# THE FAE COURTS: COMPLETE LORE DOCUMENT
## I. IDENTITY & NATURE
Realm: Faen (parallel dimension to Temerant, accessed through "thin places")
Society: Multiple independent courts, each with distinct rulers, rules, and cultures
Inhabitants: Fae beings of immense power and alien psychology
Relationship to Mortals: Capricious; predatory, fascinated, or indifferent
Time: Flows differently; hours in Fae = years in mortal world (and vice versa)
The Fae are not one unified kingdom but a patchwork of courts existing alongside our world, accessible through specific locations where the barriers between realities thin. Each court operates by its own alien logic, ruled by beings of overwhelming beauty and terrible power. They crave mortal emotions, names, memories, and seed—but cannot create these things themselves. To mortals, the Fae are simultaneously enchanting and deadly.
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## II. THE NATURE OF FAEN
### A. Geography & Physics
Non-Euclidean Space:
- Distances defy logic; a day's journey might span leagues or inches.
- Landscapes shift; paths loop endlessly or vanish.
- Time flows inconsistently; seasons may never change or cycle rapidly.
Thin Places:
- Specific locations where Fae and mortal realms touch: old roads, ancient battlefields, sites of great emotion or death.
- Most concentrated along the Great Stone Road and near University Underthing.
- Number and stability increasing (or mortal perception improving).
Beauty & Danger:
- Scenery overwhelmingly beautiful but unnatural.
- Flowers that sing, trees that whisper secrets, water that shows possible futures.
- This beauty overwhelms mortal senses; prolonged exposure causes madness.
### B. Time Distortion
Classic Examples:
- Three days in Fae = three years mortal time (Felurian/Kvothe).
- Three years mortal = three days Fae (reverse cases exist).
- Time may flow backward, pause, or accelerate unpredictably.
Practical Effects:
- Mortal visitors age or de-age upon return.
- Mortal events continue without them (family dies, empires fall).
- Fae may emerge into mortal time disoriented or enraged.
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## III. FAE PHYSIOLOGY & POWERS
### A. Physical Characteristics
Appearance:
- Humanoid but "off"—too perfect, too symmetrical, subtly wrong proportions.
- Skin glows faintly; hair flows unnaturally; eyes hold impossible colors.
- Clothing woven from moonlight, spider silk, living flowers, frozen moments.
Physical Abilities:
- Move with impossible grace; anticipate motion before it happens.
- Heal from wounds instantly; difficult to kill by mortal means.
- Age extremely slowly or not at all; functionally immortal.
### B. Glamour (Primary Magic)
Illusion & Reality-Bending:
- Create perfect illusions indistinguishable from reality.
- Alter perceptions of time, space, distance, emotion.
- Reshape physical reality within their domain (turn paths into prisons, create endless rooms).
Desire Manipulation:
- Amplify mortal desires until they consume the victim.
- Create false memories, implant suggestions, craft perfect temptations.
- Mortals willingly surrender name, seed, memory, or service.
Physical Transformation:
- Shape-shift (become more/less human, animal forms, elemental beings).
- Alter others (turn mortals into animals, trees, subservient creatures).
- Heal or harm with touch; reshape flesh like clay.
### C. Naming Power
Fae Understanding of Names:
- Names = essence; knowing a name = perfect control over the person.
- Fae cannot create true names; they must steal them from mortals.
- A named mortal becomes their servant, shadow, or plaything.
Mortal Name Counter:
- Mortals who understand this danger guard their names jealously.
- Giving a name (even partially) creates binding; Fae exploit this ruthlessly.
## IV. FAE COURTS & POLITICS
### A. Court Structure (General)
Each Fae court follows similar patterns:
The Lord/Lady:
- Immortal ruler with absolute authority within their domain.
- Power tied to their name, territory, and accumulated mortal essence.
- May be male, female, or neither; gender fluid or irrelevant.
The Court:
- Noble Fae serving the ruler (lesser powers, still terrifying).
- Each has specific roles: hunters, tempters, shapers, memory-keepers.
- Court politics as vicious and complex as any mortal realm.
The Thralls:
- Captured mortals serving willingly (enchanted) or unwillingly (bound).
- Provide emotions, seed, stories, songs for Fae consumption.
- Some gain limited power; most slowly lose their humanity.
### B. Known Courts & Rulers
Felurian's Court:
- Deep forest realm; eternal twilight.
- Felurian: "The fairest creature in all of creation"; master of desire and shadow.
- Specializes in seduction, naming, time manipulation.
- Less overtly violent; prefers willing captives.
Other Courts (Speculative):
- Court of Endless Summer (fire/light/desire).
- Court of Winter's Silence (cold/stillness/forgetting).
- Court of Broken Mirrors (illusion/duplicity/fragmentation).
- Court of the Ashen Throne (decay/time/entropy).
Court Wars:
- Fae courts war constantly over mortals, territory, power, and abstract concepts.
- Mortal visitors may be drafted as pawns in these conflicts.
- Losers lose domains, names, or existence itself.
## V. FAE PSYCHOLOGY & DESIRES
### A. Alien Motivations
Cannot Create:
- Fae cannot generate true emotions, stories, songs, or names.
- They must harvest these from mortals through trickery, seduction, or force.
- Mortal "seed" (creative essence) lets Fae make temporary creations.
Crave Mortal Experience:
- Mortal imperfection fascinates them; they envy our ability to feel deeply.
- They collect mortals like exotic pets or research subjects.
- Some Fae fall genuinely in love (by their standards); results are tragic.
### B. Cannot Lie (Directly)
Fae Honesty:
- Fae cannot speak direct falsehoods; their nature prevents it.
- They excel at misdirection, omission, half-truths, and artful phrasing.
- "I will not harm you" means nothing about imprisonment, torment, or transformation.
Bargains Are Binding:
- Fae offers and promises create magical compulsion.
- Mortals must examine every word; Fae exploit ambiguities ruthlessly.
- Breaking a Fae bargain brings terrible consequences (usually transformation or servitude).
## VI. DANGERS & WEAKNESS
### A. Primary Threats to Mortals
Name Theft:
- Giving your true name = perfect servitude.
- Fae ask clever questions to learn names indirectly.
- Partial names create lesser bindings.
Time Loss:
- Return to find family dead, empires fallen, self biologically changed.
- Fae may warn of this; mortals rarely understand the scale.
Glamour Addiction:
- Fae beauty and pleasure overwhelm mortal senses.
- Victims crave return even knowing the danger.
- Prolonged exposure erodes sense of self.
Transformation:
- Fae may reshape mortals into animals, plants, servants, or worse.
- Some transformations are reversible; others permanent.
### B. Known Weaknesses
Iron:
- Pure iron burns Fae flesh; weapons wound them badly.
- Iron dust or filings repel or injure Fae.
- Cold iron (unworked) is most effective.
Salt:
- Salt circles trap Fae; crossing salt harms them.
- Salt water repels or destroys most Fae.
- Symbolic purification/warding.
Running Water:
- Fae cannot cross moving streams, rivers, waterfalls.
- Major protection for those fleeing Fae pursuit.
True Names:
- Speaking a Fae's true name gives power over them.
- Fae guard names jealously; discovering one is major victory.
Sunlight/Moonlight:
- Some Fae weakened by specific light (varies by court).
- Pure light disrupts glamour illusions.
## VII. MORTAL-FAE INTERACTION
### A. Common Encounters
The Crossing:
- Mortal stumbles into thin place (old road, battlefield, crossroads).
- Fae curiosity leads to conversation, temptation, bargain.
- Mortal leaves changed (time, memory, name, body).
The Bargain:
- Fae offers knowledge, power, beauty in exchange for service.
- Mortal rarely understands full terms or consequences.
- Fae always profit more than they lose.
The Abduction:
- Mortal child, lover, or traveler snatched through thin place.
- Fae court gains new thrall; mortal family left grieving.
- Recovery missions are desperate, dangerous quests.
### B. Fae Breeding with Mortals
Half-Fae Children:
- Mortal women impregnated by Fae produce powerful offspring.
- Children inherit glamour, unnatural beauty, and divided loyalties.
- Fae may reclaim children at maturity.
Mortal Men with Fae:
- Fae women seduce mortal men; offspring serve Fae court.
- Children often taken by Fae parent; mortal father left with broken memories.
## VIII. RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHER FACTIONS
Fae vs. Chandrian:
- Ancient enemies or rivals; both fear names, manipulate mortals.
- Fae may know Chandrian secrets but won't share freely.
- Possible shared origin in Creation War.
Fae vs. University:
- University studies Fae theoretically; Masters dismiss most reports.
- Archives contain Fae lore (Mode C/D); dangerous to access.
- Elodin may know more than he reveals.
Fae vs. Edema Ruh:
- Ruh songs mention Fae; troupes avoid thin places.
- Fae fascinated by mortal music; some bargains made.
- Shared oral tradition preserves Fae warnings.
Fae vs. Maer's Court:
- Nobles dabble in Fae lore for power/beauty.
- Fae occasionally visit courts disguised as mortals.
- Dangerous liaisons result in half-Fae heirs or missing courtiers.
Fae vs. Ademre:
- Adem avoid Fae entirely; thin places considered Lethani violations.
- Fae glamour ineffective against Adem emotional discipline.
- Mutual avoidance seems deliberate.