Aiudara

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Aiudara are a network of ancient elven magical gates that teleport travelers between them. They are found across the planet Castrovel in the Pact Worlds system, where they connect many of the major settlements and are still in frequent use. They remain the subject of intense research and speculation as the secret of their construction has long been lost. Some aiudara gates no longer function, and others lead off-world or to unknown locations. Aiudara are sometimes referred to as elf gates, although the elves consider this term offensive.

History & use

Aiudara are magical gates found on Castrovel that were built unknown millennia before the Gap by unknown peoples. Over time, the elves discovered how to activate these portals, but it was the elf Candlaron the Sculptor who discoverd how to use the gates that led to other planets. He used this understanding to build his own aiudara, creating them with the help of his colleagues. These early crafters created two types of gates: the first were linked gates that connected one gate to only one other, while hubs connected a single gate to multiple other aiudara. Some aiudara could only be accessed with a key in order to safeguard the portal. This key could be almost anything including a physical object, a ritual, or something esoteric or metaphysical. Many keys have since been lost to time, rendering the gates inoperable. Candlaron created these portals to connect the various cities of the elves on Sovyrian, the elven home continent, but also crafted the Sovyrian Stone artifact to permanently link Castrovel to Golarion. The elves used the Sovyrian Stone to settle Golarion, which had a similar gravity and atmosphere to Castrovel, and created a homeland there that was even bigger than the one found on Castrovel. The wealth generated by this interplanetary trade caused El, the Castrovelian city that hosted the Sovyrian Stone, to rapidly expand and become the capital of the elves. More aiudara were built across Golarion and Sovyrian, allowing even the most far-flung outposts to be instantly supplied or reinforced with troops and ushering in what many consider to be a golden age of the elves. Even though Golarion hosted the greatest elven settlement outside of Sovyrian, it was not the only planet in the Pact Worlds system that was colonized via aiudara, as the elves also created smaller settlements on Triaxus and Akiton.

Earthfall & contraction

Tragedy hit when a massive meteor shower known as Earthfall caused the elves to abandon Golarion and flee through the Sovyrian Stone back to Castrovel. Their migration put strain on Sovyrian as most elves prefered to remain in their homeland and were unwilling to relocate again to more distant colonies. Soon thereafter, conquests by the dragons of Triaxus forced the elves to flee that planet, while the settlers of Akiton disappeared without a trace. When rescue parties were sent to Akiton to search for their missing brethren, they found no answers, and many of the aiudara that linked to that planet were destroyed to protect the Sovyrian homeland from the unknown threat. By this time, it had been thousands of years since the creation of the gates, and the knowledge of their construction had been forgotten.

Recolonization

Eventually the elves of Sovyrian realized that Golarion had not been completely destroyed by Earthfall, and cautiously began to recolonize the world thousands of years after they had abandoned it. In donig so, they discovered that many of their former settlements had been taken over by other peoples (including the rapidly developing humans), while they had lost the keys of the aiudara for other colonies. Eventually this forced the elves to cede their former settlements to others for good. Despite this, however, the elves once again spread to nearly every corner of Golarion, but contented themselves to live in smaller, more isolated communities.

Locations of functioning gates

Despite the loss of many gates, the aiudara network on Castrovel remains active, connecting many parts of the planet.

• Greengate: Connects the Castrovelian city of Nerundel to the First World
• The Castrovelian city of Jabask is most easily accessible via aiudara.
• The Castrovelian city of Qabarat has several public-use gates.
• Telasia, the Portal Grove: This aiudara hub once connected all of Castrovel. While still functional, it is rarely used today due to strict control by the dragon Urvosk.