Arcadia

A grey wolf on a red field: the emblem of Arcadia and symbol of the house of Lycaos, the ruling family of the region.

Arcadia is one of the oldest regions of the Achaean Empire, and supposedly the original home of the Olympian gods Hermes and Pan. Although considered by many to be a pastoral paradise or utopia, it is still shrouded in rumors of a darker, ancient heritage involving werewolves, strange transformation rituals, cannibalism, and supposedly distorted images of certain Olympians.

History

The history of Arcadia is long and colorful, including incidents of gods cursing men, and much of it is said to be lost to time. It is said that the history of Arcadia begins many aeons ago, when Arcas, a son of Zeus and the nymph Callisto, had to flee there to avoid Hera's wrath. It is Arcas after whom the land was named.

King Lykaon

Perhaps the best-known tale of Arcadia originates with King Lykaon (or Lycaon, as it is now more often spelled in Common Imperial), a king who killed Arcas and presented his flesh in a feast to Zeus, in order to test if Zeus was truly the god he claimed to be. Realizing what Lykaon had done, Zeus cursed him to become a wolf. Lykaon would remain in this form for seven years, unless he ate human flesh, in which case he would remain a wolf forever. Lykaon's fate was long lost to legend - and some argue concerning the nature of his curse - but the current ruling family, Lycaos, claims that, even to this day, they are ultimately descended from Lykaon's long family line, implying he may have returned to his human form at some point.

Other Werewolf Legends

Although the tale of King Lykaon is certainly the most famous, other tales of transformation, wolves, and even lycanthropy abound through Arcadia. Rumor has it that the Arcadians developed an ancient ritual in observation of Lykaon's punishment: certain Arcadian families had to draw lots, and some family members had to undergo a ritual to become a wolf for seven years, serving the same sentence as did King Lykaon himself. This was attested by one famous Arcadian who later won the Olympic games, but Arcadians today deny any of these rituals still occur. Tales of other werewolf magic abound, such as Arcadian family lines tainted by lycanthropic blood or Arcadians intentionally cursing themselves to be werewolves, but the Arcadians themselves deny them vehemently. They can, however, do nothing to end these rumors abounding throughout the Empire, aiding in tainting Arcadia's reputation.

Lykonian Zeus

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Reputation

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Geography

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Economy

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Religion

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Important Figures

Although Arcadians don't often leave their homeland, some have ventured out and made names for themselves - or at least gotten involved in important matters, whether they intended to do so or not, such as Zacynthos. Also, as mentioned, Arcadia is said to have been home to the gods Hermes and Pan. The region is currently ruled by the house of Lycaos.