Well the game world does have an ancient "cousin" to the elf. These ancients are so intuned with elements that they actualy exhibit some of the traits. The water elves, or Meru-parli, have changed areas of rivers for a specific purpose in other parts of the world (Blood Plains map and history forth coming). I would like not to have to go that route for a few reasons.
- I prefere not to use the its magic explanation
- I would have to wright a backstory on it
- The kingdom that this represents moved away from a high magic culture just for this type of reason
- I can not curently think of a good reason that a "whitch" or a Meru-Parli would change the course of this particular rver.
The history behind the Lakes name is as follows.
Until the Endless war the imperium hated, and feared magic. It began inocently enough, wanting to protect its citizens from coruption. But like all good intentions this one led to corruption. First was the banning of all arcane, people exhibiting power would be sent away with food and water. Then came the purge a time where the forces of the empire actively sought out and killed all arcane casters. There autrocities where naught compaired to the next step. The cropping period, arfued to still being continued to this day was a dreadfull time. People found with arcane talent where handed over to an elite unit ran by the church. The units sole purpose was to control Arcane casters. Praetors, as they where called, drew the most extreme people to their ranks. On one hand the infallible, such determination and selfless intentions that they would even make a paladin feel shamed. The other though, the majority, was those that reveild in controling others by any means. These Praetors, sadistic and cruel did atrocities that where unimaginable. It was during this time that a resisitance group started undermining the Empire and the church. Calling themselves the Scalmein Principality, a word meaning dirty secret. over time there numbers grew and with it there strength. It was during the hight of the endless war that the Scalmein Prince launched his full power against the empire. Fighting a war on two fronts was arguably the deciding factor in the war, but the Praetors where split none the less half of them sent to hunt the Prince and the others to aid against the Nuelm forces. Eventualy the path of coruption led back to the Evergrow forest and in there a small lake. The battle waged for two weeks resulting in most of the praetors lives, in the end only a handfull of praetors and their flock was left standing. The lucky members of the Scalmein Principality where killed, the rest where left to the devices of the Praetors. The prince was never captured nore his identity confirmed, he is presumed dead.
Sorry for the seguie, and the atrocious spelling