The Diaemus Project

[Lindel he/him]

Here's a bit of what I have so far:

Bahlo'dohr is a large, independent city state, a flourishing center of trade on the coast of the East Desert. Their biggest export is a silk derived from Rachnyx web, which can be dyed various vibrant colors. The silk is soft, smooth, and breathable. It is light, yet exceptionally durable. All these qualities are valuable assets in a hot climate. Many streets in Bahlo'dohr are shielded from the fierce sun by huge silk coverings, making the entire city seem to be a massive, colorful tent. Brightly colored silk catwalks hang between buildings, forming an intricate web, and it's quite possible to travel from one end of the city to the other without ever touching the ground. Locals often prefer taking these silkways, as the covered roads below are crowded with shops, markets, and foreign travelers. Those less familiar with the city might find the sagging, swaying motion of the silkways nauseating, but to those who call the city home, it's as comfortable as walking on solid ground.

EDIT: Forgot to specify, Bahlo'dohr has a predominantly human population.

Edited September 21, 2015 by Lindel

[Curious Anamaximder he/him]

Wow! Everything is looking great now!

[Seonid he/him]

That sounds awesome. How warlike would Soruukan be? Will there be any travel between the north and south continents?

 

Soruukan has a very martial culture. When they aren't at war with another Dromean country or a human settlement, they are making slaver raids in the Skitchii marshes or across the great river into the human lands. Down further, I've got a military overview of them - a horde of thundering raptors is indeed a terrible thing, but when they wear partial plate armor and some of them have crossbows...well, I'm sure you can imagine.

 

As for travel between north and south, not sure. If anybody wants it, Mek's island archipelagos would be a good stepping stone. I bet there's at least some contact there.

 

Great Empire! How advanced are they in technology?

 

Technology is a bit tricky. I haven't worked out the implications of their magic and technology and the like. But they certainly have crossbows and advanced metalworking (high-carbon steel and the like). They are familiar with genetic descent and practice controlled breeding (of slaves, of herd animals, and of their own people, directed by a priestly caste), and have advanced astronomy.

 

 

 

Now, to go over Sorukaan society in more detail:

 

Military

As I said, Sorukaan society is extremely martial. The Emperor holds, by custom, periodic ritual tournaments where champions from all the noble clans compete against each other for advancement and prestige. The contests are often lethal, so clan champions train almost constantly, going on raids whenever the opportunity presents itself. Once a year, there is the Day of Reckoning, where any citizen (not slave) can challenge any other for their position. This seems on the surface that it would be a bloodbath, and that the Empire's high nobility would change yearly, but strict traditions keep the worst excesses in check. In addition, defeating a high clan chief in battle likely means death by his or her kin to the challenger, so lethal challenges are rare at this time.

 

To avoid societal chaos, instead there has developed a complex system of loss-forfeiture, where the losers in challenges pay some amount of forfeit in land or money or slaves in lieu of being killed for their rank. The potential threat of such a challenge, however, encourages all the members of the high nobility to maintain proficiency and at least some skill in single combat.

 

The Emperor/Empress himself/herself is also open to challenges on this day of the year, and these are invariably lethal - in contrast to the heavily ritualized combats of his/her subjects. An Emperor/Empress who cannot hold his/her throne against a challenger has no business being ruler, and is obviously weak enough to be a detriment to society wherever he/she ends up. So, even more than others, a ruling Dromean keeps himself/herself in peak physical condition and trains to keep the throne (and to stay alive). The forfeit for a failed challenger, of course, is death.

 

Raids

To maintain their martial prowess (and to keep a constant influx of wealth and property coming into the empire), upper-class Sorukaana go on constant raids against nearby human and Skitchii tribes/settlements. They aim to take slaves, largely, but will confiscate precious objects as well. Gold is a favored metal, and trophy pieces are highly valued among the high society, being used as tokens of prowess to impress a priest into approving a potential mating.

 

The most skilled of these raiders call themselves Dark Hunters, based on their nocturnal preferences, and form long-lasting bonds with members of their particular band. Other than replacing lost members, the nine distinct bands of Dark Hunters seldom take on additional members, and so there is fierce competition to be a part of the most prestigious and ancient societies. For those who are unable to qualify, there are numerous Scalehunter bands who are much less selective, but also imply a significant loss of social standing. Still, these lesser bands have occasionally been the stepping stones to Dark Hunter notoriety, and are lucrative recruitment grounds for the standing Imperial Army.

 

Both Dark Hunters and the lesser Scalehunter bands generally wear light armor, often studded leather, to aid with mobility, as they are almost always facing superior odds and require mobility and agility above all other considerations. They break down their groups into specific roles. Horn-takers are trained to take slaves - their preferred weapon is a chain with wickedly sharpened spikes and blades attacked to the offensive end. They use it to injure and entrap and slow down their targets, preventing friendly- or self-fire incidents by use of telekinesis (see the Magic section). They take their name from the practice of cutting off the horns of a captured Skitch as a token of their bravery. Windshriekers are tasked with sowing fear and confusion, preventing enemy forces from rallying against their hunter-band. They speed through the village or settlement with blood-curdling shrieks, or come upon a defensive line from behind. They prefer ayrutsi - bane-blades - forearm mounted, spring-loaded blades that are lethally sharp. With these, and their natural toe-claws, they can shear through even the toughest resistance. Outrunners stay on the edges of the conflict, picking off targets of opportunity with their crossbows. They generally fire stone-tipped bolts intended to injure but not kill, as targets thus felled can be taken as slaves as well. However, if resistance does manage to rally despite the efforts of the Windshriekers, they can switch to chisel-point bolts that can punch through armor.

 

Army

The Imperial Army organizes itself along similar lines to the hunter-bands. However, there are distinct differences in approach. The first sign of engagement is often a force of Windshriekers and Outrunners, hitting from an unexpected angle to sow confusion. These are as lightly armored as their Dark Hunter counterparts, and are trained to avoid prolonged engagement. Swift strikes, followed by rapid retreat, leaving the enemy in confusion while a second force hits in a pincer movement. The outcome of these skirmishes is watched carefully by the commanding officer while the rest of the force waits in concealment. If enough confusion is caused, the commander orders troops of Bone-crushers into the fray: a type of training not extant in the hunter-bands, as it is focused solely around killing an organized foe, which the Dark Hunters and their lesser compatriots attempt to avoid meeting at all costs. Armored with partial plate armor, and armed with heavy fore-arm blades, or puncturers designed to defeat plate armor, they advance towards the now disoriented foe. Behind them, another force of Windshriekers and Outrunners is prepared to exploit breaches in enemy lines. The horn-takers of the Dark Hunters are used in very specialized units in formal armed clashes. With their spiked chains, or modified versions resembling a heavy flail or

 

On the defense, the Windshriekers and Outrunners serve as raiders to disrupt supply and reinforcement lines, and disable communications. Bone-crushers hold important positions, but the basic philosophy of Sorukaan military (like almost all Dromean militaries) is mobility, fluidity, and battlefield control. Their goal is to destroy or debilitate an enemy army in the field, before it ever reaches a position that must be defended. They tend to abandon cities rather than allow themselves to be besieged, as their food requirements make being closed into an area without enough support for herdbeasts nearly fatal.

 

If they find themselves needing to besiege a walled city of another species, they use human designed and crewed siege weapons.

 

In addition, for large campaigns, they have militarily trained human slaves that fight alongside their own forces. These warslaves are treated well, and loyalty is far higher than might be expected, given that they often fight against their own kind. Skitchii are never allowed to fight, however, and never see a battlefield at all except as supply-train pullers, overseen by taskmasters.

 

Sections on Magic and basic culture and society are forthcoming.

[Curious Anamaximder he/him]

It's kind of scary how fast this thread is moving. 5 days and 15 pages.

[Lindel he/him]

Soruukan has a very martial culture. When they aren't at war with another Dromean country or a human settlement, they are making slaver raids in the Skitchii marshes or across the great river into the human lands. Down further, I've got a military overview of them - a horde of thundering raptors is indeed a terrible thing, but when they wear partial plate armor and some of them have crossbows...well, I'm sure you can imagine.

 

As for travel between north and south, not sure. If anybody wants it, Mek's island archipelagos would be a good stepping stone. I bet there's at least some contact there.

 

 

Technology is a bit tricky. I haven't worked out the implications of their magic and technology and the like. But they certainly have crossbows and advanced metalworking (high-carbon steel and the like). They are familiar with genetic descent and practice controlled breeding (of slaves, of herd animals, and of their own people, directed by a priestly caste), and have advanced astronomy.

 

 

 

Now, to go over Sorukaan society in more detail:

 

Military

As I said, Sorukaan society is extremely martial. The Emperor holds, by custom, periodic ritual tournaments where champions from all the noble clans compete against each other for advancement and prestige. The contests are often lethal, so clan champions train almost constantly, going on raids whenever the opportunity presents itself. Once a year, there is the Day of Reckoning, where any citizen (not slave) can challenge any other for their position. This seems on the surface that it would be a bloodbath, and that the Empire's high nobility would change yearly, but strict traditions keep the worst excesses in check. In addition, defeating a high clan chief in battle likely means death by his or her kin to the challenger, so lethal challenges are rare at this time.

 

To avoid societal chaos, instead there has developed a complex system of loss-forfeiture, where the losers in challenges pay some amount of forfeit in land or money or slaves in lieu of being killed for their rank. The potential threat of such a challenge, however, encourages all the members of the high nobility to maintain proficiency and at least some skill in single combat.

 

The Emperor/Empress himself/herself is also open to challenges on this day of the year, and these are invariably lethal - in contrast to the heavily ritualized combats of his/her subjects. An Emperor/Empress who cannot hold his/her throne against a challenger has no business being ruler, and is obviously weak enough to be a detriment to society wherever he/she ends up. So, even more than others, a ruling Dromean keeps himself/herself in peak physical condition and trains to keep the throne (and to stay alive). The forfeit for a failed challenger, of course, is death.

 

Raids

To maintain their martial prowess (and to keep a constant influx of wealth and property coming into the empire), upper-class Sorukaana go on constant raids against nearby human and Skitchii tribes/settlements. They aim to take slaves, largely, but will confiscate precious objects as well. Gold is a favored metal, and trophy pieces are highly valued among the high society, being used as tokens of prowess to impress a priest into approving a potential mating.

 

The most skilled of these raiders call themselves Dark Hunters, based on their nocturnal preferences, and form long-lasting bonds with members of their particular band. Other than replacing lost members, the nine distinct bands of Dark Hunters seldom take on additional members, and so there is fierce competition to be a part of the most prestigious and ancient societies. For those who are unable to qualify, there are numerous Scalehunter bands who are much less selective, but also imply a significant loss of social standing. Still, these lesser bands have occasionally been the stepping stones to Dark Hunter notoriety, and are lucrative recruitment grounds for the standing Imperial Army.

 

Both Dark Hunters and the lesser Scalehunter bands generally wear light armor, often studded leather, to aid with mobility, as they are almost always facing superior odds and require mobility and agility above all other considerations. They break down their groups into specific roles. Horn-takers are trained to take slaves - their preferred weapon is a chain with wickedly sharpened spikes and blades attacked to the offensive end. They use it to injure and entrap and slow down their targets, preventing friendly- or self-fire incidents by use of telekinesis (see the Magic section). They take their name from the practice of cutting off the horns of a captured Skitch as a token of their bravery. Windshriekers are tasked with sowing fear and confusion, preventing enemy forces from rallying against their hunter-band. They speed through the village or settlement with blood-curdling shrieks, or come upon a defensive line from behind. They prefer ayrutsi - bane-blades - forearm mounted, spring-loaded blades that are lethally sharp. With these, and their natural toe-claws, they can shear through even the toughest resistance. Outrunners stay on the edges of the conflict, picking off targets of opportunity with their crossbows. They generally fire stone-tipped bolts intended to injure but not kill, as targets thus felled can be taken as slaves as well. However, if resistance does manage to rally despite the efforts of the Windshriekers, they can switch to chisel-point bolts that can punch through armor.

 

Army

The Imperial Army organizes itself along similar lines to the hunter-bands. However, there are distinct differences in approach. The first sign of engagement is often a force of Windshriekers and Outrunners, hitting from an unexpected angle to sow confusion. These are as lightly armored as their Dark Hunter counterparts, and are trained to avoid prolonged engagement. Swift strikes, followed by rapid retreat, leaving the enemy in confusion while a second force hits in a pincer movement. The outcome of these skirmishes is watched carefully by the commanding officer while the rest of the force waits in concealment. If enough confusion is caused, the commander orders troops of Bone-crushers into the fray: a type of training not extant in the hunter-bands, as it is focused solely around killing an organized foe, which the Dark Hunters and their lesser compatriots attempt to avoid meeting at all costs. Armored with partial plate armor, and armed with heavy fore-arm blades, or puncturers designed to defeat plate armor, they advance towards the now disoriented foe. Behind them, another force of Windshriekers and Outrunners is prepared to exploit breaches in enemy lines. The horn-takers of the Dark Hunters are used in very specialized units in formal armed clashes. With their spiked chains, or modified versions resembling a heavy flail or

 

On the defense, the Windshriekers and Outrunners serve as raiders to disrupt supply and reinforcement lines, and disable communications. Bone-crushers hold important positions, but the basic philosophy of Sorukaan military (like almost all Dromean militaries) is mobility, fluidity, and battlefield control. Their goal is to destroy or debilitate an enemy army in the field, before it ever reaches a position that must be defended. They tend to abandon cities rather than allow themselves to be besieged, as their food requirements make being closed into an area without enough support for herdbeasts nearly fatal.

 

If they find themselves needing to besiege a walled city of another species, they use human designed and crewed siege weapons.

 

In addition, for large campaigns, they have militarily trained human slaves that fight alongside their own forces. These warslaves are treated well, and loyalty is far higher than might be expected, given that they often fight against their own kind. Skitchii are never allowed to fight, however, and never see a battlefield at all except as supply-train pullers, overseen by taskmasters.

 

Sections on Magic and basic culture and society are forthcoming.

This is awesome! Looking forward to seeing more.

[Curious Anamaximder he/him]

Sorry guys, I will post my stuff tomorrow.

[Seonid he/him]

Thanks everyone! I'm glad you like them. I have a map for one of the shores of the inland sea, so far, but I need to do more work on the continent as a whole. I'm not as good at climatography as Sir Jerric is. (Actually, Sir Jerric, I'd kind of like you to take a look at one of my maps and help me with that at some point. If you have the time...I can PM you with it.)

 

Anyways, here is the magic section! Mek, is it alright if I have symbiotic colonies of white lumuoles basic telekinesis, and serving as a power source for other kinds of magic? I just like the visual of sorcerer Dromeans so covered in white lumuole colonies that they look albino!

 

Magic

All Dromeans have a high magical potential, and the Sorukaana are no exception. Their settlements and cities are built around Lumuole hot spots, and each hatchling is given a symbiotic colony of white lumuoles as soon as they hatch. This is done by making incisions into the forearms, and then immersing them into water suffused with white lumuoles. Each settlement has a ritual bath built over a hotspot and seeded with white lumuoles for this purpose.

 

These white lumuoles allow the hatchling to perform limited feats of telekinesis. Although they cannot move heavy objects, this telekinesis is a great aid to their tool manipulation abilities. In addition, it finds use in combat as well, allowing the use of weapons such as spiked chains or chain-maces that would otherwise be far too dangerous to the user to be practical. The white lumuoles also give sensitivity to magic used by other creatures.

 

The colonies glow faintly, leaving white patterns on the skin of the hatchling, that remain until death. These lekia, as they are called, have distinct traceries and patterns that indicate the settlement of origin, as well as often mimicking the patterns of some famous ancestor.

 

Upon reaching sexual maturity, Sorukaana are given a second set of lumuole symbiotes, the color of which can vary significantly. One of the most prominent among the nobility that dwell in the capital is blue, due to the nearby inland sea and the marshes, which are the primary hunting ground of the Dark Hunter packs. Due to this preference, middle-class Sorukaana often imitate this, even in locales where blue lumuoles would give only limited benefits.

 

Soldiers, as well as some prospective Dark Hunter packmembers, often take red lumuoles instead, as the fire producing abilities are highly valued in Windshriekers. It makes an individual a far more attractive pick for the pack, but often leads to societal pigeonholing as second-class.

 

Those Sorukaana who desire to become sorcerers are permitted, after intense testing and scrutiny, to take yellow lumuoles as a second symbiote. The first thing they learn to do is to access the power of the ubiquitous white lumuole to manifest power that would normally fall under the purview of another color. To increase their access to power, these sorcerers will often score themselves with intricate arcane patterns before immersing themselves over and over again in white lumuole pools, repeating this process often until their bodies become so covered with white lumuole veins that they appear albino, except for the golden traceries of the yellow lumuoles. Unlike other castes, sorcerers have lekia all over their bodies, although they still tend to cover their forearms due to societal modesty standards.

 

Sorcerers are forbidden from political office, but are otherwise highly respected, and each of the Dark Hunter bands includes one.

Edited September 21, 2015 by Seonid

[Mckeedee123 he/him]

Same question for the matriarchally passing on of these bloodlines, why? There's no reason for it and something like that would have a pretty major impact on all cultures, restricting what believably could be done. It's your thing if you want to have it that way with your people but why force it on everyone?

 

I just can't help but think that if it were passed down normally, cultures would treat male descendents sort of like, well... breeding studs, trying to get the bloodline into their society as quickly as possible.

 

Thanks everyone! I'm glad you like them. I have a map for one of the shores of the inland sea, so far, but I need to do more work on the continent as a whole. I'm not as good at climatography as Sir Jerric is. (Actually, Sir Jerric, I'd kind of like you to take a look at one of my maps and help me with that at some point. If you have the time...I can PM you with it.)

 

Anyways, here is the magic section! Mek, is it alright if I have symbiotic colonies of white lumuoles basic telekinesis, and serving as a power source for other kinds of magic? I just like the visual of sorcerer Dromeans so covered in white lumuole colonies that they look albino!

 

Magic

All Dromeans have a high magical potential, and the Sorukaana are no exception. Their settlements and cities are built around Lumuole hot spots, and each hatchling is given a symbiotic colony of white lumuoles as soon as they hatch. This is done by making incisions into the forearms, and then immersing them into water suffused with white lumuoles. Each settlement has a ritual bath built over a hotspot and seeded with white lumuoles for this purpose.

 

These white lumuoles allow the hatchling to perform limited feats of telekinesis. Although they cannot move heavy objects, this telekinesis is a great aid to their tool manipulation abilities. In addition, it finds use in combat as well, allowing the use of weapons such as spiked chains or chain-maces that would otherwise be far too dangerous to the user to be practical. The white lumuoles also give sensitivity to magic used by other creatures.

 

The colonies glow faintly, leaving white patterns on the skin of the hatchling, that remain until death. These lekia, as they are called, have distinct traceries and patterns that indicate the settlement of origin, as well as often mimicking the patterns of some famous ancestor.

 

Upon reaching sexual maturity, Sorukaana are given a second set of lumuole symbiotes, the color of which can vary significantly. One of the most prominent among the nobility that dwell in the capital is blue, due to the nearby inland sea and the marshes, which are the primary hunting ground of the Dark Hunter packs. Due to this preference, middle-class Sorukaana often imitate this, even in locales where blue lumuoles would give only limited benefits.

 

Soldiers, as well as some prospective Dark Hunter packmembers, often take red lumuoles instead, as the fire producing abilities are highly valued in Windshriekers. It makes an individual a far more attractive pick for the pack, but often leads to societal pigeonholing as second-class.

 

Those Sorukaana who desire to become sorcerers are permitted, after intense testing and scrutiny, to take yellow lumuoles as a second symbiote. The first thing they learn to do is to access the power of the ubiquitous white lumuole to manifest power that would normally fall under the purview of another color. To increase their access to power, these sorcerers will often score themselves with intricate arcane patterns before immersing themselves over and over again in white lumuole pools, repeating this process often until their bodies become so covered with white lumuole veins that they appear albino, except for the golden traceries of the yellow lumuoles. Unlike other castes, sorcerers have lekia all over their bodies, although they still tend to cover their forearms due to societal modesty standards.

 

Sorcerers are forbidden from political office, but are otherwise highly respected, and each of the Dark Hunter bands includes one.

 

White lumuoles are invisible by design in the current model, and don't really react to stimuli on their own, so to do this you might want to invent a new kind that appears in your region.

[The Honey Badger he/him]

Could I claim the small bit of mountains and some of the surrounding jungle in the upper northern part of the main continent. I'm working on a race, humanoid in nature. Maybe nocturnal, called the Arakeans. They will have little affinity for lumuoles, but their physical adaptations will make up for this lack of ability.

[Seonid he/him]

White lumuoles are invisible by design in the current model, and don't really react to stimuli on their own, so to do this you might want to invent a new kind that appears in your region.

Hmm...interesting thought...maybe instead of using the white lumuoles themselves, they use the mineral deposits left behind. That would give better limitations on their capacity. And still, yellow lumuoles would be capable of covering magic from one source to another. It was the one you picked out for meta-magic options, after all.

[TwiLyghtSansSparkles she/her]

I just can't help but think that if it were passed down normally, cultures would treat male descendents sort of like, well... breeding studs, trying to get the bloodline into their society as quickly as possible.

 

First off, whether or not this happened would depend greatly on the culture. Some might treat male descendants like that, yes, but others would treat them like the demigods they were. I'm envisioning a kingdom where families compete fiercely for the chance to marry their daughter to a prince or noble demigod, bringing up those daughters to treat their husbands like kings, lest he decide not to give her a child out of pure spite. There's also the fact that these men would have powers beyond what others in their nations would have, granting them an automatic advantage. It simply makes more sense to me for cultures to treat male descendants well. 

 

Second, who's to say that—or something far, far worse—wouldn't happen to female descendants? Protecting the male descendants by having it pass matriarchally doesn't protect the female descendants by default. 

[Mckeedee123 he/him]

First off, whether or not this happened would depend greatly on the culture. Some might treat male descendants like that, yes, but others would treat them like the demigods they were. I'm envisioning a kingdom where families compete fiercely for the chance to marry their daughter to a prince or noble demigod, bringing up those daughters to treat their husbands like kings, lest he decide not to give her a child out of pure spite. There's also the fact that these men would have powers beyond what others in their nations would have, granting them an automatic advantage. It simply makes more sense to me for cultures to treat male descendants well. 

 

Second, who's to say that—or something far, far worse—wouldn't happen to female descendants? Protecting the male descendants by having it pass matriarchally doesn't protect the female descendants by default. 

 

That's one way to look at it. I guess that if nobody else agrees with me, then we'll just leave it up to people to decide how it's passed down, then.

[Grey Knight]

Could someone get me the details of the basics of the magic system? I want to claim part of the eastern island, but don't know enough yet.

[DanTheSeamonster he/him]

Kobold, TwiLyght, Morzathoth & Warden: Please check that you are happy with your spots.

Slowswift: I'll need a lot more information that that. Even if it's just a vague idea, you can still change it later.

 

Regarding a second continent, I'd rather it be displayed in such a manner that the current map doesn't have to shift. Either have it in the empty space, or right on the other side of the planet (we can make this where humans came from originally). I'm using Photoshop CS2 for making this, so I can reimport the image with a new continent on the side, but not if the continent itself has been shifted to fit the new one in. Does that make sense?

 

Anyway, here it is.

 

Who owns what.jpg

 

Hooray! I have neighbors! Mailliw, Gwslow and Edgedancer feel free to PM me if you have questions about my territory. Same goes for any future neighbors or even anyone else, really.  

 

Is there any kind of consensus on what the oceans, especially the southern oceans, are like thus far? I wanted to add more than just my seals, but I didn't want to conflict with anyone else's worldbuilding.

 

I was thinking of having my shores very rocky, although not cliffs like Winter's. As for flora and fauna, I haven't really come up with anything yet but I don't really have any objections to you doing so either.

 

It's kind of scary how fast this thread is moving. 5 days and 15 pages.

 

It's gloriously chaotic. 

 

Thanks everyone! I'm glad you like them. I have a map for one of the shores of the inland sea, so far, but I need to do more work on the continent as a whole. I'm not as good at climatography as Sir Jerric is. (Actually, Sir Jerric, I'd kind of like you to take a look at one of my maps and help me with that at some point. If you have the time...I can PM you with it.)

 

Anyways, here is the magic section! Mek, is it alright if I have symbiotic colonies of white lumuoles basic telekinesis, and serving as a power source for other kinds of magic? I just like the visual of sorcerer Dromeans so covered in white lumuole colonies that they look albino!

 

Magic

All Dromeans have a high magical potential, and the Sorukaana are no exception. Their settlements and cities are built around Lumuole hot spots, and each hatchling is given a symbiotic colony of white lumuoles as soon as they hatch. This is done by making incisions into the forearms, and then immersing them into water suffused with white lumuoles. Each settlement has a ritual bath built over a hotspot and seeded with white lumuoles for this purpose.

 

These white lumuoles allow the hatchling to perform limited feats of telekinesis. Although they cannot move heavy objects, this telekinesis is a great aid to their tool manipulation abilities. In addition, it finds use in combat as well, allowing the use of weapons such as spiked chains or chain-maces that would otherwise be far too dangerous to the user to be practical. The white lumuoles also give sensitivity to magic used by other creatures.

 

The colonies glow faintly, leaving white patterns on the skin of the hatchling, that remain until death. These lekia, as they are called, have distinct traceries and patterns that indicate the settlement of origin, as well as often mimicking the patterns of some famous ancestor.

 

Upon reaching sexual maturity, Sorukaana are given a second set of lumuole symbiotes, the color of which can vary significantly. One of the most prominent among the nobility that dwell in the capital is blue, due to the nearby inland sea and the marshes, which are the primary hunting ground of the Dark Hunter packs. Due to this preference, middle-class Sorukaana often imitate this, even in locales where blue lumuoles would give only limited benefits.

 

Soldiers, as well as some prospective Dark Hunter packmembers, often take red lumuoles instead, as the fire producing abilities are highly valued in Windshriekers. It makes an individual a far more attractive pick for the pack, but often leads to societal pigeonholing as second-class.

 

Those Sorukaana who desire to become sorcerers are permitted, after intense testing and scrutiny, to take yellow lumuoles as a second symbiote. The first thing they learn to do is to access the power of the ubiquitous white lumuole to manifest power that would normally fall under the purview of another color. To increase their access to power, these sorcerers will often score themselves with intricate arcane patterns before immersing themselves over and over again in white lumuole pools, repeating this process often until their bodies become so covered with white lumuole veins that they appear albino, except for the golden traceries of the yellow lumuoles. Unlike other castes, sorcerers have lekia all over their bodies, although they still tend to cover their forearms due to societal modesty standards.

 

Sorcerers are forbidden from political office, but are otherwise highly respected, and each of the Dark Hunter bands includes one.

 

I really like this, Seonid! I especially like the lekia. They're like awesome fantasy tattoos! 

 

I realize that most of my posts on this thread have just been crazily (sometimes incoherently) praising everything people say......... ah well. 

 

I'll actually contribute soon. I promise. Probably.

Edited September 21, 2015 by The Crooked Warden

[Kobold King he/him]

Could someone get me the details of the basics of the magic system? I want to claim part of the eastern island, but don't know enough yet.

 

There are scattered locations in the world known as hotspots, around which congregate glowing microorganisms called lumuoles. Lumuoles form symbiotic relationships with plants, animals, and sapient beings, allowing for different types of sorcery depending on the specific variety of lumuole.

 

Lumuole varieties are as follows:

 

• White lumuoles, which are inert and practically invisible. Over time their bodies can create useful mineral deposits, though.
• Red lumuoles have power over fire and heat, and are associated with industry and fertility.
• Blue lumuoles have power over water in all of its forms, and are associated with scholarship and mental acuity.
• Yellow lumuoles have power over electricity, and are associated with pride and sovereignity. They can be used for meta-magics, types of sorcery that directly affect other sources of magic.
• Green lumuoles have power over the winds, and are associated with life and joy.
• Orange  lumuoles have power over the earth and stone, and are associated with strength and resolve.
• Finally, purple lumuoles have powers over light and darkness, associated with fear and granting capabilities of illusion.

 

The three main races of Diaemus are humans, a sapient raptor species, and highly variable magic spiders that live in deep caverns under the earth. More details are available here.

 

Welcome to the fun!

 

 

Awesome work so far, everyone!

 

 

Is there any kind of consensus on what the oceans, especially the southern oceans, are like thus far? I wanted to add more than just my seals, but I didn't want to conflict with anyone else's worldbuilding.

 

I for one wouldn't mind if you started developing the southern oceans. If you want and no one else objects, I can try my hand at creating Mesozoic-inspired inhabitants of the polar ocean. I think there's a lot of potential in mosasaurs or ocean-going pterosaurs.

[Mailliw73 he/him]

Hooray! I have neighbors! Mailliw, Gwslow and Edgedancer feel free to PM me if you have questions about my territory. Same goes for any future neighbors or even anyone else, really.  

 

 

I was thinking of having my shores very rocky, although not cliffs like Winter's. As for flora and fauna, I haven't really come up with anything yet but I don't really have any objections to you doing so either.

That puts you close to the Niran part of the Mirani population, which will be detailed more in a post hopefully that will be up by tonight. Depending on how your people's culture is, there may be the opportunity to engage in a lot of border scuffles. The Niran are much more likely to fight than the Meran(up in the forests) are, due to their constant exposure to yellow lumuoles and general disposition. 

 

I was thinking of smooth beaches, but some rockiness would be good in the steppes. How about the further inland you go, towards your population, the rockier the beaches get, and the further west you go, the sandier and smoother they are? Twi, I hadn't thought of much of the ocean fauna except for fish.  If anyone further north than Twi wants to design creatures for the warmer seas, go for it. I'll incorporate them however.

Edited September 21, 2015 by Mailliw73

[Mailliw73 he/him]

So, I have the first, small part of the worldbuilding and lore around the Mirani peoples ready, but before I finish writing it in the current style, I'd like to know if you guys like this style or not. It takes a bit more effort than regular writing, so I'd rather not spend more time on it if you guys would rather me just explain it simply. Anyways, here it is:

 

Luti, she being a Meran historian of unequaled fame in the current times, composed a compilation of documents relating the history of the Mirani cultures. These are excerpts from that compilation. *

 

My father-long-father was Marino, a man of exceeding courage and idiocy in equal measure. He played with death often and almost lost every time, but always managed to win at the last play. Foredawn, one day-before-days, Marino leapt into the Sarmu Sea to capture a sea-speck, having a strongly strange attraction to the green lights. Sky-specks were rare in the Ferian forest, and the dead-grass-specks were rare enough. Fire-specks were inconsistent, but were seen often. Father-long-father, though, did have an attraction to sea-specks that did surpass the desires of anyone else.

 

When he did dive into the sea, foolish as it is, he did find a strongly large sea-speck in the water. He did swim after it, being chased by sea-beasts and a dead-grass sarmu, with its quick-hurt lights around it. Marino caught the sea-speck as the sarmu’s lights grabbed his leg, but long-father did catch the sea-speck in his mouth, it did feel strongly strange to him. The hurt in his leg was covered with the happiness and strangeness of the sea-speck in him.

 

 

*Translated directly from the document, some grammar and terms do not have an equal counterpart in English.

Edited September 22, 2015 by Mailliw73

[TwiLyghtSansSparkles she/her]

Here's what I have for the human-seal population so far. Neither race, nor the twin goddesses, have names because I suck at naming things. If anyone has a suggestion, I'd be happy to take it; otherwise, I'll scour the internet until I find something that fits.  

 

 

Religion

 

Their religion centers on two goddesses, twin sisters, who ascended from existence as pure spirits to become the mothers of their respective races. As both saw the tundra and frigid ocean in need of caretakers, they each chose one as the home and responsibility of their children. The twin who chose land took the form of a human; the one who chose sea took the form of a seal. Each twin passed their form onto their children. 

 

Although each race claims a different Twin as their Mother Goddess, the two cultures are so intertwined that anyone, seal or human, is as likely to pray to their Aunt as they are to their Mother. Seals pray to their Mother for good hunting, wisdom, and stability; they pray to their Aunt for courage, creativity, and protection over their children. Although humans address the seals' Aunt as Mother and Mother as Aunt, their prayers are much the same. 

 

Within this religion's worldview, the world is a gift from powers greater even than the Twins, to be watched over and cared for with kindness. Although humans and seals hunt to survive, they believe the creatures they hunt must be treated with respect. Killing for sport, killing in an exceedingly slow or painful manner, and wasting any part of a hunted animal is a mark of deep disrespect and is avoided at all costs. 

 

Great emphasis is placed on cooperation. Both humans and seals have justice systems focused on mutual understanding rather than retribution. Although exile is a punishment allowed by both systems, it is rarely used. Rather, the guilty are taken aside by the community and shown how their actions injured others. The injured are allowed to tell the guilty how they may make up for that injury, and the guilty are expected to fulfill those requirements. However, great emphasis is placed on making those requirements necessary and not excessively punitive or humiliating, as the goal is to rehabilitate. 

 

Culture

 

If there is any knowledge about the time before seals and humans lived together, the stories do not speak of them. For as long as any of the Far Southern people can remember, humans and seals were united. 

 

When a seal pup is born, its parents ensure he or she spends as much time in the human villages as it does with its own kind. Babies are brought to the coastline, or out in boats, to see their seal sisters. This allows pups and children to be raised bilingual: Although the seals are incapable of human speech, and humans are unable to accurately mimic the dizzying array of seal vocalizations, this socialization process allows them to grow up understanding what they cannot speak. However, an outsider will note that the Far Southern human language resembles sealsong in its somewhat musical quality, and in the clicks and other noises added throughout.

 

And that's what I have so far. I'll definitely add more later on, but so far that's it. 

[Young Bard he/him]

@Kobold: You mentioned a 'crisis in the North' which drove the Ice Kin south. I also had a crisis in mind, which drove my species (which I'm still developing) underground.

 

About my species. They use lumuoles as a light source (but I may change this, because it's too much like spheres), and get food sources from green lumuole infested fields (because of this, most of them actually have minute traces of green lumuole powers). They have a few small populated areas which have been hollowed out, but it's dangerous to travel between them, because a particularly savage tribe of the spiders has set themselves up in the caverns. Whenever a small group passes by, they attack and pillage... something (lumuole related, maybe?), but when an armed force comes through, they are able to slink back into the background. I think they have orange lumuole powers, as they can quickly create burrows and pathways in the earth with their spittle, which acts like acid on the ground (if this is stretching what you had in mind for them, then never mind). In fact, they have a form of capital punishment there, in which the condemned can either go into the non-populated parts of the caverns, or climb out onto the surface. Sorry for the disorganized nature of this post, I'm just writing down stuff as I remember it.

[Lindel he/him]

Re: Kobold

See my newest post

Re: Lindel

Wasn't it purple for illusions? That's cool, though. There's purple in mine too, so there could be some overlap.

I was actually thinking they'd manipulate the water in the air, but perhaps it'd make more sense for them to mess with heat or light. Edited September 22, 2015 by Lindel

[Grey Knight]

Thanks for the information, Kobold. Very appreciated. 

 

Can I get some geographical info about that eastern landmass? I plan to settle some kind of minor species there. I really don't have any ideas about said species, though. Any suggestions? I would prefer a humanoid/human that is genetically bonded in some way to lumoles.

[Zathoth]

Kobold, TwiLyght, Morzathoth & Warden: Please check that you are happy with your spots.

Slowswift: I'll need a lot more information that that. Even if it's just a vague idea, you can still change it later.

 

Regarding a second continent, I'd rather it be displayed in such a manner that the current map doesn't have to shift. Either have it in the empty space, or right on the other side of the planet (we can make this where humans came from originally). I'm using Photoshop CS2 for making this, so I can reimport the image with a new continent on the side, but not if the continent itself has been shifted to fit the new one in. Does that make sense?

 

Anyway, here it is.

 

Who owns what.jpg

That should be ok. Im still not quite sure what all the colors mean (Or what the names really mean...) but it is a rainforest, right?

[TwiLyghtSansSparkles she/her]

I for one wouldn't mind if you started developing the southern oceans. If you want and no one else objects, I can try my hand at creating Mesozoic-inspired inhabitants of the polar ocean. I think there's a lot of potential in mosasaurs or ocean-going pterosaurs.

 

If you want to, go for it!  

[Lindel he/him]

If you want to, go for it!

I've been planning to use something in my region based on the mosasaurus. I may or may not end up stealing whatever Kobold comes up. Edited September 22, 2015 by Lindel

[Mailliw73 he/him]

Any opinions on the tone of that sample of Mirani history?