Tanea

PostedJuly 15, 2025

UpdatedDecember 8, 2025

BySuraia Silverbell

The Elven Heart-Isle

Overview

Tanea is the great elven island of the Xaverion realm, one of its larger and most treasured lands. Blessed with a gentle climate and rich, flourishing forests, it is widely regarded as the heart of elven culture in the islands.

Roughly half the island is covered in woodland teeming with wildlife; the rest unfolds into grassy plains and mountain slopes. To many elves, Tanea is not just a homeland, but a living reminder of what was preserved through the Age of Darkness when so much else was destroyed.

Geography & Defences

Tanea’s natural features make it both beautiful and easily defended:

Along the western side runs the great mountain range Le Lyonne, forming a high, rugged wall.
The eastern coast falls away into steep cliffs, making seaborne assault difficult and dangerous.

Because of this combination of mountains to the west and cliffs to the east, Tanea is considered one of the most defensible islands in the Xaverion territory. During times of war, these natural barriers have proven as valuable as any fortress wall.

Neighbouring lands:

Abonai, the halfling island, lies just north-northeast, its flat grasslands visible across the water.
Grundr, the dwarven island, lies to the north.
Andoran lies to the west, and Tonkor to the south, completing Tanea’s ring of close neighbours.

Le Lyonne & Lyonne Forest

Le Lyonne is the long mountain spine of Tanea, stretching from the south-west all the way to the north-north-east.

On its southern side spreads the Lyonne Forest:

Travellers entering Tanea through the mountain passage first pass beneath its trees.
The forest follows the mountainside northward, all the way toward the capital.

The interplay of mountain and forest shapes much of the island’s culture: elven roads wind along these slopes, and many of Tanea’s oldest paths and stories are rooted in Le Lyonne’s shadow.

Calithor – Gate of the Sea

Calithor is Tanea’s coastal town and largest port, clinging to the limited space where the mountains meet the sea.

Notable traits:

Parts of the city are built out over the water, due to the cramped coastline along Le Lyonne.
It serves as the primary harbour for trade and travel between Tanea and the other islands.

For many visitors, Calithor is their first glimpse of elven lands: white stone, timber balconies, and piers reaching into the waves beneath the looming mountains.

Lyonne d’ura – the Ancient Fortress

Just over an hour’s ride inland from Calithor stands Lyonne d’ura, the largest castle-fort on Tanea.

Said to be one of the oldest elven structures on the island, and one of the few to survive the Age of Darkness.
Guarding a key passage through Le Lyonne, it provides safe access from the coast into the inner island.

Even now, Lyonne d’ura is as much a symbol of endurance as a military stronghold, its stones bearing silent witness to ages of war and rebuilding.

Dalanya – Capital of Tanea

Dalanya is the capital city of Tanea, built along the far northern end of Le Lyonne beside a dam-held lake.

The city is famed for:

Waterfalls and bridges, threading through and over the city.
Open plazas and stepped terraces looking out over lake and mountain.
A sense of airy openness unusual for a mountain-side settlement.

Dalanya is governed by a city council, ever since the Starbreeze family relinquished direct ownership (see below). It is also home to Grov’s well-known establishment, The Swan’s Delight, a brothel and likely bathhouse that plays a notable role in more recent stories of Tanea.

Starbreeze Estate

Within a day’s ride from Dalanya lies the Starbreeze Estate, once seat of a respected elven noble family.

In earlier days, the Starbreeze family held both the estate and the city of Dalanya itself.
Lord Starbreeze later signed a document declaring the city free to run its own council, separating Dalanya from the estate’s holdings.
Some four years ago, the estate was suddenly abandoned; the family vanished without a trace, and no one knows why.

Today, the Starbreeze Estate stands as an eerie, empty relic—close enough to Dalanya to feature in rumours, but far enough that most prefer not to go looking for answers.

Icaron – The Great Elven Library

Icaron is the rebuilt great library of the elves, and the only major elven library that was not destroyed beyond repair in the Age of Darkness.

Founded long ago by the elf Icaron (the exact date is unknown).
Now ruled by his son Icaronius, known as the Great Librarian, who is said to have survived the Age of Darkness and dedicated his life to rebuilding his father’s work.

Icaron houses:

Recovered scrolls and tomes from before and during the Age of Darkness.
New works and compilations written by Icaronius and others, gathering knowledge from every source they can find.

Among the elves—once appointed by Quintra and Denday as keepers of knowledge—Icaron is considered a sacred duty as much as a building: a living attempt to reclaim what was lost.

Moonfalls & Moonfalls Inn

On the far western point of Tanea lies Moonfalls:

A lake with beautiful waterfalls, spilling into a small river that leads to the sea.
A small village perched on the hills above.
At the lake’s edge stands Moonfalls Inn, overlooking the falls.

Moonfalls is known both as a quiet retreat and as a place of stories—where travellers tell tales of the Dawnstriders, old wars, and strange things seen in the forests by moonlight.

The House of the Eternal Dawn (Dawnstrider Estate)

On the east coast of Tanea stands the House of the Eternal Dawn, estate of House Dawnstrider.

Built on a hill in the dunes, with a private beach below.
The eastern side overlooks the sea and sunrise; ballrooms, entertainment rooms, and most family and guest quarters are arranged to catch the dawn, each with balconies facing the horizon.

The estate:

Gives House Dawnstrider its name—Eternal Dawn, because the sun can always be seen rising from its windows.
Serves as the main base of operations for the Dawnstrider Order, whose influence reaches far beyond Tanea itself.

In the present day, the house is famous for its luxury, authority, and hidden power, and for events like the Starfall Masquerade that draw nobles from across the islands.

Feelii’s Cove

Somewhere along the forested coast of Le Lyonne lies the fabled Feelii’s Cove:

A tranquil, hidden cove where mermaids and other creatures of Eonil are said to have once gathered to play.
Its exact location is lost to time; no reliable map marks it.

Every child on Tanea knows the rule:

If you stumble upon Feelii’s Cove, you quietly pay your respects to Eonil, turn around, and leave.

No one tries to claim or settle it. Some places are not meant for mortals.

Ossar Crater

Deep in Tanea’s forests lies the Ossar Crater, a wound in the land where nothing living will grow.

Its origin:

In the late Age of Darkness, the elven mage Zimtalor and priestess Aurelia led a desperate battle against the corrupted monstrosity known as Ossar, the Centipede of Ghor.
Aurelia died from the creature’s poison; Zimtalor later sacrificed himself, unleashing a catastrophic spell that destroyed both Ossar and the elven village of the same name.
All that remained was a vast crater, saturated with dark magic.

To this day, the crater:

Radiates a corrupting presence, twisting any wildlife that strays too near.
Serves as a grim reminder of Ghor’s power and the price paid to stop it.

From this tragedy eventually came Ahn’Ghor—founded by Zimtalor and Aurelia’s daughter, Deirah, who swore an oath at the crater to hunt Ghor’s corruption wherever it spread.

Ahn’Ghor Fortress & Training Grounds

On the north-west corner of Tanea stands a great fortress that serves as the base of operations and training grounds for Ahn’Ghor.

The fortress watches over both sea and land, acting as a look-out point against Ghor-touched threats.
It houses barracks, training yards, and shrines dedicated to the oath first sworn at Ossar’s ruin.

From here, many of the Fifth Era’s most dedicated Ghor hunters begin their work, before being sent to Naquart, Meriquy, Ysahara, and beyond.

Tanea in the Present Day (Year 22, Fifth Era)

By the start of Year 22 of the Fifth Era, Tanea stands as:

The primary elven homeland within the Xaverion Islands.
A centre of knowledge and culture, through Dalanya’s open city, Icaron’s library, and the enduring traditions tied to Le Lyonne and Lyonne Forest.
A military and spiritual bulwark against Ghor’s corruption, through Ossar Crater’s legacy and the Ahn’Ghor fortress watching the north-west seas.

For elves and non-elves alike, Tanea is a place of waterfalls and white stone, ancient libraries and dark scars, where the long memory of the elven people shapes every terrace, every path through the woods, and every oath sworn beneath the dawn.

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