst the few permanent structures in the Elwynnese forest, not counting fortified structures such as the Tower of Araxion or the hilltop refuges of the various clan and tribal grouping.

Relations with Shireroth

Shirekeep in the 14th Century was defended by a series of palisades and the Shirerithian capital's primary purpose was to serve as a springboard for retaliatory raids against the Elw whenever they attempted to cross the Blue or White Elwynn in order to raid the vulnerable by prosperous duchies of Brookshire or Goldshire.

However, relations were not entirely antagonistic. Shirekeep and the trading stations of its merchants, strung out like a string of pearls along the river, served as the main conduit for the trade in beaver pelts, ermine and elk furs as well as musk and amber all of which could be resold for vast profits in the city of Musica and the ducal "hamlets" of Brookshire and Goldshire. As Elwynn itself was a comparatively primitive and unmoneyed territory, the trade was conducted through barter, whereby in return for the pelts the Elw received certain staples, typically including sugar; coffee and tea; petroleum distillates (petrol, kerosene, fuel oil); textile products such as bolts of cloth, needles, and thread; medicines; hardware products such as nails, screws, and wire. Although officially prohibited, and frowned upon, a trade in swords, armour and metal "bodkin" arrowheads was also discretely carried on by less reputable traders.

Interestingly, in spite of their occasionally being offered for the illicit trade, firearms were not esteemed at all in Elwynn during this period. For one thing the hand-cannons of the period, charmingly referred to in contemporary sources as "boom-sticks" were cumbersome and slow to load; the old muzzle-loaders having given way to a snap-barrel breechloader, whose projectile canisters contained gunblend, a mixture of sulfur charcoal and cellulose treated with nitric acid, that was both dangerously volatile and inherently smoky, simultaneously exposing the location of the firer and quickly obscuring the position of his target after a little more than three shots had been discharged. To the Elw, who favoured the stealthiness of the hunter for their raiding parties and the demonstration of martial prowess in the close-quarter combat of open battle such weapons were anathema to their way of war.

Timeline

1356: Kaiser John I assembles a vast army at Shirekeep and invades Elwynn. The Elw and Elfinshi, led by the Elu Verion bravely battle on.
1440: The last Elu Verion commits suicide in front of the remnants of his army. Effectively marking the end of organised Elwynnese resistance.
1443: Imperial Republic of Shireroth founded with Erik II as Kaiser.
1452: Duchy of Elwynn established, initially known as Northshire and not extending far beyond a fortified pale (area enclosed by a palisade) around Shirekeep.