TALES OF ANIETH
BACKGROUND MATERIAL
WELCOME TO OUR ENCYCLOPEDIA.
IT IS MORE THAN BACKGROUND ABOUT ANIETH; IT IS A WORK
ON THE ANCIENT PEOPLES OF EUROPE.
PETER SHIELDS SPENT EIGHTY YEARS IN ANIETH AS AN ANTHROPOLOGIST. SEVERAL OTHER
PLAYERS HELPED HIM COMPILE THIS ENCYCLOPEDIA. THE SUBJECTS ARE ARANGED HERE BASED
ON THE COLLEGES OF THE NINE NATIONS. MANY OF THE SUBJECTS ARE ABOUT ANCIENT EUROPE, 2000-1500BCE.
EACH COLLEGE HAS AN ANIMAL OR A TREE PATRON. THE TWIN COLLEGES APPEAR HERE IN VERTICAL
PAIRS (I.E. BRIAR/LANGUAGES WITH SERPENT/MATHEMATICS). CLICK ON AN ICON TO SEE A SUBJECT.
MORE ABOUT THE COLLEGES IS IN MATH & MUSIC. ANIMAL HUSBANDRY, ALTHOUGH PART OF THE BEAR COLLEGE, IS FOUND
UNDER LAND USES WITH MINING TO MAKE ROOM FOR THE CLANS (NOT A SCHOOL SUBJECT.) WE WILL BE PUTTING
UP MANY MORE ARTICLES OVER THE NEXT FEW YEARS.
TO FIND OUT WHO WE ARE, GO TO THE PLAYERS PAGE.
These are the schools of the White Nation of the Setting Moon.
On the astronomy pages by Gundrid Frejasdattr, There is all you might want to know about
archeoastronomy. She begins with very basic astronomy facts such as the precession of the
equinoxes and then proceeds to describe the different observatories of Anieth, the constellations,
and the way in which eclipses were predicted.
On the costume pages by Marion Shields and Raissa Greshenka, there are articles about all
kinds of ancient crafts like shoe-making, and facts about the dress of Anieth, including
tattooing and the costumes of Zelosia.
These are the schools of the Amber Nation of Fire.
Compiled by Peter Shields, almost every player had something to contribute. Articles
are of materials, engineering, wood and ceramic crafts, and much more.
The history pages were written by Mark, Susan, Nick and Leo Stanford. The articles talk
about the actual history of the Bronze Age with the invasion of Europe by Cyrus the Great,
but go on to talk about Anieth, the Game and the alternate time lines created when Lucia
Shields broke the Gate. Essential to understanding the over story of Anieth.
These are the schools of the Dun Nation of Autumn Leaves.
Written by Michali Greshenko, these pages are full of information about the Clans of
Anieth who are the magical shape-shifters of the Wood. He also talks about the Ogham
alphabet of trees, correspondences, and the way in which the Clans interacted.
Karen Stanford-Gallanis wrote the pages on family. She begins with the ancient family
structures of Europe and goes on to talk about the ruling families of Anieth and the families
of the Earth players. She also has a character dictionary.
These are the schools of the Green Nation of Singing Summer.
Written by Gundrid Frejasdattr, Mark, and Nick Stanford, the pages are more about the use
of music as an ancient mnemonic aid to memorize lines of lore. They also write
about the organization of the Colleges and the specialities of the Nine Nations.
Written by Peter Shields, these pages talk about linguistics, basic problems in language
learning, alphabets, and English, as well as talk about the languages of Anieth and
present a glossary and pronunciation guide.
These are the schools of the Blue Nation of Skies.
The calendar pages were mostly written by Nick Stanford. He talks about keeping time in
the ancient world, and solar versus lunar and stellar calendars. He discusses the
different correspondence calendars and he writes about the
different calendars of Anieth and Zelosia and also has an article on the alternate time lines.
Peter Shields has made another study of the religions of Anieth and Zelosia and their rituals
as well as written about the different Nations and their gods and rites. Lucia talks about
Western spirituality and the four-fold paths that are demonstrated in religious peoples like
the Hazel.
These are the schools of the Violet Nation of Running Deer.
Raissa Greshenka spent years as an herbalist and has written articles on nutrition, ancient
medicine, gardening practices and herbs for beauty, healing, and crafts.
And Lucia talks about the poetics of the ancient world, the different line patterns and the
complex world of Druidic poetry forms.
These are the schools of the Red Nation of the Rising Sun.
These maps were compiled and made by Bob Gallanis, Mark and Nick Standford.
This work was started by Daniel Lee before he was killed and continued by Leo and Susan Stanford.
There are articles on ancient law forms that led to common law, the difference between Queen's
Law and King's Law and the different Courts and trials.
These are the schools of the Black Nation of the Shining Stars.
These pages were written by Marion Shields-Stanford and Susan Stanford with some help from
Theron Abernathy and Michali Greshenko. They describe the magic of Anieth as well as talk
about the rules of shape-shifting, and the ESP powers of the Queens.
Written by Lucia Shields, the Meditation pages are actual magical disciplines of the four-fold
path of Western Spirituality. There are many articles on the practices of the different
peoples and the exercises of the different powers. This is applied back into real life,
for us non-magical people to practice as the Western Way.
These are the schools of the Gold Nation of Eagles.
The information on the pages was compiled by those who explored most of Anieth: Mark Standford,
Bob Gallanis, Michali Greshenko, and Theron Abernathy. It was modified by the next generation
of travelers. The articles are mostly on climate and some introductions to geography and mapmaking.
Written by Karen Stanford who gathered more information from all the Queens: Marion Shields, Valerie and
Susan Stanford. These pages have articles on the very complex succession
among the Oak Kings and the Holly Champions, the divisions of power among the Nine Nations,
the threat of the Veldonaccii Alliance, the Invasion of Zelosia and the hostaging of Dumona.
A note by A.R. Stone:
This work was done for the fans of the books, most of whom are
teens. These books are based on actual crafts of ancient Europe and knowlege that has been
reconstructed by archeologists, mythographers and more. It took thirty years to compile
this research into a way that people can learn about Europe and enjoy a good story at the same time.
This work also uncovered true Western spirituality only hinted at in Druidic artifacts and
lore passed down through centuries of prejudiced recorders. It offers alternate legal
systems that led to our own development of common law and explores real spiritual disciplines
of the Four-Fold Way. Through the interaction of non-fiction and story, it is hoped that
people can regain some of the early European knowlege that was almost lost and reconnect
to their roots.