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It has been said that the true beauty of Sol lies in Mistvall, home of the Snow Elves. A fairly small northern province with a cold climate, Mistvall is one of the oldest settled provinces on Sol. The main features of this land are the vast snowy plains, dry forests, and mountains whose peaks reach to kiss the heavens. Bordering Kjarra to the West, Canaatha to the South, Dusk'rah to the East, and Daeruin to the Southeast, Mistvall often finds itself in the middle of many violent and bloody conflicts on Sol. Legends say that the lone island in the northernmost region of the province holds a mystical secret that is unknown to the rest of the continent, it remains a mystery to this day.

The blue skinned mortals of Mistvall are known to the rest of Sol as Snow Elves. The Snow Elves most closely resemble their cousins in Svaelyn Isles in appearance and demeanor but are physically distinct in their own unique way. Both male and female Snow Elves boast a petite stature and are characterized best by their light blue skin and deep blue eyes. Like their Elven counterparts, they boast lean figures and sharp intellects, and it shows. Mistvall has produced some of the most talented scholars and thinkers that have graced the mortal realm. In terms of their nature, they're known for being skilled diplomats and charismatic leaders. The citizens of Mistvall share a very refined and very sophisticated culture. On the topic of sharing, on the battlefield, the Snow Elves share a gift for the arcane arts as well as respectable proficiency with the blade and bow. While it is true that they rarely engage in conflict at will, when it cannot be avoided, these masters at magical combat are not to be taken lightly. Their gift for magical prowess and wizardry has made them the most skilled spellcasters on Sol, bested by only the High Elves. Nonetheless, the Snow Elves have built for themselves a reputation in the realm by being expert sorcerers and even better diplomats.

The story of the Snow Elves reaches back to before the 1st Era on Svaelyn Isles, home of the High Elves. As High Elven society grew too big for its own good, a repressive hierarchy began to form and this sparked a exile. As ships were directed into the vast seas, groups of Elves left Svaelyn Isles in search of a new home to forge their own civilizations apart from the rigid High Elven society. Some groups ended up in Daeruin and became the Dark Elves while others found themselves in Dusk'rah and became the Night Elves. The Snow Elves on the other hand had set sail and touched ground on the icy shores of Mistvall and quickly settled the province, ushering in the 1st Era with their first Mistvallian Empire. In a mere ten years after their arrival, the Snow Elves controlled modern day Mistvall, Kjarra, and Northern Canaatha. So sophisticated and unified was their empire that it ruled the land for the whole of the 1st Era. That was until the end of the 1st Era sounded with horns from ships coming from the North, being marked by the arrival of the race of Men on Sol in year 852.. The humans arrived on modern day Kjarra from the continent North of Sol known as Grivroth after the icy continent was driven to near extinction by a dragon invasion. Being the welcoming people they were, the Snow Elves granted the humans a portion of their land to call home, a patch of land in Northernmost section of the empire. This land would later be known as Kjarra and, in reference to their location, the humans would be called Northmen translating to 'Men of the North'. The arrangement worked well for both races, that was until a radical group of Northmen separatists pillaged an agricultural village on the skirts of their autonomous border. While not particularly uncommon, this attack caused the death of a royal ambassador from Mistvall's capital city of Irathyr. Whether the death of the ambassador was intended or not, it does not matter, the end result was the same. This, naturally, alarmed both races at large but unfortunately this event would cause a bloody war that would rage for two long years and be ended swiftly by the diplomatic talent of the Snow Elves, but not without the loss of countless lives on both sides. Eventually the current leader of the Empire at the time High King Nirivus managed to foster a peace between them. He granted the Northmen a larger chunk of land and the humans would call it Kjarra, this marks the true historical birth of the Northmen race. This event would cause the Mistvallian Empire to know an age of peace and prosperity, a golden age. This golden age brought about over 300 years of peace in the region.

However, Sol demands that all good things must end. Their Mistvallian Empire had been so successful for so long, but like all empires it too would fall. After the 300 years of peace that the Snow Elves spent building upon technology and resources they were invaded on their Eastern borders by the Night Elven military. This marked the end of the first Mistvallian Empire as in only 3 years it fell to the Night Elves. The Night Elves ended up annexing a portion of Eastern Mistvall which they still control today, explaining why Dusk'rah has significantly more landmass than Mistvall. After a long and bloody campaign, the Night Elves would allow peace to reign once they got the land they wanted. It is the middle of the 2nd Era and Mistvall is broken. The peace the Snow Elves had spent centuries cultivating had been shattered by repeated war. Revolts were in play, riots and murders were commonplace and it was the darkest hour in Mistvall's history.

The force that would eventually end this dark age of Mistvall would come from an unexpected ally. King Arelir of the High Elves granted the Snow Elves influence and economic assistance to directly help in rebuilding their empire from the ground up. However, their influence took a turn for the worse. The Snow Elven nation, like their High Elf cousins, began incorporating aspects of fascism and elven supremacy into their culture. In time, minority races were seen as uncivilized and the Snow Elves became militaristic in nature. It was the third leader of Mistvall, High King Faithur, who ended this cycle. He seen the devolving of Snow Elven culture and wished to make Mistvall pure once again. He launched a mighty war of diplomacy on the tyrannical rulers of the land and put all of them out of power. Assigning several governors to rule the major cities, their culture began returning to the free society it once was. It was at this time that Mistvall began to ascend, rising phoenix like from the ruins of their High Elven influence. Reunified under High King Faithur, they became the most powerful force in Northern Sol and have remained so for centuries.

Now dawns the beginning of the 3rd Era and the Canaathan Empire along with it. The tacticians of Canaatha knew well that fighting Mistvall was a poor idea. Their military might and powerful allies spread across Sol would mean certain death for the infant empire. Instead of facing the powerful nation head on, the children of the empire decided that diplomacy was the Snow Elf's best friend and they took advantage of their preference. Through trade and promises, Mistvall became the third addition to the empire after Canaatha, the founding region, and Kjarra, this would also make them the first Elven addition to the empire that would eventually rule all of mainland Sol. Mistvall would find some security in being absorbed into the Canaathan Empire of man from their human neighbors in Canaatha. What this empire brought to the people of Mistvall was additional trade routes and enhanced manpower against their hostile neighbors to the East. Like every Empire before it, the Canaathan Empire would one day fall and when it did, the Snow Elves found themselves more or less unaffected. While they prospered under the Empire, it was through their own effort. The Snow Elves have always been an efficient civilization on its own and the Empire merely served as a moderate boost to their already well off society. Of all the provinces in Sol, they emerged the most successful with the fall of the Canaathan Empire.

With their rather violent and unstable past as well as years under outside rule, it is safe to say that the Snow Elves are resilient as a people. They've lived and moved on from many conflicts or otherwise unwanted situations. Once the very beacon of civilization itself, it is no doubt that the Snow Elves have made their mark on Sol. Today, Mistvall stands as a living reminder to the innovations, achievements, and beauty of this rich and grand culture. However, the ideas of civility and culture were not a construct of the Snow Elves. Prior to the founding of Mistvall, their ancestors had erected a society that was the precursor to the birth of the Elven race, going back even further than the High Elves, a story to be visited another day.

Description

It has been said that the true beauty of Sol lies in Mistvall, home of the Snow Elves. A fairly small northern province with a cold climate, Mistvall is one of the oldest settled provinces on Sol. The main features of this land are the vast snowy plains, dry forests, and mountains whose peaks reach to kiss the heavens. Bordering Kjarra to the West, Canaatha to the South, Dusk'rah to the East, and Daeruin to the Southeast, Mistvall often finds itself in the middle of many violent and bloody conflicts on Sol. Legends say that the lone island in the northernmost region of the province holds a mystical secret that is unknown to the rest of the continent, it remains a mystery to this day.

The blue skinned mortals of Mistvall are known to the rest of Sol as Snow Elves. The Snow Elves most closely resemble their cousins in Svaelyn Isles in appearance and demeanor but are physically distinct in their own unique way. Both male and female Snow Elves boast a petite stature and are characterized best by their light blue skin and deep blue eyes. Like their Elven counterparts, they boast lean figures and sharp intellects, and it shows. Mistvall has produced some of the most talented scholars and thinkers that have graced the mortal realm. In terms of their nature, they're known for being skilled diplomats and charismatic leaders. The citizens of Mistvall share a very refined and very sophisticated culture. On the topic of sharing, on the battlefield, the Snow Elves share a gift for the arcane arts as well as respectable proficiency with the blade and bow. While it is true that they rarely engage in conflict at will, when it cannot be avoided, these masters at magical combat are not to be taken lightly. Their gift for magical prowess and wizardry has made them the most skilled spellcasters on Sol, bested by only the High Elves. Nonetheless, the Snow Elves have built for themselves a reputation in the realm by being expert sorcerers and even better diplomats.

The story of the Snow Elves reaches back to before the 1st Era on Svaelyn Isles, home of the High Elves. As High Elven society grew too big for its own good, a repressive hierarchy began to form and this sparked a exile. As ships were directed into the vast seas, groups of Elves left Svaelyn Isles in search of a new home to forge their own civilizations apart from the rigid High Elven society. Some groups ended up in Daeruin and became the Dark Elves while others found themselves in Dusk'rah and became the Night Elves. The Snow Elves on the other hand had set sail and touched ground on the icy shores of Mistvall and quickly settled the province, ushering in the 1st Era with their first Mistvallian Empire. In a mere ten years after their arrival, the Snow Elves controlled modern day Mistvall, Kjarra, and Northern Canaatha. So sophisticated and unified was their empire that it ruled the land for the whole of the 1st Era. That was until the end of the 1st Era sounded with horns from ships coming from the North, being marked by the arrival of the race of Men on Sol in year 852.. The humans arrived on modern day Kjarra from the continent North of Sol known as Grivroth after the icy continent was driven to near extinction by a dragon invasion. Being the welcoming people they were, the Snow Elves granted the humans a portion of their land to call home, a patch of land in Northernmost section of the empire. This land would later be known as Kjarra and, in reference to their location, the humans would be called Northmen translating to 'Men of the North'. The arrangement worked well for both races, that was until a radical group of Northmen separatists pillaged an agricultural village on the skirts of their autonomous border. While not particularly uncommon, this attack caused the death of a royal ambassador from Mistvall's capital city of Irathyr. Whether the death of the ambassador was intended or not, it does not matter, the end result was the same. This, naturally, alarmed both races at large but unfortunately this event would cause a bloody war that would rage for two long years and be ended swiftly by the diplomatic talent of the Snow Elves, but not without the loss of countless lives on both sides. Eventually the current leader of the Empire at the time High King Nirivus managed to foster a peace between them. He granted the Northmen a larger chunk of land and the humans would call it Kjarra, this marks the true historical birth of the Northmen race. This event would cause the Mistvallian Empire to know an age of peace and prosperity, a golden age. This golden age brought about over 300 years of peace in the region.

However, Sol demands that all good things must end. Their Mistvallian Empire had been so successful for so long, but like all empires it too would fall. After the 300 years of peace that the Snow Elves spent building upon technology and resources they were invaded on their Eastern borders by the Night Elven military. This marked the end of the first Mistvallian Empire as in only 3 years it fell to the Night Elves. The Night Elves ended up annexing a portion of Eastern Mistvall which they still control today, explaining why Dusk'rah has significantly more landmass than Mistvall. After a long and bloody campaign, the Night Elves would allow peace to reign once they got the land they wanted. It is the middle of the 2nd Era and Mistvall is broken. The peace the Snow Elves had spent centuries cultivating had been shattered by repeated war. Revolts were in play, riots and murders were commonplace and it was the darkest hour in Mistvall's history.

The force that would eventually end this dark age of Mistvall would come from an unexpected ally. King Arelir of the High Elves granted the Snow Elves influence and economic assistance to directly help in rebuilding their empire from the ground up. However, their influence took a turn for the worse. The Snow Elven nation, like their High Elf cousins, began incorporating aspects of fascism and elven supremacy into their culture. In time, minority races were seen as uncivilized and the Snow Elves became militaristic in nature. It was the third leader of Mistvall, High King Faithur, who ended this cycle. He seen the devolving of Snow Elven culture and wished to make Mistvall pure once again. He launched a mighty war of diplomacy on the tyrannical rulers of the land and put all of them out of power. Assigning several governors to rule the major cities, their culture began returning to the free society it once was. It was at this time that Mistvall began to ascend, rising phoenix like from the ruins of their High Elven influence. Reunified under High King Faithur, they became the most powerful force in Northern Sol and have remained so for centuries.

Now dawns the beginning of the 3rd Era and the Canaathan Empire along with it. The tacticians of Canaatha knew well that fighting Mistvall was a poor idea. Their military might and powerful allies spread across Sol would mean certain death for the infant empire. Instead of facing the powerful nation head on, the children of the empire decided that diplomacy was the Snow Elf's best friend and they took advantage of their preference. Through trade and promises, Mistvall became the third addition to the empire after Canaatha, the founding region, and Kjarra, this would also make them the first Elven addition to the empire that would eventually rule all of mainland Sol. Mistvall would find some security in being absorbed into the Canaathan Empire of man from their human neighbors in Canaatha. What this empire brought to the people of Mistvall was additional trade routes and enhanced manpower against their hostile neighbors to the East. Like every Empire before it, the Canaathan Empire would one day fall and when it did, the Snow Elves found themselves more or less unaffected. While they prospered under the Empire, it was through their own effort. The Snow Elves have always been an efficient civilization on its own and the Empire merely served as a moderate boost to their already well off society. Of all the provinces in Sol, they emerged the most successful with the fall of the Canaathan Empire.

With their rather violent and unstable past as well as years under outside rule, it is safe to say that the Snow Elves are resilient as a people. They've lived and moved on from many conflicts or otherwise unwanted situations. Once the very beacon of civilization itself, it is no doubt that the Snow Elves have made their mark on Sol. Today, Mistvall stands as a living reminder to the innovations, achievements, and beauty of this rich and grand culture. However, the ideas of civility and culture were not a construct of the Snow Elves. Prior to the founding of Mistvall, their ancestors had erected a society that was the precursor to the birth of the Elven race, going back even further than the High Elves, a story to be visited another day.