| Amenos | |
|---|---|
| Type | Island |
| Continent | Tamriel |
| Region | The Systres |
| Appears in | ESO |
Amenos is the second-largest island in the Systres Archipelago, an island region in the western part of the Abecean Sea. The island is characterized by a dense, hostile jungle and a hazardous coastline riddled with jagged rocks, unrelenting storms, and dangerous currents. Historically, Amenos has been governed by the Bretons of House Mornard and it has hosted a prison facility since the early years of the Common Era.[1]
Amenos Station, the main settlement on the island is not only the administrative center of the region but also the only safe place in Amenos. Prisoners are sometimes processed and banished into the jungle, where they fend for themselves against other prisoners and the wildlife. Some sort of magic or alchemy prevents convicts from escaping the island so their only choice is to survive the wilderness or die trying.[1][2] Amenos also has protections in place to discourage scrying and portal spells, although it is possible to teleport within the confines of the island with more effort.[3] The Eldertide Circle of druids live throughout Amenos, in places such as the Coral Cliffs[4][5] and whatever magic the druids used to balance nature in the Systres never quite took off in Amenos.[1]
HistoryEdit
Early HistoryEdit
Information about the earliest known settlements on Amenos is very limited but the Gonfalon Bay Historical and Social Society believes that the Druids of Galen may have inhabited the island when they first left High Rock in 1E 330.[6] In any case, the Eldertide Circle have typically lived on the island.[5]
Years later in 1E 660,[1] the Lefthanded Elves fled their home in Yokuda after their empire was toppled by the Yokudans. They later fled across the east[6] and one contingent of elves landed on Amenos with the intent of conquering the Systres. They built their headquarters somewhere on the island and from there, they assaulted the other islands and besieged Y'ffelon.[1] The conflict saw the death of hundreds of both elves and druids alike and as the Lefthanders encroached on the heart of druidism, Mount Firesong erupted in 1E 676, for the first time in recorded history.[6]
Despite that, the elves stood victorious over Systres while the druids went into hiding. Their victory was short-lived however when the rest of the elves were executed by the Ra Gada in 1E 785. These wayfarers lived on the Systres for a short time as they use the archipelago as a stopover for their journey east.[1][6] Even though they liberated the isles from the elves, the druids continued to hide and lived on Amenos' coast and interior.[7]
Amenos in the late First EraEdit
History regarding Amenos and the Systres at large is unknown after this as the next time off-islanders come to the archipelago was in the twenty-third century of the First Era, after the Thrassian Plague enraptured Tamriel and killed hundreds of thousands. The All Flags Navy, one of the largest naval fleets in history landed on the islands, where they built their warships for the war on Thras.[8]
Bendu Olo tried to establish diplomacy with a Hadolid camp in Amenos after their assistance in the Thrassian War, but this ended in failure.[9] For a time, the Systres was claimed by Colovia but was later relinquished to the Bretons of High Rock in 1E 2327.[10] For a good while, the isles were administrated by House Guimard and for a short time, House Mantel.[11]
During this time, piracy was at an all-time high and many perpetrators infested Amenos' waters. One of these pirates was Commodore Malfiarre, who terrorized the seas for a decade and damned his fleet with magic created by the Deep Druids.[12] Perhaps one of the greatest known examples was the Systres Sisters, a trio of three sisters who amassed a grand fortune after raiding High Rock's coast. They chose Amenos as the place to build their hidden vault.[1][13] At the same time, Breton slave traders were based in Amenos, specifically in a fort on the north coast.[14] Mount Firesong erupted once again in 1E 2484 and laid waste to the island region. Not only did it destroy the ancient shipyards of the All Flags Navy but obliterated a burgeoning settlement on Amenos.[11]
On the 11th of Sun's Dusk, 1E 2704, emissaries of the newly-formed Second Empire arrived in Gonfalon Bay and decreed that the Systres were once again the dominion of Cyrodiil. These emissaries came with Breton coin-barons who steered the Systres back to its feudal roots before Y'ffelon's eruption. Amenos blossomed under the Second Empire throughout the twenty-ninth century of the First Era, when ammonite excavation grew sufficiently. This boom was driven by Nibenese warlock fashion and it gave way for standard mining of larimar and semi-precious stones. The discovery of frog-metal in vast troves underneath Amenos also shifted the focus of maritime entrepreneurs from fishing to mining.[15]
The Prisons of Amenos and onwardEdit
Amenos' main purpose changed when in 2E 11, the Akaviri Potentate, Versidue-Shaie converted it into a penal colony for Reman-aligned political prisoners. Many people who saw the Systres as a symbol of Tamrielic unity were against this decision and voiced it publicly. And many of these critics, such as Lisolda Paquoit were cast to Amenos and died on the island. Although construction of the Potentate's famous jail, Blackrose Prison was completed, he continued to send people over to the island to work the ammonite and larimar mines.[15] While the Systres have changed rulers over the years, Amenos continues to host one of the most dangerous prisons on Tamriel.[1]
At some point in time, House Mornard took some control of Amenos' mines but attained even greater power when they were granted dukedom over the isles by the Potentate in 2E 110. The Duke granted his house exclusive rights to mine Amenos and facilitate the prison complex.[16] Even after the fall of the Second Empire, House Mornard ruled the Systres and in time, established a rivalry with their associate house, Dufort. Their constant back and forward culminated in 2E 478 when Duke Ruffe Mornard seized a full third of House Dufort's land and exiled their leaders to Amenos, claiming that they attempted a coup against House Mornard. In the mid-sixth century, however, House Mornard lost power over the Systres. For their involvement in Ranser's War, House Mornard was stripped of their dukedom and designated to their holdings on Amenos and Galen, while House Dufort became rulers of the duchy.[17]
In 2E 582, Lord Bacaro Volorus invited leaders of the Alliance War for a peace summit on High Isle but as they approached the region from the north, their ships were caught in a brutal, albeit uncontrollable storm conjured by a figure known as the Ascendant Magus. The ships were subsequently wrecked on Loch Abhain in High Isle and while their captains were apprehended by the Ascendant Order, the alliance leaders, Queen Ayrenn of the Aldmeri Dominion, King Emeric of the Daggerfall Covenant, and Prince Irnskar of the Ebonheart Pact were lost to sea and washed ashore on Amenos' north coast.[18]
One of Amenos' prison gangs, the Green Serpents, put up a bounty for the capture of these three nobles for the Ascendant Order. And while Ayrenn and Emeric managed to escape their clutches, Prince Irnskar was taken to their hideaway, Old Coin Fort on the north coast. Lady Arabelle Davaux sent two of her associates, the Breton rogue, Jakarn, and a mainlander to retrieve the nobles. They both infiltrated Amenos Station's stockade to gather intel and the latter delved into the jungle to find the allied leaders. The adventurer found Ayrenn and Emeric in the wilderness but had to fight their way through the fort to rescue the prince. Ayrenn used weather magic to bypass the island's storms and safely escape the island.[19]
Notable LocationsEdit
- Amenos Station
- A fort town on the island's southern coast, across from High Isle. It is Amenos' main settlement and home of the stockade.
- Brokerock Mine
- An ammonite mine deep in the Amenos jungles, sanctioned by House Mornard
- Coral Cliffs
- A settlement of the Druids of the Eldertide Circle
- Finimi's Domicile
- An ancient Breton home previously occupied by Finimi, one of the infamous Systres Sisters
- Ghost Haven Bay
- A remote inlet on the southeast coast. It is infamous for its haunted shipwrecks, entangled flora, and sea caves
- Old Coin Fort
- An old Breton stronghold on the north coast of Amenos. It was previously used by Breton coin barons and slavers
- Skulltooth Coast
- The jagged northwest coast of Amenos, riddled with wrecked ships and a rocky beachfront
GalleryEdit
-
Amenos Station
-
Ornaug native to Amenos
See AlsoEdit
- For game-specific information, see the Elder Scrolls Online
article.
BooksEdit
- Green Serpent Testimonials by Minerva Calo, Associate Chronicler — A collection of stories from Amenos prisoners
- History of House Mornard by Dorothea Errard — The history of High Isle's former ruling house
- Secrets of Amenos by Miramel Charascel, Chairperson of the Gonfalon Bay Historical and Social Society — A general overlook and history of the prison island
ReferencesEdit
- ^ a b c d e f g h Secrets of Amenos — Miramel Charascel, Chairperson of the Gonfalon Bay Historical and Social Society
- ^ Marcelle Dantaine's dialogue in ESO: High Isle
- ^ Queen Ayrenn's dialogue in ESO: High Isle
- ^ Coral Cliffs loading screen text in ESO: High Isle
- ^ a b Nivathil's dialogue in ESO: High Isle
- ^ a b c d Systres History: Volume 2 — Trilam Heladren, Associate Dean of Eltheric History, University of Gwylim
- ^ Loremaster's Archive - Bretons & High Isle — Lady Arabelle
- ^ Systres History: Volume 3 — Trilam Heladren, Associate Dean of Eltheric History, University of Gwylim
- ^ Hadolid Researcher's Journal
- ^ Systres History: Volume 4 — Trilam Heladren, Associate Dean of Eltheric History, University of Gwylim
- ^ a b Systres History: Volume 5 — Trilam Heladren, Associate Dean of Eltheric History, University of Gwylim
- ^ Vanisande Maul's dialogue in ESO: High Isle
- ^ Valentyn Dantaine's dialogue in ESO: High Isle
- ^ High King Emeric's dialogue in Escape from Amenos story quest in ESO: High Isle
- ^ a b Systres History: Volume 6 — Trilam Heladren, Associate Dean of Eltheric History, University of Gwylim
- ^ History of House Mornard — Dorothea Errard
- ^ Systres History: Volume 7 — Trilam Heladren, Associate Dean of Eltheric History, University of Gwylim
- ^ Deadly Investigations story quest in ESO: High Isle
- ^ Escape from Amenos story quest in ESO: High Isle