The Sanlibutan Chronicles

Races of Sanlibutan: The Engkantos

Mythological Characters

Engkantos

Engkantos are one of the major groups living in Sanlibutan apart from the Diwatas, Dwendes, Beastfolks, and Men. In books written by Banwaanon scholars, the Engkantos claimed to be descendants of the Devans: the Engkantos are the children of the Devan Angkanto who descents in the mortal realm created by their mother goddess Laon and the other Devans. The term Engkanto is derived from their forefather which is roughly translated as the enchanted ones. As stated in the common Engkanto lore, Angkanto and his family landed on the island they later named Srichanta which is in the heart of the known world. For Srichanta is blessed with fertile valleys and lush forests, Angkanto, and his family agreed to settle in their new home and since then they multiplied and dominated the whole island. Angkanto passed away to return to the immortal realm, as most Engkantos believed, and from his grave, a gigantic Balete tree grew which is the sacred site of all Engkantos.

His descendants proudly call themselves the Engkantos and from them would spring the different Engkanto subraces that evolved away from one another, physically and culturally. Those who remained in the cities of Srichanta would become the Banwaanons. Those who choose to live in the woods of Talonon as hunter-gatherers became the Kahoynons. The islands of Kalawdian were colonized by the seafaring and aquatic Kataws. The Dalaketnons were expelled for their worship of Asura deities while the Tamawos for their heretic beliefs and thus colonized the islands of Vidjayas and Dalaketia, respectively.

There are mixed races of Engkantos that are the result of interbreeding with other races. The Lewenris are a mixed race of Engkantos and Diwatas. The Badjayans also share some Engkanto blood as they are the result of Engkantos interbreeding with their human subjects.

Engkantos never age and can live for a long time. However, Engkantos are not immune to diseases and are easily prone to injuries. Most Engkantos have magic in their blood as they believed they are highly enchanted beings and are highly skilled in using magic after years of practice.

Engkantos all believed that they still have the Devan blood and all share a common belief that they would regain their immortality after death and return to the heavens except for the Dalaketnons who believed that they would be in the realm of the Asura Danungkula and the Dark Tamawos who have the faith that they would enter the realm of the Asuras.

The original Engkantos are described as golden-skinned beings with longer noses, slanted eyes, elongated and angular faces, and pointy ears. They have natural brown to amber eye colors. Though less muscular compared to the races of Men, they are one of the tall mortal beings, second only to the Diwatas. Their blood color is gold.

Banwaanons – (High Elves or City Elves)

"We, the Banwaanons, are proud of our purity. Our gold-colored skin says it all as we call ourselves the royal race. We seek perfection and above all, superiority in many ways"

- Shalumay, Guide Book to the Banwaanons

The Banwaanons are the most direct unaltered descendants of the original Engkantos. They retained much of the appearance of their ancestors and preferred to preserve their original and pure form. The name Banwaanon is derived from the term "city dweller". Meanwhile, most men would refer to them as High Elves because they saw them as being too perfect.

Banwaanons are known for their snobbish superior mentality and saw themselves as highly cultured and advanced beings. For the Banwaanons, all other Engkanto races are offshoots and they claim superiority over all Engkantos. They refer to the Asura-worshipping Engkantos as heretics for their unorthodox beliefs and different appearance. Banwaanons have natural skills in magic and excel at making illusions and alterations. They are also skilled in destruction magic. Because of their natural ability on magic, Banwaanons are ideal for mage and spellcaster classes. In addition to their role as masters in magic, they are also good in trades as merchants. The Banwaanon military is one of the strongest, famous for its strict discipline, use of enchanted armor and weapons, and smart application of military strategies.