KKC Theory Wiki

Severen Stands Where the Ruined City of Myr Tariniel Once Was

plausible connection · popularity 75 · 1 source thread

Matching white-stone cliff imagery suggests Severen sits atop the remains of Myr Tariniel.

About: Severen, Myr Tariniel

Also involves: Maer Lerand Alveron, The Amyr, The Cthaeh, Selitos

The theory§

This theory holds that the city of Severen stands on the ruined site of Myr Tariniel, the shining mountain city Selitos ruled before Lanre destroyed it, and that this explains the Cthaeh's claim that the Maer has already come close to the Amyr without realizing it. The match rests on shared imagery: Myr Tariniel is carved of a bright white stone that held the sun's light long after evening, while Severen is split by a tall white cliff, the Sheer, with the Maer's pale-stone estate of Severen-High built atop it. Read this way, the Cthaeh's instruction to stick by the Maer and be led to the Amyr's door becomes literal, since the Maer's seat would sit on ground the Amyr's founder once held. An extension proposes the Maer Alveron is a descendant of Selitos, drawing on the repeated emphasis on his sharp eyes and clear sight, which would carry uneasy implications for his marriage into the Lackless line. The chief objection is geographic: Severen lies low in a valley near lakes rather than among the tall mountains Lanre and Selitos walked, so it may be a deliberate parallel to Myr Tariniel rather than its actual site.

Evidence§

  • the book seems to suggest either legitimately or as a red herring, that Severen is at the spot of what's left of Myr Tyraniel. Which could potentially explain the line that the Maer's "already come close to them(the Amyr), though he doesn't realize it"--if the Maer's lands and city are where Myr Tyraniel used to be.
    OP's core claim: Severen sits on Myr Tariniel, explaining the Cthaeh's hint about the Maer. — u/Jezer1
  • The buildings were tall and graceful, carved from the mountain itself, carved of a bright white stone that held the sun's light long after evening fell. … The city of Severen was split into two unequal portions by a tall, white cliff.
    Shared white-stone imagery: Myr Tariniel's bright white stone matches Severen's tall white cliff. — u/Jezer1
  • Using the power of his sight he kept watch over the mountain passes leading to his beloved city. His rooms were in the city's highest towers so he could see any attack long before it came to be a threat. … Its pale stone walls were visible from anywhere in the city below. The effect was daunting, as if the Maer’s ancestral home was peering down on you.
    Selitos's high watchful vantage parallels the Maer's commanding pale-stone estate above the city. — u/Jezer1
  • At the foot of the cliff a black scar marked where a fire had cut through the city at some point in the past, leaving little more than the charred bones of buildings.
    Burn scar at Severen echoes Myr Tariniel's white walls charred black when it was burned. — u/Jezer1
  • the letters of the title "Maer" can be shuffled in a way that could phonetically sound like/derive from "Amyr". (Maer --> Amer---> Amyr). … "Maer" can also be seen as an alternate spelling of "Myr"
    Linguistic extension: the title Maer may derive from Myr/Amyr through word-change over millennia. — u/Jezer1
  • this kind of makes me think that the Maer might be a Selitos descendent. … aren't the Maer's "sharp eyes" and clear vision mentioned more than once? Also, if that's the case I wonder whether there are concerning implications of a man of Selitos's line marrying a Lackless of (presumably) Iax's line.
    Comment extends theory: Maer's sharp sight implies Selitos descent, with fraught Lackless-marriage implications. — u/EmeraldMother
  • You say there’s no description of Severen geography, but it is one of the few places marked on the map, and it’s geography is very low. There’s lakes nearby. A few hills, but it’s basically in the valley west of the stormwall. So which mountains do Lanre and Selitos walk to in a day?
    CounterCounter: Severen lies low in a valley, not the tall mountains where Lanre and Selitos walked. — u/nIBLIB
  • I think it also be that Severn is a parallel to Myr Tariniel, rather than actual Myr Tariniel.
    CounterCounter: Severen may be a deliberate parallel to Myr Tariniel rather than its literal site. — u/qoou

Book refs: WMF

Tier reasoning§

tier verified: white-stone parallel plus Cthaeh hint is a reasonable fit, plausible

Contributors§

Source threads§