The Alamarri were one of the earliest human tribes, and the first humans to settle in south-eastern Thedas. They are the tribal ancestors of the Fereldans, the people who live in the nation of Ferelden. "Alamarri" is not a single tribe, but a loose coalition of tribes started by the Alamarri peoples. Besides the people of Ferelden, who are descended from the Clayne, there are the Avvar and the Chasind who exist in modern times.
History[]
Ancient times[]
In -2415 Ancient, the Alamarri crossed the Frostback Mountains and settled in the lands that would become known as Ferelden. According to their legends, they needed to find a new homeland because their previous territory was plagued by a being they refer to as a "shadow goddess." Scholars theorize the Alamarri were actually trying to escape from an unidentified natural disaster.[1] Solas claims that he has met this spirit during his travels, and that she currently dwells in the southern tundra.[2]
In -1815 Ancient, the Alamarri tribes living near what is known today as Lake Calenhad separated from the rest, becoming the Avvar.[3] They were led by Tyrdda Bright-Axe, who defeated another Alamarri leader, Thelm Gold-Handed. The Avvar left the plains in favour of the mountains.[4] Even after their separation, the Alamarri and the Avvar would sometimes form alliances. Maferath, an Avvar leader[5] who controlled much of what would become eastern Ferelden,[6] married Andraste, a daughter of an Alamarri chieftain. He led the combined Alamarri forces in the Exalted March against Tevinter.[7]
In -1415 Ancient, another group of the Alamarri broke away, forming the Chasind tribes. They settled in the Korcari Wilds[8] and quickly adapted to their new home. Chasind live in small tribes and cultivate shamanistic traditions.[9]
War with the Tevinter Imperium[]
Alamarri tribe members[10]
Around -715 Ancient, the Tevinter Imperium launched several campaigns in an attempt to subjugate the Alamarri tribes in Ferelden. They eventually succeded and took control of the area for a time. The Imperial Highway was built across the Frostback Mountains, leading all the way to Ostagar.[11] Ostagar was abandoned during the First Blight when the Tevinter Imperium collapsed.[12]
In -620 Ancient the Tevinters established Emerius (now known as Kirkwall) across the sea from the Alamarri lands, as a slave trade hub. They again ventured into the Fereldan Valley and often captured the locals, including the elves scattered in the area, but also humans such as Andraste and Radun.[13]
Influence of the Tevinter Imperium began to recede in the wake of the First Blight. As the Blight hadn't reached the Fereldan Valley for a time, the tribes continued to fight with each other, for example in the Battle of Red Falls that took place in -355 Ancient, where the Alamarri faced against the Avvar. The battle was the culminating point of a fifteen years long war.[14]. Despite their differences, the tribes united in -180 Ancient to retaliate against the Imperium. As one people, the "barbarian horde" consisting of various Alamarri clans such as Clayne, as well as Avvar and Ciriane tribes, crossed the Waking Sea.[15][16] The Imperium, weakened by the Blight, nearly fell to the force led by the former slave Andraste and the armies of her Avvar husband Maferath, and the elven slaves led by Shartan who joined the Alamarri side in -171 Ancient.[17] The Alamarri used the Tevinters' own Imperial Highway to lay waste to their lands all the way from Ostagar to Minrathous.[18][19] However, concerned that their victories would be short-lived,[20] Maferath made a deal with Archon Hessarian. He allowed Andraste to be captured and executed,[21] in exchange for a truce and the lands that makes today's Ferelden, Orlais, Nevarra and the Free Marches.[22]
Maferath's fall[]
Maferath split the majority of the newly acquired territory among his three sons, while he continued to rule over the Fereldan part.[23] For their help during the Exalted Marches, he gave the elves the Dales to call their own.[24] However, Maferath started losing support when he would not let his army attack further into Tevinter territory to avenge the death of his wife. His own people completely abandoned him when Archon Hessarian converted to the Cult of the Maker and revealed that Maferath was a traitor who let Andraste die in exchange for the lands. He was overthrown by his sons.[25]
Free Marches[]
One of Maferath's sons, Evrion, was entrusted with the lands that would become the Free Marches.[26] At the time, this area was inhabited by nomadic people. Evrion was more concerned with spreading the words of his mother than ruling. When the truth of his father's betrayal came to light, Evrion and his children disavowed their lineage and renounced their control over their holdings.[27]
Nevarra[]
The youngest of Maferath's sons, Verald, was assigned to rule the central Planasene.[26] Verald based his claim on his ties to Andraste and Maferath, which backfired when the news of Maferath's betrayal spread. His entire court was murdered, though Verald himself managed to escape with his life and fled to Orlais.[27]
Orlais[]
The eldest son, Isorath, was given the Ciriane lands to the west of the Fereldan Valley. He united the Ciriane tribes into one nation, which he called Orlais.[27] The Grand Unification happened in -155 Ancient.[28] Isorath was married to the Ciriane gyðja (female chieftain) Jeshavis, who began plotting to have her husband killed,[29] as she was angered by the upheaval caused by unifying Orlais. When Verald fled to Orlais, Jeshavis manipulated him into killing his older brother. Later, she married Verald, who wanted to legitimize his claim to the throne. Through Jeshavis' machinations, Verald was also killed, and the gyðja became the leader of Orlais.[27]
Civil wars[]
In 1:40 Divine, amidst the chaos of the Second Blight, an Alamarri warrior called Hafter united the tribes living in the Fertile Valley in order to drive back the darkspawn.[30] In 1:50 Divine, the Alamarri leader defeated the combined forces of the Chasind and Avvar who hoped to take advantage of the Blight and control the valley. Hafter was proclaimed the first teyrn of the Alamarri people.[31][32][33]
In 2:10 Glory, Hafter's grandson, Teyrn Caedmon, declared himself king, which prompted a civil war.[34][35] In 2:18 Glory, Caedmon was killed at the Battle of Valmorn Hills. The ensuing conflict over his territory became known as the War of Crowns.[36] Talemal, Caedmon's son, attempted to unite Ferelden, but he was murdered by his wife–whom he had locked up for unfaithfulness–when she got freed by sympathetic servants.[37]
King Caedmon was able to handle with the civil war for a time, but his forces became spread too thinly when he decided to aid the Chantry in the Exalted March of the Dales. After he was killed in the Battle of Valmorn Hills, three pretenders to the royal title emerged, including Caedmon's son, Talemal. All of them perished in the civil war. No more claimants of the king's title arose, but various teyrns struggled for control in a period called the War of Crowns. The name stemmed from the sudden rise of teyrns who put on royal crowns–even though they wouldn't declared themselves kings. Years later in the Exalted Age, the first recognized king of Ferelden, Calenhad Theirin, sought out these crowns to destroy them. According to legend, some of them are still hidden away.[35]
Since antiquity, powerful warlords known as "banns" had led the Alamarri in near constant struggle with their fellow tribes as each bann sought to widen his territory and influence.[38] The term "bann" dates at least as far back as the Towers Age.[39]
Legend states that Flemeth and her daughters led the Chasind in a massive invasion of the Alamarri lowlands, only to be defeated by the hero Cormac. Genitivi notes that while there was a Chasind invasion, it occurred a century after Flemeth was said to have lived.[40] Morrigan further disavows the legend in discussion with the Warden, stating that Cormac led a brutal civil war against his own people under the pretense of rooting out an evil corruption amongst its nobility. The legend of Flemeth leading an army of Chasind Wilders to invade the Ferelden lowlands was a lie spread afterwards, presumably during the actual Chasind invasion.[41]
During the Towers Age, the Chasind and other "more terrible things" were led by Flemeth's daughters, the Witches of the Wilds. Their forces ravaged the Fereldan valley until Cormac gathered an army of Alamarri fighters and Orzammar dwarves. The Chasind got defeated in a long series of battles, and the witches were eventually burned. The conflict caused Fereldans to regard the Chasind with suspicion and hatred for ages to come.[42][43]
First Orlesian Invasion of Ferelden[]
In 4:80 Black, the Orlesian Empire invaded the Fereldan valley for the first time by crossing the Frostback Mountains, hoping to take advantage of Ferelden's fractured state. By 4:83, the Fereldan teyrns had set aside their differences to push the Orlesians back in a united front. The Orlesians' hope of taking the port of Highever was dashed when the fortress of Redcliffe held out too long and winter in the Frostbacks cut off their supply lines. By the spring, most Orlesians had either pulled out or been captured.[44]
Ferelden[]
- Main article: Unification of Ferelden
The tribe of Clayne eventually formed the kingdom of Ferelden under the rule of Calenhad Theirin in 5:42 Exalted,[45] over 400 years past Hafter's time.
Alamarri and mabari[]
The foreigners visiting Ferelden often remark that it smells of wet dogs.[46] True or not, one thing cannot be denied - Ferelden and dogs go together.[47] It's said that the mabari were bred by Tevinter mages but decided to stay in Alamarri lands after the Imperial occupation was ultimately driven back.[48] Ever since then, the mabari have had a strong presence in Fereldan lands. Many of the Alamarri tribes kept their own mabari, and the tradition was maintained by Fereldan nobles, many of whom claim ties to Hafter, the first teyrn, who was reputed to be the son of a werewolf.[49]
Known Alamarri[]
- Andraste – daughter of Alamarri chieftain Elderath and a Ciriane woman named Brona
- Caedmon – Hafter's grandson who declared himself king in 2:10 Glory, which led to a civil war;[34][35] he was killed at the Battle of Valmorn Hills in 2:18[36]
- Cormac – famous for his fight against the Chasind and Witches of the Wilds[39]
- Cousland, Elethea – the only Cousland Teyrna to hold the title both as an Alamarri and a Fereldan; she fought against the unification of the tribes by the future King Calenhad Theirin, but ultimately joined Calenhad to retain her family's teyrnir[50]
- Cousland, Haelia – became a Teyrna after rallying an army against werewolves during the Black Age[51]
- Cousland, Mather – organized a curfew and patrols within the city after the werewolves arrived; several other local banns supported his efforts by swearing oaths of fealty, making him their Teyrn[50]
- Cousland, Sarim – took over the bannorn of Highever after Bann Conobar Elstan died[51]
- Dane – an Alamarri hero
- Dwarfson, Luthias – an Alamarri Berserker leader who belonged to the Clayne tribe[52]
- Elderath – chief of the northernmost tribes of the Alamarri after the First Blight; father of Andraste[53]
- Elstan, Conobar – Bann Elstan was the husband of Flemeth[39][51]
- Evrion – middle son of Maferath and Gilivhan
- Flemeth of Highever[39]
- Gilivhan – an Alamarri tribeswoman who was chosen by Maferath to bear his heirs
- Hafter – the first teyrn; son of the legendary hero Dane
- Halliserre – Elderath's daughter and Andraste's half-sister
- Heggar II – a prominent Alamarri; father of Maferath[53]
- Howe, Elias – one of the first to support the unification of the Alamarri by Calenhad[54]
- Isorath – eldest son of Maferath and Gilivhan
- Maferath – a warlord in power after the First Blight; husband of Andraste; he is recognized both as an Avvar[55] and an Alamarri[16]
- Radun – a slave in Kirkwall whose murder incited a slave rebellion[56]
- Talemal – Caedmon's son who attempted to unite the Alamarri clans during the War of Crowns that ensued after his father's death; he was murdered by his wife, whom he had previously imprisoned for unfaithfulness[37]
- Theirin, Calenhad – born in Highever, united the Alamarri tribes
- Thelm Gold-Handed – chieftain of the Alamarri who tried to convince Tyrdda Bright-Axe to cross the Waking Sea to plunder the Golden City[4]
- Thelois – a prominent Alamarri; mother of Maferath[53]
- Verald – youngest son of Maferath and Gilivhan
Codex entries[]
Gallery[]
