I've been wanting to make a thread like this for a while, and I finally got around to it.Basicly, if you could design your own Empire what would it be like? Not just in game terms, but any way you want. Culturally, architecturally, racially, high magic, low magic, no magic, do the warriors use steel, bronze, iron, etc. Anything, everything, nothing (although I guess your post would feel a bit redundant if you opt for 'nothing').
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The Ursaris Hierarchy (Or, 'Hierarchy of the Bear'; i.e. natural law)
The Ursari Nation, formally the Imperial Ursaris Hierarchy of God-Lord Varenus of Sol'Avalon and All Associated Territories, is a human (Ursan) kingdom primarily based around the peninsula of Sol'Avalon (literally 'island of the apples of the sun'), as well as the 'associated territories' of the Scanian Traverse; Norda & Elona.
The Ursan only have one major city, which coincidently is also their capital city - the Towers of Varencia, the myriad city of azurite, quartz and onyx.
GovermentThe Ursari goverment is a hierarchial meritocracy, at least in theory, ultimately ruled by a oligarchal magocracy of mage-priests, called Priors, and the Grand Theokrator & God-Lord, Emperor Varenus. Society is structured by 4 distinct castes across 41 tiers of citizenship.
The base caste is that of the civilian, and is also the first social tier. This is the caste of all children below the age of military service, but also the caste of foreign auxiliaries troops, workers born of ursan blood but not within the confines of the empire (and thus not previously subject to it's laws at the time), and mercenaries who have finished a full tour of duty (and made an appeal for citizenship).
Formal citizenship, the right to partake in the variety of processes, social services and rights are only granted upon the entry to the second caste, granted upon the conclusion of compulsory military service. The second caste is considered that of the merchant, although the majority of people, including the bulk of workers, are part of this caste. This is followed by the caste of warriors & soldiers, from the Private to the General. The fourth caste is that of the nobility and priesthood, ranging from Knights and Noblemen, to that of the illustrious Primarchs - formally the Priors are also part of this caste, but in reality, they comprise an inofficial fifth caste, pulling from all the other castes directly into their own.
Higher-ranked citizens are expected to lead and protect subordinates. Lower-ranking citizens are expected to obey and support superiors. Promotion to another tier of citizenship is based on the personal assessment of one's superiors. Throughout their lives, ursans ascend to the higher tiers and are occasionally 'demoted' to lower ones. The stigma associated with demotion lies not on the individual, but on those who promoted him when he wasn't ready for additional responsibility. This curbs the tendency to promote individuals into positions beyond their capabilities.
Settling into a role and rank is not considered stagnation, and knowing one's own limitations are valued higher than being ambitious.
There are also casteless, considered unclean and unworthy. These are virtually everyone who is not part of the Ursaris Hierarchy or the Ursan race, those that are of differing religion, or virtually anyone who do not meet the demands of the first caste & social tier.
ReligionReligion within the Ursaris Hierarchy & Empire is straight-forward: "God-Lord Varenus is our God and Lord, and the Priors are his Priors" (lit. "Firsts"; i.e. Prophets). All his strictures are to be obeyed and orders issued by his priests (Priors, Paladins, Primarchs, Priests and Palatines) are as spoken by God himself. Missuse or corruption by any of these (Palatines being the lowest of initiates, often young and foolhardy) are punished harshly, often by extended months of perpetual torture followed by a slow death, cermonially boiled in an alchemical mix of pus and acid.
The Ursan religion teaches sacrifice, restraint, patriotism, loyality, racial homogenity, leadership & responsability, and is inseperable from the the caste system and govermental structure of the state.
The religion is not as stagnant or rigid as it may sound, favouring adaption to any situation that is at hand while maintaining the basic principles of the religion and state. The Priors are the highest authority throughout all of society and amongst them, there is a great deal of competition for the favour of God. While actual corruption is almost unheard of, amongst the priors there are no actual hierarchy - they are all of the fourth caste, 41st tier. This leads to numerous arguments on policies, laws and regulations - and ultimately even assassinations, murders and personal wars between Priors. This is in itself not opposed by God-Lord Varenus, but in times of necessity or erosion of loyalties, he will step in, often culling several priors with holy fire - often not just the offenders, but also those priests that share any ties to those priors.
While the strictures in the Book of Ursa are many, and the holy book is thousands of pages, there is a set of immutable principles that are adamant and neverchanging, eternal.
CultureRemarkably, the culture of the people and religious fanaticism of their leaders are remarkably dissimilar. While the principles of religion are strong, most of the Ursan enjoy relative freedom in their everyday life. Even those of the fourth caste, even priests like the Paladins, can be suprisingly profane and worldly in their approach to their duties, and it is not uncommon that Primarchs and Paladins focus much more on whatever duty at hand, rather than religious dogma. Primarchs as politicians, nobles or high-ranking merchants, and Paladins on the theatres of war.
Surrounded mostly by forest in a modestly temperate zone, the Ursan is a hearty people, fond of food, drinks and games, and the lower castes and tiers distinctly favour the glory of labour higher than almost anything. This fosters a reliable working class, wheter it be farmers, lumberjacks or masons. As you go higher amongst the castes and tiers, this becomes higher and higher aspirations - merchants of the second caste generally favour science and cultural pursuits, the third caste excellence in combat or governance, and the fourth caste naturally divided between that of religious-magical pursuits and politics.
Magic is restricted entirely to the priesthood, powers granted directly by God-Lord Varenus. Unsanctioned magic, naturally outside the Church, are strictly prohibited and subject to inquisitorial investigations. This has lead to a lasting animosity between those in power, the state and church, and the average man. The freedom to aspire within the confines of your merits, to ascend to virtually any caste (the Priori Council and the Church excluded) does much to harmonize this, however. The real or percieved superiority of the Priori Council and that of God-Lord Varenus ultimately prevents any real dissent, potential leaders of rebels or heretics being assassinated long before they can actually prove any harm.
The idea of choice has an integral part in Ursari culture. No matter the situation, any and all Ursan always have a choice. Wheter this choice is good or bad, is entirely ambigious. Ultimately, all that matters are the end results. "A man chooses, a slave obeys" is a common proverb and a form the basis of this logic. Servitude, the individuals place in the hierarchy, and faith thus becomes a matter of choice; the issue of heresy as a choice in turn a matter of choice vs. choice. As someone may choose one path, others are free to choose to oppose this path, resulting in a fluidous equilibrium of actions and reactions. Ultimately, an apollonian balance of modesty becomes the cultural dogma as a result.
Revering the bear above all other animals, this is a common motiff amongst the populance, if not for outright worship as much as solemn reverance. While furs are generally uncommon as clothing, bear furs is a sign of respect, since a man is only allowed to wear the fur of a bear that he has killed himself in fair combat. Likewise, only the knights or higher standings are allowed to ride and care for domesticated bears, being the ultimate sign of mutual respect; For surely a bear blesses his rider, allowing it's rider to care for him so readily, carrying him into battle in turn.
EconomicsThe Ursaris Hierarchy are loosely governed by state-regulated guilds that promote an overall closed free market principle, emulating a form of national mercantilism. Overall, people within the appropriate castes are free to go about their business, the guilds being more of a cultural institution supported by the state, rather than a necessity or matter of law. Farmers, for example, are relatively free to go about whatever business they want, selling their wares on temporary merchant stalls or selling their harvest to actual salesmen. Comparatively, the Carpenters Guild exerts strict control and rulings over their members, almost brutally pursuing those that seek to upset what they percieve to be the fair balance between prices and work.
It is not uncommon for guilds to be almost entirely under the control of one or a council of Primarch trade-lords, but this is, just like everything else relating to the guilds, very different from guild to guild. It is not unheard of for individual Priors to take an interest in guild businesses, exterting whatever powers they can without arousing suspicion - sometimes forging lasting trade alliances over a multitude of guilds. This control is never overt, however, fearing the condemnation of other priors.
Military Doctrine(s) The Hierarchy's military doctrines are, like so much else, tied strongly to tradition and religion. With large forces of conscripted military aswell as masses of professional soldiers - virtually anyone from the third or fourth caste are ready for combat at any time.
Relying heavily on subterfuge, large portions of the professional military are not regular footsoldiers - this being relegated to the lower castes of conscripts, often comparatively poorly armed. Instead, professional soldiers tend to be the elite force, carrying out devestating hit-and-run attacks against enemy armies, disappearing before the enemy can properly react.
Highest amongst the honored, however, stands the Bear Knights and Paladins. Far from the subterfuge of the specialist strike teams, these knights in light plate ride atop massive bears, wielding light, elongated swords, lochaber axes, or spears, depending entirely on the decision of the knight himself. Knights and above are the only ones allowed to ride these noble creatures, bonding with them during the course of their lives, starting as squires. Particulary successfull knights, paladins and so forth may be blessed by Varenus himself, to further strengthen the bond between the rider and the bear, or the longevity of both. There are pairings of bear and rider that have endured for well over 58 years of active duty, seeing generations of lesser warriors grow up and pass by. So deep is this bond that when either part dies, the other part rarely lives long afterwards, and their military career is almost certainly over.
-:Heroes of the Hierarchy:-- Iracam Thresk - Prior Nylathem - Socratio -
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And that's it folks. It took a while, but I'm quite happy with how it turned out. By all means, please describe your own nation!
I'm to tired (and lazy) to come up with one right now... Buts heres a good starter for someone else:
Grammar Nazis
I'll take the bait.
Grammar Nazis:
Government:
They are nazis, so that should be totalitarianistic socialism. The government has very strong policies against liberal use of language.
Religion:
At Facism is where it is. The state of one's grammar and government is of the utmost importantance. They will not stand for any of these Aryan languages or ideas. (Aryan originally was used to describe languages that derived from a common ancestor language, so grammar nazis would be the opposite in that reguard from regular nazis)
Most religious works have been removed from the land by the Grammar Nazis because of their old and un-conforming holy texts. It becomes really hard to even tell exactly what they believe, because any attempt to discuss religion results in an outbreak of debate on whether or not 'god' should be treated as a proper noun.
Culture:
They are nationalists with strong anti-libral views. They love their language and those they view to be worthy of the title. They enforce harsh laws to keep people with what are considered poor speaking and writing habits from procreating. As the laws progress, not just people with poor linguist ability were targeted, but multilinguals that got their grammar and syntax confused as well.
Economy:
Socialism and militarism (and grammarism?).
Special building:
Grammar Nazi school of language: Replaces library; spreads culture at an extreme rate. Nobody can escape the lectures of the grammar nazis
Special unit/ special ability:
Panzer cart + preposition cannon: mind effecting: Using the confusion caused by the common mistake of ending a sentance with an incomplete prepositional phrase, the grammar nazis cause people to be unable to determine where exactly "they are at" or which castle "they should get in" until it is far too late. It throws orders into complete madness, completely locking a town's production and ability to defend itself.
I'll take the bait.Grammar Nazis:Government:They are Nazis, so that should be totalitarian socialism. The government has very strong policies against liberal use of language.Religion:At Fascism is where it is. The state of one's grammar and government is of the utmost importance. They will not stand for any of these Aryan languages or ideas. (Aryan originally was used to describe languages that derived from a common ancestor language, so grammar Nazis would be the opposite in that regard from regular Nazis)Most religious works have been removed from the land by the Grammar Nazis because of their old and un-conforming holy texts. It becomes really hard to even tell exactly what they believe, because any attempt to discuss religion results in an outbreak of debate on whether or not 'god' should be treated as a proper noun.Culture:They are nationalists with strong anti-liberal views. They love their language and those they view to be worthy of the title. They enforce harsh laws to keep people with what are considered poor speaking and writing habits from procreating. As the laws progress, not just people with poor linguist ability were targeted, but multi linguals that got their grammar and syntax confused as well.Economy:Socialism and militarism (and grammarism Grammarism is not a real word.). Special building: Grammar Nazi school of language: Replaces library; spreads culture at an extreme rate. Nobody can escape the lectures of the grammar Nazis Special unit/ special ability:Panzer cart + preposition cannon: mind effecting: Using the confusion caused by the common mistake of ending a sentence with an incomplete prepositional phrase, the grammar nazis cause people to be unable to determine where exactly "they are at" or which castle "they should get in" until it is far too late. It throws orders into complete madness, completely locking a town's production and ability to defend itself.
I fixed it.
HA HA HA HA
Awesome! I was hoping somebody would do that. Shows who the real grammar nazi is around here. I'm actually happy that without the use of any word processors, I averaged only about 2 misspelled words per paragraph. In spite of any jobs I've held as a writer, I am still terrible at spelling.
That being said, I did try to look up some spellings and my research says that "multilingual" is in fact 1 word.
Really good stuff. Karma given!
Now to find time to work on my Fallen (Drow) race faction.
My own experience and confirmation from several others who've had to 'work prose' in various fashions suggests that no matter how good you were at spelling when you were a young student, steady exposure to the sloppiness of others will chip away at your skills. I first heard this from one of my high school mentors who sponsored the newspaper and yearbook. I heard it from some of my college instructors, and later from similar folks when I did some part-time college teaching. And I've seen it in my own work both writing for students and for IT-related blah-blah-blah.
Getting involved in arguments about when and how often to hyphenate only makes matters worse (project style sheets are a great blessing in this area). Comma wars are probably worse, though. Right now, I'm firmly in the 'separate all elements in a list with commas' camp, but the journos hate being bothered with that level of accuracy and their slapdash standards seem to end up 'trickling out' to almost everyone else.
I take your words as support, GW. However I fear my spelling as a young student were much worse than it is now, so it doesn't apply to me. My position(s) as a writer or journalist is based mostly on the passion for what topic of writing is in place.
I'm firmly in the "put camma in every place where I think there should be one gramatically and where I feel a pause is required to help make the sentance not appear to be a run-on" Generally I'm pretty accurate I believe based on how english teachers respond to my writing, but I know I have room for improvement.
Now that we have the release around the corner, I thought I'd just bump this little gem up to the top. Surely someone has something interesting to contribute with?
Questions, Approvals, Remarks, Concerns, Critiques?
Masters of Tartarus:
worship death, worship warfare
all citizens are called masters, as they are masters of their own fate.
The elite wear opaque contacts to strike fear and confusion in their opponents. And wield swords infused with the energies of souls.
The Masters worship a pantheon of Angels governing Death, Warfare, Strength, Focus, and Storms.
beyond the pantheon, the Masters believe in the existence of other Gods, Demons, and Angels. Governing all aspects of the world, and of human thought and emotion. Due to the vast multitude of supernatural beings, all of them are referred to as a catchall term "demon" with no reference to good or evil.
Occasionally the masters travel to other worlds in search of these demons, to best them in combat and capture their souls for power.
The main force of law is a system of 'Karmic Law.' Their view is that explicitly defined rules cannot always be correct, therefore judgment is rather gray and situational. There are of course many tenets and guidelines ... as well as mantras for expressing the power of your own soul. However, ultimately guilt and innocence are determined by a complex system of Aura based Karma and situational Justification. Such Karma can usually be seen by analyzing a person's soul ... not just their individual soul, but the strings that reach out to others. Such Karma is of course processed through a legal system, that attempts to track the source of negative karma. Depending on the situational circumstances of their negative karma, they are either allowed to walk free or are considered Karmic Criminals. Most Karmic criminals end up marked for death at one point or another. People killed when they are "marked for death" have their souls consumed for other uses. Even if a "marked for death" dies before their sentencing, Thanatos may attempt to hunt down their souls in the Netherworld. The gathering of the souls of those marked for death is a higher priority than collecting the souls of demons.
If negative karma was related to direct service to the State, then it is legally absolved. Most of these instances result from police-work and warfare.
Those negatively effected by "karmic negative events" can challenge those that wounded them in a one on one Death Duel. For instance, if a family felt wronged by a policeman. If they want justice without combat, they can appeal the negative karmic review to re-review their case. The ability to read a person's soul (a product of centuries of soul experimentation and research) lead to a very high success rate of "true justice" for the people of Tartarus.
Those that do not wish to be a part of society and its rules may either leave Tartarus or partake in the Death Trials. There is no Karmic Law in the Death Trials. The only thing in the Death Trials is raw and pure combat. One on one battles, usually to the death. The death trials are gladiatorial battles for those that wish only for combat. It is quite possible that a veteran of the Death Trials may be recruited into the military. If the city of Tartarus is directly threatened, all members of the Death Trials are temporarily recruited into the armed services for as long as the thread remains. During that time, an elite "soul soldier" commands and trains each squad of Death Trial soldiers. To kill their commander is a crime punishable by being marked for death (meaning that their soul would be consumed, rather than left to enjoy the afterlife).
The members of the Death Trials are allowed peace in the afterlife, and are not pursued by Thanatos as a wanted criminal. That is, most soldiers of the Death Trials will not have their souls devoured as the result of Karmic law. The Trials are a place for those troubled, and for those in the gray areas of Judgment and guilt. Those that are not 100% guilty are able to absolve their sins by either seeking repentance or joining the death trials.
In addition, those that simply wish to fight have three options. First, they can join the military. However even then they may partake in the other two options, the only drawback being that they have to answer to superiors. Second, they can challenge anyone to a fight to the death. Those with negative karma cannot refuse, with the exception being Thanatos agents with negative karma. Third, they may enter and exit the Death Trials at their whim. A person that wishes to fight to the death at lunchtime, may do so and be back home by dinner (if they survive). They may also visit the arena of souls ... however if they are accidentally killed in the arena of souls, their spirit may continue to fight on, enter the library, or wander throughout the rest of the Netherworld.
There are two specialized Worlds crafted in the Netherworld (by the soul-masters of Tartarus), specifically to accommodate the souls of Dead masters.
One is an arena of souls ... where souls can battle each other, and military personnel, for all eternity. It is forbidden to use the soul of a person in the arena of souls. Therefore, souls that are defeated in combat are not consumed (as would happen to a demon or criminal), but instead are allowed to regenerate and fight again.
The other is the Celestial Library, which holds all knowledge available to Tartarus. The souls of dead Tartarus citizens may travel freely between the Arena and the Library. Living citizens may also enter either, however one must prove themselves in the arena of souls before being allowed access to the Celestial Library.
One of the tasks of Thanatos is to guard these worlds from possible enemies of the state (including supernatural beings and other world-travelers)
THANATOS is an organization made up entirely of veteran elites that have proven their mettle in combat numerous times. They all wear black contacts and wield specially forged swords fused with the souls of the most powerful demons. Each time an exceptionally powerful demon is slain, their soul marks an opening for a new agent of THANATOS. If the soldier that killed the demon did so in one on one combat, they automatically get the position.
Thanatos agents have no uniform, and the members can wear and do almost anything they want. The only true exception is that they may not engage in combat anyone that does not wish for death, unless that person is marked for death.
Thanatos agents are, however, expected to uphold Karmic Law ... and to exterminate those that are marked for death.
The duties of Thanatos include keeping the city of Tartarus safe from external and internal threats, to protect the realms of the dead, to hunt those marked for death, and to collect the souls of demons.
Anyone that kills a Thanatos agent, without prior permission from that agent, joins the ranks of those marked for death. They can either seek Repentance by Karmic thought and action, combined with beseeching understanding from the Organization of THANATOS, or they can enter the Death Trials. Those that do not seek Repentance and also do not join the death trials, instead ignoring their transgression, will eventually be exterminated by Thanatos ... and have their soul consumed by the military.
PANDORA is an organization of soul warriors that are researchers. The organization also employs civilian scientists as well. The various departments of Pandora have been the lead developers of soul-based technology for decades now. Pandora operatives use the power of souls to conduct Biological phenomenon. They can transform themselves into Dragons and Serpents, as well as create Weapons from their very bodies.
A Pandora Agent may turn his arm into a sword, his spine into wings, and his skin into hardened scales ... in preparation of a battle.
Fighting a Pandoran is often like fighting a formless cloud, because they can change size, shape, and texture rather quickly. Their hand is a Talon, then a blade, then a hammer, and then a Sickle.
While THANATOS worships the majestic angel of death, PANDORA worships the Serpent Angel of War. A great Dragon with powerful wings and claws. Some members also worship lesser angels of knowledge, or focus. However Death and War are the two most powerful angels in the Pantheon of Tartarus.
speaking of the Pantheon, at the top is Death, followed by War. below them are Strength, Focus, and Storms.
Most others are considered lesser, however the one that stands out the most is the Great Lizard of Knowledge. The Great Lizard isn't as powerful as the other angels, yet he is revered by Society as one of the pillars of civilization.
If the Masters of Tartarus capture enemies during warfare (including a city), all enemies with negative karma are immediately consumed without review.
For the others, some are thrown into the Death Trials, others may be drafted into the military, and the rest are allowed to continue living their lives.
If a city is fully captured and integrated into the ways of Tartarus, there are usually many Duels to the Death that follow. However, after a couple of years most that have been wronged are either dead, avenged, or have long left for other lands ... which leads to a significant increase in stability.
empire 2
Tribe of Ragnarok
worships Fire, worships Dragons
patron gods ... Surt and Tiamat
lesser dieties- angels of Strength, Warfare, and Storms ... and Serpent of arcane knowledge
- cosmic opposition (Surt "fire" vs Shiva "ice") (Serpent of Arcane vs Great Lizard of Knowledge)
citizens= Ragonites, Nation Adjective= Raganden
ex: Ragonites prefer to use Raganden weapons
Ragonites are half-dragon denizens that prefer to live in Caverns, and organize themselves into Tribes and Clans.
Ragonites start with a trait called "Lizard skin" which grants 20% fire resistance and 10% ice weakness. At 10th level, this upgrades to "Dragon skin" which grants 50% fire resistance (and 10% resistance to all other). They are bipedal and intelligent.
All Ragonites inherently know the spell "Ignite" and "Flame-Dragon"
Ignite rolls caster Int*2 vs target's Wis+Char ... success grants the "Burning" status to the target
Flame-Dragon- Int% chance to summon a Flame-Elemental with the form of a Dragon, gives "burning" status to all adjacent units not resistant to fire.
at 10th level, Ragonites learn "explosion" which deals Int - Int*2 fire damage to an area of 9 tiles (square)
Ragonite Priests start with "flame skin" ( fire immune and 50% ice weakness), at 10th level this upgrades to "molten body" (fire immune, 20% electricity resist, 20% earth resist, 20% physical resist, 10% ice weakness)
Ragonite Priests start with "Fire Spit" (Int/2 - Int)% damage on 1 tile, 5 tile range. Ragonite priests have double chances for summoning a Flame Dragon, and Ragonite priests learn explosion at level 5.
Ragonites believe that the "end of the world" will occur when all dragons rise up against the world and destroy it in a "fiery armageddon." The next world will be a reptilian paradise for all reptile species (but especially lizards/ half-dragons like themselves, + the dragons they worship)
Ragonites are quite Xenophobic, especially towards humans and less-so vs the Fallen races. Ragonites also have a slight rivalry with various Serpent races, although due to their favor of the Serpent of Arcane, this rivalry does not prevent trade agreements or alliances.
Ragonites make weapons out of the strange tree-like fungus that grows within their Cavernous homes. The resulting weapons are less durable, yet much faster compared to their Steel Counterparts. Heavy Armor made out of their fungus is equally less reliable, yet does not hinder movement.
Some ragonites are born with wings, allowing for limited movement on the battlefield via flight. At level 10, these wings grow Massive. All other ragonites mysteriously gain these massive wings at level 20. In either case, the combat attitudes of Ragonites tend to change once they aquire these massive wings.
They act as great angels of destruction, sweeping across the battlefield in great Winged Charges. These Ragonites prefer Obsidian or Steel weaponry (as well as sturdier legendary weapons) in order to increase the lethality of their charges by more appropriately absorbing the impact. (heavier weapons cause more damage, charge "may" increase attack by x%. Therefore, heavy weapons cause more bonus charge damage)
Ragonites with massive wings usually recieve greater political and social favor. They are seen as a higher caste of Ragonites, with special priveledges. A Tribal Chieftan, or a Clan leader, will usually have Massive Wings. However, economic skill and Leadership skill (especially in battle) are also calculated, and Famous wing-less tacticians have been known to become Tribe leader.
Clans are largely divided by Skin pigmentation, although other characteristics can also serve to define Clan boundaries. All clans contain some members that are born with wings. Although the Sky-Mountain clan has the highest number of winged citizens. Usually skin-pigmentation and other qualities are somewhat dependent on geo-topographic location, and as politics are also dependent on geo-topographic location, most Tribes (political organizations) consist largely of a single clan. Most clans are thus separated into various political Tribes, while most Tribes consist largely of a single clan.
all clans however, refer to themselves as part of the "Great Tribe of Ragnarok" or the "Chosen Tribe of Tiamat and Surt"
warfare may break out between tribes, although it is usually small skirmishes and espionage, largely serving only to increase the overall strength of all Raganden Civilization. War between clans, however, is sometimes more serious. Even so, even those wars rarely take battle all the way to the Cities-> Bastions of civilization constructed in the largest of caverns within each Tribe's domain. Usually such battles are over resources on the surface, or in smaller tunnels.
Each Clan has a "Paragon" who can be seen as the Pride of the entire clan. A Paragon is usually a Tribal Chief, although is sometimes retired from society to become a hermit. Either way, Paragons are very wise and powerful.
The Sky Mountain Clan are a grey-blue Clan that are slimmer and weaker than the rest. They can usually run faster, see farther, and have the most winged citizens of any other clan. They live in caves high up in the mountains, and even have a few functioning villages upon the surface; usually on a cliff or a mountain ledge. They have the most numerous sky-knights, although not necessarily the strongest.
The Amazon Clan are Dark-Green lizards that have forsaken actual Caves for the Cavernous foliage of the Jungles of Elemental.They prefer to construct their Cities high in the Villages of Jungles, Rainforests, and Swamps. The least Xenophobic of the Ragonites, they maintain small villages at ground level, in more accessible locations, in order to conduct trade with other races. Even so, they would never trust a human enough to turn their back to one. The Amazon Clan are the best at Knowledge of all Ragonites, even going as far as to revere the Serpent and Lizard equally; and also have slightly better Trade and Diplomacy abilities.
The Shadow Clan are a black and purple clan that live in the Farthest (and darkest) of Caverns. They have a natural immunity to curses (perhaps achieved through alchemic biology long ago) as well as a resistance to poisons/toxins. Most of the shadow clan prefer to dip their weapons in poison, and to fight their battles based on trickery and deception. The Shadow Clan have the best dark-vision, and they are slightly weaker outside in the sunlight. The Shadow Clan are Ragonites most skilled in the Arcane. The Serpent of the Arcane is even considered a third patron god. Because of this, relations with Serpent races are much closer. In some cases, the Shadow Clan may even be convinced to side with a Serpent Race against one of the other clans. Their fire-magic isn't the strongest, but their priests and magic users have access to more spells ... illusion and curse spells particularly.
The Fire Clan is a red clan that boast themselves to be the "Paragons of all Raganden kin." They are rather arrogant and consider themselves the best of all Ragonites, and more than that they consider Ragonites far better than all other races (other than true dragons). So much so, in fact, that they wouldn't to hesistate attacking a "weaker race" even if they employed a true Dragon. For the Fire Clan, any Dragons that deal with lesser races "have gone soft and/or corrupt." And as such, they would not hesitate to attack a Dragon that works for another race. All Fire Ragonites have an extra 10% fire resistance, and their fire spells deal more damage. The Fire Clan is also more physically strong than the other Clans, although they are poorly skilled diplomatically. (and are not exactly bookworms). The Fire Clan is also the most war-like clan, and is the Clan most likely to send armies to the surface against other races. The Fire Clan would even capture enemy cities and enslave other races.
The Pharaoh Clan is a golden-bronze clan that long ago were the rulers and overseers of the Shadow clan.
//(backstory) The origin of the argument is long forgotten, however the assassination of the Pharaoh's Clan Paragon (also a Tribal leader) sparked a Civil War that resulted in a permanent split of the two factions. The Shadow clan went deeper into the caves, and the Pharaohs were kicked out of the caves and began a long journey across the surface. The clan found themselves in a massive desert with seemingly no end. Many of their kin died out in the trek, and those that survived became accustomed to the endless bright light, alternated by moonless nights of pure darkness. Eventually they came to a massive Pyramid surrounded by a great oasis. The Pyramid, however, was already home to a group of renegade human bandits, whom had first discovered the long abandoned Pyramid. After a brief struggle within the Oasis, the Pharaohs had enslaved the human bandits to do their bidding. As pockets of humans were discovered either within the temple, or wandering the deserts, they were added to the growing numbers of human slaves. These Pharaohs then used the deepest Catacombs of the Pyramid to begin excavating a new Cavernous home, as the rock surrounding the catacombs were sturdy, far below the shifting sands of the desert. The most powerful and ambitious would always keep to the surface to oversee their new human slaves. While they had not Tree-like fungus, they were able to create new types of fungus for the purposes of feeding their growing population. Eventually they reverse-engineered the Pyramid and were able to build their own, usually far away near the source of another oasis. At each pyramid, a surface city of human slaves, and an underground city of Ragonites would expand. Each pyramid would later become its own tribe, mainly due to separation by distance, but also due to the chaos introduced by the Titans and later the Cataclysm. After the Titans arrived, the Wisest and Trickiest of the Pharaoh clan was able to steal a limited yet powerful amount of technology from them. This technology allowed them to slowly transform their population of human slaves into Magnar slaves. The main difference from "true" magnar, or titan magnar, was that their loyalty belonged to the Ragonites. Eventually the technology was lost.//
(Their surface cities are Magnar race, their Subterranean cities are Ragonite. All of their champions, leaders, and royalty are Ragonite.) The Pharaoh Clan is also immune to curses, although lacks poison resistance. Their Priests also have access to Curse spells, but not illusion spells. At 10th level, Pharaoh Ragonites may acquire Perfect Vision. Due to the lack of Fungus trees, they use more normalized weapons and armor, as well as any Obsidian they may find from their subterranean tunnels. As such, they will often trade out of necessity with other races for resources such as Metal (and possibly horses for Magnar slaves). The Pharaoh Clan and their Magnar slaves also suffer no penalty from the desert (such as movement, etc ... and possibly an overall +1 movement on desert terrain). Pharaoh Ragonites can also run across the desert a bit faster than most other races (during battle). Pharaoh Ragonites (of at least third level) are also immune to the Blind status effect.
That's good stuff, Lucky. I notice you use the name "Ursa" in your faction. Ursa, like a Bear. Still wishing for that Bear Cav huh?
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