Mualijae

Mualijae

(Nation)

Land

Mwangi Jungle

Images of Mualijae

Source: Elves of Golarion, pg(s). 13–14 (1E)
The Mwangi Expanse, pg(s). 14–15, 22–61, 163 (2E)

The three nations and ethnic groups of elves in the Mwangi Expanse who remained on Golarion when the others fled to Sovyrian are collectively referred to as the Mualijae, which was also the name of the ancient nation to which they all once belonged.

History

Founding

The first elven explorers reached the Mwangi Expanse during the Age of Legend and founded the nation of Mualijae, which soon spanned most of the Mwangi Jungle. This nation faced several conflicts from human expansionists, all of which proved futile for the invaders and contributed to a human perception that the jungle itself was dangerous.

The Great Darkness

The elves of Mualijae believed in a prophecy that foretold of an ancient evil, or Great Darkness, that was both part of their past and a future threat. This prophecy was traditionally passed on through oral storytelling.

While most elves returned to Sovyrian, their realm on the planet Castrovel, before Earthfall in -5293 AR, the elves of Mualijae instead stayed on Golarion and defended their nation. During the year of Earthfall, they faced a manifestation of the dragon god Dahak, who attempted to enter the Universe through elf gates (aiudaras) during the chaos of Earthfall. Clans of Mualijae elves battled and sacrificed themselves to seal Dahak between planes within the Huntergate and coalesced around the aiudara network hub of Alseta's Ring.

In -5014 AR, Mualijae elves also discovered the demon-infested ruins of Nagisa, with some of them staying to investigate the ruins and evict its demons. The rest feared the risk of corruption, believing that the evil of prophecy resided within the elves themselves, and moved to the shores of Lake Ocota where they lived in relative tranquility until the emergence of the Gorilla King in Usaro.

Splintering of Mualijae

The Mualijae elves splintered as clans settled to focus on different threats and locations of the Mwangi Expanse. Those who remained at Nagisa were the first to splinter from the Mualijae and became known as the Alijae. Those who faced and sealed Dahak became known as the Ekujae elves and took on the responsibility of binding and eventually destroying the trapped manifestation of Dahak. Those who traveled to Lake Ocota and faced the tyranny of the Gorilla King became known as the Kallijae.

These groups eventually lost contact with their elven kin elsewhere on Golarion, and in some cases became estranged from each other.

The Alijae recorded their prophecy and history on the walls of Nagisa out of a sense of necessity that their Mualijae kin did not share, an act that the Ekujae hold in disdain for its divergence from traditions; the Kallijae believe the Alijae suffer from corruption from their proximity to Nagisa's demonic influence.

The Ekujae became scholar-warriors who bore the brunt of the elves' effects of Avistani colonization and slavery on the Mwangi Expanse, and became hardened against and suspicious of outsiders as a result. The Kallijae turned inward through rituals of meditation and cleansing, particularly the Unburdening, and retained many of the traditional methods of storytelling from the Mualijae.

Legacy

In the western region, the Ekujae hold a position of both fear and reverence as they fiercely guard the forest. They have engaged in a relentless guerrilla war against the Aspis Consortium that has persisted for more than a decade.

In the northwest, the Kallijae have dedicated themselves to protecting the local inhabitants, be they elven or otherwise, from the relentless raids conducted by Usaro's marauding bands and other demonic forces.

In the northern jungles, the Alijae stand as defenders of the elven ruins of Nagisa, ensuring that ignorant explorers do not unwittingly release the malevolent forces contained within its ancient walls. They have also been the focus of recent developments in the Cult of the Redeemer Queen, the once-heretical following of the former demon lord Nocticula's redemption into a deity. The Alijae believe if Nocticula could be redeemed, then nothing can become so corrupted that it cannot also be redeemed.

References

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