Aesean¶
"For Aeseans, bigger is better." — the Terrun Compendium
The Aesean are a sturdy, sea-going human people organised by clan, whose settlements cling to the coasts and islands of the Storm Coast and whose independence is fierce enough that they "would rather die fighting or retreat across the sea than submit to foreign rule". Once they held large parts of central Astia; the Shattering decimated them, and in the Age of Magic they were two humans in a hundred, scattered along many shores but concentrated in the island confederacy of Aesar. In the Fifth Age the survivors are joined with the Thracians in a single nation.
Also called Aeseans, Aeasean and Aseans in the sources.
Appearance¶
Aeseans are large of stature. Their hair is normally blonde, occasionally light brown or red, their complexion pale and their features pronounced. They have "a tendency to be hardy and physically strong", and in the Compendium's day they were "prized slave laborers and gladiators within the empire".
History¶
Before the Shattering the Aesean inhabited large parts of central Astia. The breaking of the world destroyed most of that country and most of them; afterwards they controlled only a few islands off the northern coast of the southern continent. The Age of Magic knew them as the most geographically scattered of the human peoples, found along many of the coasts and islands, some clans "known as raiders or mercenaries, while others are known as fishermen, merchants or traders", but rarely settling inside the borders of other kingdoms.
The Age of the Dark Sun brought the Aesean and the Thracians of Thrace together, where a treaty and intermittent trade had stood before, and the two peoples are now one nation, isolated from the rest of Astia by land and reached only by sea.
Society¶
The Aesean "prize strength and breeding" and often consider other humans weak. They organise in very large family groups, the clans, and politics and law within a clan are the business of its leadership. Clans band into alliances that call themselves kingdoms, but these are loose and decentralised and act together only against foreign enemies; a High King is chosen only in time of war.
Ancestry is the heart of Aesean religion. They "place a great amount of importance upon their ancestors and heritage, often preparing elaborate tombs and structures to honor their revered dead", and see their ancestors as the source of their strength, "in some ways" worshipping them.
Castes and titles¶
A clan has three castes. The warrior-nobility and the freemen are both clan members by blood and hold one another as near equals, greeting each other as brothers, sisters and cousins. The third caste, the serfs, are those "whose lineage/clan-affiliation is either non-Aesean, unknown, conquered or disgraced", bound by contract to the nobility.
| Caste | Title | Standing |
|---|---|---|
| Nobility | Hertug, Hertuginne | Regional chieftain over several clans, still subject to a King; rare, as few clans command such influence |
| Nobility | Ealdorman, Ealdorinne | Regional chieftain, normally the head of a clan |
| Nobility | Greve, Grevinne | Local chieftain |
| Nobility | Ridder | Knight and warrior, landed or landless |
| Freemen | Huskarl | Landholding warrior |
| Freemen | Vaepner | Landholding squire |
| Freemen | Hauld | Landholding non-warrior |
| Freemen | Karl | Not landholding; a warrior if able |
| Serfs | Thrall | Serf or peasant |
Architecture and ships¶
Aesean building is a mixture of rough-cut stone and wood. They "consider detailed or intricate work pointless", excepting a few carved panels in temples, shrines and tombs, which earn their place by telling a story; status is measured by size, not quality. Their ships are the exception to the rule of bigness: small, long, low and narrow, with several short or retractable keels for stability, covered with leather tent-like awnings against storm water, rowed as well as sailed, and rigged with many sails that are easily reduced to few in heavy weather.
Aesar¶
Aesar is a set of islands off the Storm Coast and a confederacy of Aesean clans. Its clans "frequently harass and raid Empire lands and trade ships" and occasionally settle in the Thyssal Empire's territory. They hold a treaty with Thrace and do some trade there, though in the Compendium's day "this has not always been the case".
Language¶
Most Aesean speak an Aesean sub-dialect of Common salted with words of Old Aesean. The Compendium preserves a handful of them:
| Old Aesean | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Bec | stream |
| Bru, Bruman | bride, bridegroom |
| Carlingue | cabin, small house |
| Dale | valley |
| Dam | marsh |
| Ey | island |
| Flotte | fleet |
| Gales | festival |
| Gate | street, narrow passage |
| Howe | burial mound, tomb |
| Londe | grove |
| Matenot | companion |
| Nez | cape |
| Tot | farm |
| Varou | werewolf |
Gap
The sources do not say how many Aesean survived the Dark Sun, what the joint Thracian-Aesean nation is called, or which gods the Aesean honour beside their ancestors.