Eternal Glory: Creating a Fantasy Empire in 55 Votes

[X] 28. Muscular Giants (Theban)
- [X] Problem: Betrayal, Loneliness, and Entrapment
- [X] Solution: Karma, Soulbonds, and Fate
- [X] A Set of Techniques: Enforcement of Fate, Social Engagement, and Divination
- [X] Exemplary Figures: Enforcers, Socialites, Oracles
- [X] Divinity: Polytheistic
- [X] Magic Source: Fate

The Thebans are known for their ever-spinning relationships with naturally complex and often unstable dynamics that lead to woe. Their society places a high focus on the bonds between each other, so when those bonds are betrayed, untethered or bound too tight, it is considered a great tragedy.

They believe that Fate is a powerful force and that it swirls all into its story, that is defined by associations, connections and above of all feeling. If one is to get ahead in life, one must be aware of the various tropes, pitfalls and genre conventions that affect their life, and to see ahead into their story. They must gather as much information as they can from what they observe, but must also be aware of the patterns, omens and the consensus on what people think. While there may be secrets, the public has a form of consciousness that can bypass them in part.

There is no traditional Theban priesthood, but rather a set of roles that anyone may slip into in order to accomplish their goals. Some professionalize this, but there are many divisions in this as some specialize in a certain function while others may overlap or oppose it.

The Enforcers are those who enforce fate and ensure that it functions properly. They act as a form of karmic law enforcement, with this being highly subjective due to differences in genre and must consult others in order to make sure that they do not disrupt the fabric of fate. They might decide that in order to properly motivate someone into their full potential, that they must become their rival, friend or love interest. On the other hand, they might punish those who defy fate, with it being considered an art to ironically punish people and end up with the fate that they were trying to avoid by their own hand.

The Socialites are those who set the stage for society, they coordinate and attend events in order to set the stage for fate to decide what is to happen. While everyone is usually at some point a low-level Socialite, those who focus on this path often end up becoming a mixture of event planner and lawyer as they often set up complex sets of social rituals and rules of engagement, from the rules of athletic activity to that of the hedonistic orgies. Through this, they act as those who guide fate into the forms they wish to see, though even they may be surprised by what may arise.

The Oracles are often considered the most formal and evangelical, as they seek to educate themselves in the ways of fate and use various methods of divination in order to try to glean the shape of it but most importantly seek to warn people about prophecy. While even children learn various tropes through stories and play at divination, there is much learning to be done before one can be trusted as a reliable oracle, but it is by no means a career limited to only those who specialize in it. A laborer would listen to the stories of their comrades and come up with a prophecy of rebellion that they shall enforce.

Moreover, there is the fundamental focus on relationships that cannot be denied. It is said that the most powerful form of fate that dictates the rise and fall of empires, houses and lives is that of lust, love and loyalty. One must always be aware that to interfere in a relationship is to invoke the attention and potential wrath of the gods, the people involved, and the entirety of society. While attraction to femininity is considered strange and is often discriminated against, to interfere against this type of relationship in the wrong way is also considered forbidden.

Similarly, to be forced into a relationship and to be forced to stay in a relationship is considered a horrible act. Relationships are not meant to be endured for the sake of being endured, but that does not mean that they believe in being fair-weather friends. A person who abandons those at the first sight of trouble will be punished by fate through abandonment in their time of need. Scarring abuse and rape are considered crimes punishable by torture then death, with not even the most powerful being immune to being toppled for these acts.

The Thebans have 3 gods representing three archetypal relationships so to speak.

Eros, the God of Lust, Hedonism and Fertility is one dedicated to the more base urges of the Thebans. It is said that while it can be the most selfish form of relationship, it is one that is the most provocative of energy and life, as children are born from the act but so are the other types of relationships. Similarly, as a god, Eros is selfish but also gives the most gifts even if they might even be considered burdens.

Amor, the God of Love, Romance and Courtship is one dedicated to what is considered the most dangerous and wild of the urges. Love can be more than just romantic partners, but that type of relationship is considered especially dangerous. Moreover, in this matter of the heart, it can be so easy to break from grief, rejection and hardship. Similarly, as a god, Amor is the most protective yet mercurial of the bunch.

Philotus, the God of Loyalty, Empathy and Trust is one dedicated to the most understated but is one that underpins society, even if one only notices it once it is gone. Loyalty is a major part of friendship, but it is also owed to one's community and to break that loyalty is to ensure that nobody is loyal to you. Similarly, as a god, Philotus is both stable and generous but to take him for granted is to invite being abandoned.

It is said that when one is born, as one's umbilical cord is cut from their mother, that the soul's thousands of roots are detached from the Trinity and searches for other roots to attach to. Thus, the thousands of Soulbond forms between each other and fate intercedes in order to tighten it, with only the gods having the capacity to sever it completely. If one part of the Soulbond dies, then it is said that their roots are retracted back into the Trinity in order to grow into another child and return them to this life in order to find lust, love and loyalty.


Thus, the Omegaverse religion is born. :p
 
Last edited:
Thanks to the prompting and popular demand of the discord worldspirits, let it now be known that this planet has two smallish moons and iridescent rings.

How exactly does this work you ask?

Magic.
Two smallish moons and some iridescent rings inexplicably on a habitable planet
A bunch of elves that worship a Fairy-Godmother
A sapient sandworm civilization
Geese hordes
And a species of buff boyos

This planet is fucking weird, I'm imagining there is just an eldritch horror looking at us and deciding to stay away to not catch... whatever is going on here
 
2) Several species did not get votes so I gave brief descritpions on my own
It might be worth it to actually mark those for which you had to do that. Seems like not much effort if you do it directly during the bookkeeping and people just jumping in it will likely be less hesitant to do stuff with such species.
 
@Torgamous would you be interested in collaberating on our religion votes since we are right next to each other and have populations of each in our hexes?

Edit; SNIP the offer to collab and/or coordinate on religion votes is also open to all of you since we are close enough to eachother to crosspolinate.
Not thought about it too much, but I'd been learning towards land-based gods? My guys are fairly territorial, so I figured they'd believe the nature of the land and the people that live there are determined by the gods of that land. This means they think their size/strength/toughness/relative lack of magic/who they are as a people is partially down to where they live, and the same goes for people who live elsewhere.

It's one of the reasons it took such a big 'civil war equivalent' in their backstory for them to actually spread to another hex when they started overpopulating their first one, because they believed it would change them in some minor, but not insignificant way.

I don't know how moving to another place would actually change them, I'm happy to leave that to the QM, but I figure they prefer to stick to places similar to theur ancestral home, and then on top of that they'd do what they could to bring home with them/change the new place to suit them.

There's probably be a minor subset who move to a new place accepting that it'd change them, or even being curious as to what changes would come, but they're seen as weird.
I imagine that subset might get larger as they encounter more other races? But then there's probably be conservatives who get even more entrenched as well.
 
[X] Dwarren
- [X] Problem: Living underground, surviving in a hostile world
- [X] Solution: unity of kin, knowledge of craft & working, magic
- [X] A Set Of Techniques: Following the Tenants
- [X] Examplary Figures: Seekers, priests that occupy a number of roles; advisors, judges, moral guides. They are the only Dwarren to practice magic, in the form of Gemspelling
- [X] Divinity: The Dwarren worship the Olding, a mysterious entity that taught them to survive underground. It is unclear what they actually were; some say the first Dwarren to use magic, some say a spirit, some say a Giant Horned Rat. It is known, however, that the Olding have left the Dwarren, after giving them the Tenants
- [X] Magic Source: The Olding taught the Dwarren to pull upon the magic found in crystals and precious gems. Only those magically gifted can use this skill, and they are trained as Seekers.

In the earliest years of the Dwarren, they lived above ground, suffering from the harsh light of the sun and the numerous predators. The being known as the Olding came to the Dwarren, and guided them deep, deep underground, where they would be safe. The Olding also taught them many skills; metal mining and working, safe tunnelling, underground agriculture, and the magic of Gemspelling. In return, the Olding asked the Dwarren to stand guard against the Demons that dwelled at the centre of the world - at times they would try to break free, and the Dwarren would have to stand against them. They then made five tablets from the sky's firmament, inscribed the Tenants upon them, and departed.

The Seekers have many roles, and they travel between Clans to perform them. They neutral judges, advisors to Brood-Mothers and Kings. They are scribes, keep and maintain records, although there are specialised Dwarren that also perform such tasks. They can also teach metal working and other skills when necessary. Seekers can be both male and female, and while a Seeker can become a Brood-Mother, they lose their magic and title. Seekers always stand apart from Dwarren society, not truly being part of one clan, but they are respected by all.

The magic of the Seekers is called Gemspelling, and it allows them to draw out the power within crystals and gems. Rubies can be drawn upon to produce fire, diamond to harden skin, quartz for healing, and so on. By drawing upon this magic, the lives of the Seekers are extended indefinitely, although there is a side affect. Over time, the bodies of the Seekers become gems themselves, damaged tissue turned to crystal, hair replaced by gems. It is said the very oldest Seekers are like multi-hued crystal statues - that still explore the deepest earth, seeking out threats and lost travellers to aid.

The five Firmament Tablets are the holiest objects of the Dwarren. The Tenants carved upon them are not just laws, they are knowledge and wisdom, that the Seekers study and learn from. The Seekers care for the tablets, and move them from Deep to Deep constantly - for their own protection, the tablets can never be kept with the same clan, only coming together once every hundred years at the Seeker's council.

The Dwarren have a degree of Ancestor Worship, honouring those of great skill, or who lead them through times of turmoil. Brood-Mothers trace their lineage back to the first Queen-Mother, Drendel Deepborn, who was taught by the Olding and led her people underground. Kings often try to emulate her son, Darak Deepborn, the first King who waged war against beasts above and below. And all Dwarren know the tale of Deep-Seeker Gundarlon, who swore to find the lost sixth Firmament Tablet, and who still walks amoung the deepest places of the earth, his body fully turned to diamond.

Their funerary practices are basic; if possible the body of the deceased is brought to the Clan's halls, where it is devoured. Dwarren order themselves based on closeness to the dead, and each take a mouthful of flesh. Once only bones remain, the Seekers take them for their shrines, or to be used in metalmaking. If a body cannot be moved for whatever reason, it is eaten where it fell. A body being stolen and eaten by an enemy is seen as an ignoble end, and will often be avenged


If anyone has questions feel free to ask!

Edit: oops, fucked that up a bit
 
Last edited:
[X] The Schmeckles
- [X] Problem: Living underground, surviving in a hostile world
- [X] Solution: unity of kin, knowledge of craft & working, magic
- [X] A Set Of Techniques: Following the Tenants
- [X] Examplary Figures: Seekers, priests that occupy a number of roles; advisors, judges, moral guides. They are the only Dwarren to practice magic, in the form of Gemspelling
- [X] Divinity: The Dwarren worship the Olding, a mysterious entity that taught them to survive underground. It is unclear what they actually were; some say the first Dwarren to use magic, some say a spirit, some say a Giant Horned Rat. It is known, however, that the Olding have left the Dwarren, after giving them the Tenants
- [X] Magic Source: The Olding taught the Dwarren to pull upon the magic found in crystals and precious gems. Only those magically gifted can use this skill, and they are trained as Seekers.

In the earliest years of the Dwarren, they lived above ground, suffering from the harsh light of the sun and the numerous predators. The being known as the Olding came to the Dwarren, and guided them deep, deep underground, where they would be safe. The Olding also taught them many skills; metal mining and working, safe tunnelling, underground agriculture, and the magic of Gemspelling. In return, the Olding asked the Dwarren to stand guard against the Demons that dwelled at the centre of the world - at times they would try to break free, and the Dwarren would have to stand against them. They then made five tablets from the sky's firmament, inscribed the Tenants upon them, and departed.

The Seekers have many roles, and they travel between Clans to perform them. They neutral judges, advisors to Brood-Mothers and Kings. They are scribes, keep and maintain records, although there are specialised Dwarren that also perform such tasks. They can also teach metal working and other skills when necessary. Seekers can be both male and female, and while a Seeker can become a Brood-Mother, they lose their magic and title. Seekers always stand apart from Dwarren society, not truly being part of one clan, but they are respected by all.

The magic of the Seekers is called Gemspelling, and it allows them to draw out the power within crystals and gems. Rubies can be drawn upon to produce fire, diamond to harden skin, quartz for healing, and so on. By drawing upon this magic, the lives of the Seekers are extended indefinitely, although there is a side affect. Over time, the bodies of the Seekers become gems themselves, damaged tissue turned to crystal, hair replaced by gems. It is said the very oldest Seekers are like multi-hued crystal statues - that still explore the deepest earth, seeking out threats and lost travellers to aid

The five Firmament Tablets are the holiest objects of the Dwarren. The Tenants carved upon them are not just laws, they are knowledge and wisdom, that the Seekers study and learn from. The Seekers care for the tablets, and move them from Deep to Deep constantly - for their own protection, the tablets can never be kept with the same clan, only coming together once every hundred years at the Seeker's council.


If anyone has questions feel free to ask!
Uuhhhh
 
2) Several species did not get votes so I gave brief descritpions on my own
Welp, I forgot.

The brief description is more or less what I would have gone with, though.

[X] Medusans. Medusans
Problem: Displacement
Solution: Continuity
A set of Techniques: Permanent constructions, Oral traditions, grafting
Exemplary Figures: Lost Matriarchs
Divinity: Pantheistic animism
Magic Source: Patterns, repetition, recursion

As an inherently sedentary species, the greatest threat faced by many Medusan communities is that of expulsion or displacement from their current habitat. To be displaced from their homes doesn't merely mean the loss of tools, fields and reliable feeding grounds, but also the unavoidable loss of the matriarch pillar from which a community descends, and with it a communities leadership and future. Few Medusans survive such displacements, and even if they do their communities only linger on for a short while before the last members die.

In the sub-artic climate that the Medusans call home, such disruptions are uncommon yet regular events. Passing ice sheets or icebergs will alter currents, depriving the algae mineral rich run-off, and in turn depriving a community essential food. If the ice endures long enough, entire fields of Medusans will vanish with little trace. New Medusans, resettling the abandoned fields and plains from other, more fortunate communities, will recognize the structure of the algae fields, and the hollowed out tower of the matriarch, but the community itself will be gone.

Faced with repeated signs of calamity, Medusan spiritual practices focus on the continuity of their communities, roughly split in 3 different approaches. Some Medusans focus on the continuity of place, carving the story of their community into the rock, guiding the ocean currents with careful practice. These projects transcend both generations and communities, with several sites build, abandoned and the projects then continued by the next community to inhabit the location.

Others try to ensure the continuity of knowledge, holding that a community is defined not by where it lived, but what it knew and the stories it told. These Medusans willingly abandon their home clusters, travelling through others and recounting all the stories they have heard, ensuring that nothing is lost, that the community of old continues in tales told by generation upon generation of other medusans.

The last group are the rarest, those closest to the fringe of acceptable behaviour. They hold that continuity can be found in the flesh, and to do so they seek the enduring survival of the matriarch. Their greatest success and hope is the voluntary transplanting of part of a matriarch's flesh onto another, so that lost communities are not doomed to disappearance, but can endure and recover with new hosts.

Amongst all three, the greatest source of sorrow, lamented in tale, building and experiment, are the lost Matriarchs, those who sent their community away to try and survive, knowing that it was certain to doom themselves but could perhaps allow something to live on in offspring. Continuity of Place tries to rebuild their lost settlements, continuity of Tale tries to remember their stories, and continuity of flesh looks for sisters and nephew communities to carry on their torch.

All this is bound by the Medusan's spiritual beliefs, which hold that all matter, from the mighty sea to the powerful sun above, is at the same time dead and lifeless, as it is living and moving. A block of ice is unmoving, has no thoughts, and no reactions, but the ice comes and retreats in a common pattern. Likewise, a medusan holds that patterns in thoughts and actions, but once the patterns stop they are merely a corpse, as prone to living as a melting block of ice. It is these patterns that decide existence, and which can be seen replicated from the smallest community to the largest part of the universe. Communities end and disappear not when their members do, but when the continuity patterns, traditions and stories that make them up are broken. Divinity is ever present, but just as easily made absent as it can be discovered.

The world too follows patterns, and by creating and changing the patterns the world will follow along. This is the basis of Medusan magic, though they would not see it as such, merely as a continuity of the way the world works, and has always worked, from the dawn of whatever original pattern put the world in motion, and from which every creature is an echo.
 
[X] 17. The Steppe Lamia (Ehkis Thermos)
- [X] Problem: Sometimes it Gets Cold [Questions Related to Cosmic Origins, and a Desire to be Cosmically Significant]
- [X] Solution: The Sun is a Benevolent Divinity and She Likes Us
- [X] A Set of Techniques: Regular Private Devotion, Appealing to Cultists and Magicians for Guidance
- [X] Exemplary Figures: Cultist Lineages [Family Groups will Collectively Dedicate Themselves to Solar Worship or Monastic-style Life]
- [X] Divinity: Monotheistic
- [X] Magic Source: Magic is Just A Cool Thing Some People Do

To the Lamia, the Sun, conceptualized as a solar spirit named Hvare Khshaeta (though commonly referred to only as 'the Sun') is a life-giving goddess who created the world out of an emanation of herself. The Ehkis Thermos cordially assert that the Sun created them, in particular, because they are cool and she loves them the best. However, the Sun is benevolent, and anyone can appeal to her in times of trouble. However, it should be noted that the Lamia do not necessarily envision the Sun as particularly interventionist in the life of the word, except for providing heat and light, with they regard as pretty much all the Goddess needs to do to be respectable.

While this description does generally touch on all the major points of Lamia religion, they are highly heterodox and lack a coherent religious canon, so almost any belief about the Great Sun Goddess Hvare Khshaeta can probably be found in the teachings of sone temple Lineage somewhere. Those who seek to make a particularly noteworthy devotion to the Goddess (often after some great success in life), who seek spiritual help or guidance, who wish to ask for a miracle, or occasionally who wish to complain at the Goddess for not making things hot enough, will do so at a temple or sanctuary removed somewhat from society either literally or metaphorically. This temple will be operated by a single religiously oriented Lineage in accordance with their particular spiritual interpretations.

One Ehki belief which is not entirely religious in character, but which is upheld with far more zeal than almost any other, is the importance of protecting their den-structures. The local Lamia will defend them fanatically, sacrifice greatly to keep them stocked with food and supplies, and obey complex restrictions on access to eggs and fledglings imposed by the den-keepers. Den-keepers are also the class with the highest proportion of magic-users within Lamian society.
 
Last edited:
[X] 12. Althedar
- [X] Problem: There is more in this world than could ever be experienced in a single lifetime
- [X] Solution: Reincarnation and Transcendence
- [X] A Set of Techniques: Exploring, understanding and mastering the world
- [X] Exemplary Figures: Ghosts (Redar)
- [X] Divinity: Sapience-Pantheism
- [X] Magic Source: Magic is just a part of the world

In the Althedar's creation myth there is a kith of gods, who in their wandering, happened upon the world. They were so enraptured by it that they wished to experience it to the fullest. But their godly natures prevented them from seeing the world as clearly as they wished. To resolve this they dispersed themselves into many smaller souls and spread themselves all over the world. Thus all sapient species were created. (There are often debates on whether merely sentient beings are also parts of the divine, or where the divide between sapience and sentience lies)

The Althedar believe that most people who die are simply born again in the world as a different person. However, they also believe, that people who are sufficiently strong or wise or good can become Ghosts (Redar) who watch over and guide the living through their struggles.

Beyond that they also believe that there exists a physical manifestation of Evil in this world.

This can be traced back to an event where several kiths were trapped in underwater caves by a... creature.

This creature was a sentient mold which uses it's surprising speed and reach, to grab creatures and envelope them within it's mass. It then devours them by turning them into glowing red cysts within it's body. Through this process it appears to expand itself not merely through the flesh of it's victims but apparently also some magical means.

It has been observed that sapient creatures form abnormally huge cysts. Thus it is widely believed that the mold traps the souls of it's victims within itself, preventing them from passing onto their next life until the mold is slain. It is a matter of some debate if the victims of the Devilmold (Shindares) can still become Redar or if such a traumatic death might prevent them from transcending.

The mold's main body is very hard to injure in any significant way. It is simply too massive and redundant to damage in this way.

The only reason the kiths who first discovered the Shindares survived their encounter was that during one of their breakout attempts they happened to destroy one of the monsters cysts. This immediately destroyed a chunk of the creature, turning that part into a kind of crystalline fossil.

Once they realized how they could actually hurt it, they rallied and in a long and difficult struggle finally slew their jailer.

This event, and similar encounters with other Shindarres, solidified the Althedar's believe that a creature so horrible and deadly, must be the physical manifestation of the Evils of the world.

Whenever a Shindares creeps up from their home in the depths of the ocean, the Althedar in the area are faced with a choice. Do they seek to avoid it at all costs, often shunning the ocean entirely for huge stretches of time? Or do they face it and try to free the souls it has trapped, but risk joining those they tried to rescue, potentially condemning themselves to millennia of torture within the Shindares's body?
 
Last edited:
[X] 39. Nocturnal Rodent People (Chirek)
- [X] Problem: It Is Hard To Keep The Food Healthy And Safe
- [X] Solution: Warding and Health Rituals
- [X] A Set of Techniques: Midnight Rituals, Sympathetic Talismans, Potions, Sacrifices
- [X] Exemplary Figures: Witches, Hagwives
- [X] Divinity: Pantheism
- [X] Magic Source: The Essence of The Three in All Things

Chirek worship is based around the worship of a triple-goddess known in full and collectively as the Three or, in more formal contexts, the Lerrigan, the All-Queen. They believe that, in her aspect as the Mother, she is the single antecedent to all things, both living and nonliving, in the universe. This being the case, all things have some element of the Three's divine nature within them. The Chirek believe that this is what their strange supernatural senses detect.

Each of the Three's aspects are thought to be more present at certain times of year, with their focus being more or less present depending on the phases of the moons. The Maiden is said to be most prominent in the winter months, shifting to the Mother in Spring and early summer, and the Crone in autumn. These three seasons correspond with the storage of food, the birthing of livestock, and the harvesting of meat, respectively. It is the responsibility of Witches to oversee these transitions and ensure proper tribute is payed to prevent the divine essence from becoming spoiled, leading to chaos and disharmony among the families.

Witches, as figures outside of the Hag family structure, symbolically marry themselves to the Three, signing themselves in marriage registries as such and moving out of their family homesteads and into the homestead of the Three. This homestead is usually a self-constructed shack in the wilderness, as the Three are present equally in all places. It is only important not to be seen as part of a mortal family's homestead. From this neutral point, they are called upon by nearby communities to conduct their various rites, particularly the all-important changing of the seasons.

Witches, being separate from the family structure and expected to service the spiritual needs of multiple communities, cannot always be present, however. This shortfall is made up for in two ways - the first, in potions, talismans, fetishes, and other such long-lasting magics. A Witch constructs and blesses an amalgamation of various materials, each holding an appropriate part of the Three's divine essence, so as to mimic the effect of a ritual that is maintained for as long as the item is. The other is in Hagwives. These, the literal partners of the Hags which administer the families, are expected to perform the private religious duties of the household, which vary from the conducting of funerals (and the carving of the bones of the deceases into appropriate memorials), to the cursing of enemies and rival families.
 
Last edited:
[X] Dinok Spaan
- [X] Problem: How to survive and thrive
- [X] Solution: Living a full life (literally and metaphorically) and supporting others so they achieve it too
- [X] A Set Of Techniques: Working together and helping each other overcome adversity. Also ritual's performed in festivals and daily life which boost things like prosperity.
- [X] Examplary Figures: Old Ones, Dinok Spaan who are elders, they have wisdom others can use to live full lives.
- [X] Divinity: Animistic polytheism, Dinok Spaan worship the the Three, Nil (The Void), where all things came and were created, Nu (Now or The Universe) , where everything is and changes, and Oblaan (The Abyss or The End) , where everthing goes when it ends. The Dinok Spaan believe they all have wills of their own as their priests automatically unlock their magic when inducted and those who catch a spirit's attention (more on that later) usually change, physically and metaphysically.
- [X] Magic Source: An magic source within them that all Dinok Spaan has but only some can utilize, it grows the more you use it. Magic uses this energy to perform mystical feats by using the Lizard Men's language, thu'um, to manipulate it. By making it more specific, the spell costs.less energy. Skilled casters can silently cast by stating spells in their thoughts but with the drawback of using more energy. Magic users can also make the casting take more time in exchange for it being more powerful. They can also use written thu'um as (runes) which require magic to create but are self-sustaining once made. Using special words when writing, non magic users can use them but magic users have a more intimate control of it. Finally, invoking spirits if you are a devout worshipper of them boosts the ritual/speel shoudl the effects align with said spirit.

The three laws of Magic,
Magic is a part of reality
Magic requires mana
Magic requires certain patterns to manipulate it.

-An Old One, on the topic of magic.

Reality came from the Void,
It changes in the Universe,
and it's final destination,
...is the Abyss.
- Priest of the Three

The Dinok Spaan believe that everything was created by at least one of the Three. Bormah Tiid (Father Time) was created when the Three realized there must be something thst marks the beginning, change, and end. And his twin Zeymah Golt (Brother Place/Space) for the same reasons. The Dinok Spaan believe everything has a spirit, trees and life, rocks and metal, and snow. These spirits, should you do something that they believe is worthy, then they will bless you. This changes your appearance and gives you new abilities the spirit grants you.

Festivals occur during the time when troops meet. In a specially constructed building filled with prepared magic runes, the kro (mages) sit in a circle with the oldens in the center and the youngest in the edges. Then the rituals begin, where they invoke spirits to give prosperity to everyone and other things like ending famines for one. The Kro also has an apprentice system.
 
Last edited:
[X] 48. Inquisitive Vulpines (Dahóyánígíí)
-[X] Problem: Life is Short
-[X] Solution: Eternal Life through Spiritual Ascenion of the Soul
-[X] A Set of Techniques: Impressing the Spirits through Great Deeds so as to strengthen the Soul
-[X] Exemplary Figures: Shamans and Druids who commune with the Spirits; Heroes and Adventurers who perform Great Deeds
-[X] Divinity: Polytheistic Animism/Animistic Polytheism (what's the difference?)
-[X] Magic Source: The Soul, Strengthened through Blessings from the Spirits

The Dahóyánígíí believe that everything has a Spirit. First there are the 3 Great Spirits: Earth, Heaven and Sea. Then there are their children, the many Lesser Spirits that inhabit the world that the Great Spirits have created: the Sun and the Moons, the Forest and the Trees, the Rivers and the Lakes, the Mountains and the Hills, the Clouds and the Lightning and the Rain, the Beasts and the Plants, and so on. Everything has a spirit, even the homes and the villages built by the Dahóyánígíí, and some theorize that there are even spirits of abstract concepts such as Love or Knowledge.

As children born of the triple-union of the Great Spirits, of course each Dahóyánígíí also possesses their own personal spirit: their soul. While the bodies of the Dahóyánígíí are weak and short-lived, they believe that it is possible for their souls to grow stronger and eventually ascend to become true Spirits once they've shed their mortal bodies.

This ascension is achieved by impressing the Spirits of the world, which the Dahóyánígíí believe will in turn make the Spirits inclined to bless those individuals performing these Great Deeds. What precisely constitutes a Great Deed is a matter of some debate, but it's agreed that every Spirit has different views and criteria, so it's likely that almost everything might be seen as a Deed worthy of being blessed by some Spirit somewhere, so long as it's sufficiently Great. So while a naval captain who sails the seas to discover new lands would naturally be blessed by the Sea Spirit, a parent who raises their children correctly might be blessed by the home-spirits and hearth-spirits and achieve ascension that way. With each blessing, the soul grows stronger and one becomes closer to ascension.

Exemplary figures among the Dahóyánígíí are, of course, the great Heroes and Adventurers who have performed Great Deeds and have ascended to become Spirits themselves. The difference between a Hero and an Adventure is not always well-defined, but it helps to think of Heroes as leaders and educators, and Adventurers as innovators and trailblazers.

Other exemplary figures are the Shamans and Druids, individuals who commune with the Spirits so as to ascertain their will. The logic of the Spirits can be alien to mortals at times, and bad things will happen if you anger a Spirit. But the Shamans who live with the rest of the Dahóyánígíí and advise them on spiritual matters, and the Druids who live in the wilds away from civilization so as to be closer to the Spirits of the natural world, are there to ensure that this doesn't happen.

The Dahóyánígíí believe that Magic originates from the Spirits, and since every living being has their own personal spirit (soul), that means that every Dahóyánígíí should be capable of using magic and is encouraged to do so. It is also widely believed that since the soul grows stronger through the blessings of the Spirits , this means that stronger magic-users are therefore more strongly blessed by the Spirits. Well, the most capable wielders of magic are usually the Shamans, Druids and magical innovators, so that tracks, doesn't it?

Species who can't use magic? Some Dahóyánígíí might see them as soulless abominations, but the Shamans have decreed that they most likely possess their own innate form of magic that cannot be so easily sensed. After all, they're much stronger and long-lived than the Dahóyánígíí are. Surely this can only be possible through magic, right?
 
Last edited:
[X] 4. Sensing Turles (Tor-Tua)
- [X] Problem: A Lack of Understanding the Flow of the World
- [X] Solution: The Sun Illuminates all Answers and leads the Flow of the world.
- [X] A Set of Techniques: Days of Worship and Extensive Rituals to enlighten us
- [X] Exemplary Figures: Devoted Priests who have fully committed themselves to the Faith, and Ritual makers who spend their whole live studying and perfecting the Rituals for the Sun Mother
- [X] Divinity: Monotheistic
- [X] Magic Source: Ritual action and Devotion

Originally reaching the Tor-Tua from their southern neighbors, the worship of the Mother Sun has become a important cultural facet of the Tor-Tua people. As a deeply spiritual people due to their innate talent for feeling magical and supernatural effects upon the world around them, the Tor-Tua have always had questions of what they called "The Flow" which is the magical energy that seems to touch all life and other aspects of the world around them, so when Steppe Lamia travelers came from the south and spoke of their Sun Goddess, a great being from which life and magic came from, the Tor-Tua latched onto the idea and the faith spread across their people.

Despite the source of the faith, there is an notable difference to how the Steppe Lamia worship the Sun Mother and how the Tor-Tua do so. With the Tor-Tua placing a great deal of care and effort on the ritualistic practices they had developed to maximize the amount of flow in a given action (Magical energy to fuel the whole event). Another difference is what the Tor-Tua call the three gifts of the Mother, a attempt of Elders during the first years of the faith being adopted by the Tor-Tua to keep some of the old practices of Elemental veneration alive. The Three Gifts are as follows, Sand from which our forms are crafted, Wind from which our bodies are given souls and Water from which our life is solidified.
 
Yeah sure, this is just literally the first thing I'm seeing upon waking up so give me twenty minutes?

Not thought about it too much, but I'd been learning towards land-based gods? My guys are fairly territorial, so I figured they'd believe the nature of the land and the people that live there are determined by the gods of that land. This means they think their size/strength/toughness/relative lack of magic/who they are as a people is partially down to where they live, and the same goes for people who live elsewhere.

It's one of the reasons it took such a big 'civil war equivalent' in their backstory for them to actually spread to another hex when they started overpopulating their first one, because they believed it would change them in some minor, but not insignificant way.

I don't know how moving to another place would actually change them, I'm happy to leave that to the QM, but I figure they prefer to stick to places similar to theur ancestral home, and then on top of that they'd do what they could to bring home with them/change the new place to suit them.

There's probably be a minor subset who move to a new place accepting that it'd change them, or even being curious as to what changes would come, but they're seen as weird.
I imagine that subset might get larger as they encounter more other races? But then there's probably be conservatives who get even more entrenched as well.
Great! Are the two of you on the discord? I'll make a thread for us if so. Otherwise i can set up a DM here on SV?
 
I imagine that subset might get larger as they encounter more other races? But then there's probably be conservatives who get even more entrenched as well.
My sneks are very not territorial, and they also eat people, so maybe mark that as a conservative talking point? "Not respecting borders leads to cannibalism," or some such.

Being unattached to particular plots of land as they are, any bits of the Shrek religion that do make it to the issash would probably be recontextualized as being about kinds of terrain. A god of the river, who brings fish and boaters. A god of the forest, who brings larger predators and lost children. A god of the ocean, who lures unwary issash into unsafe waters with visions of whales they will never eat.

Whatever form their religion takes, my giant muscular obligate carnivores are definitely primarily concerned with getting food.
Great! Are the two of you on the discord? I'll make a thread for us if so. Otherwise i can set up a DM here on SV?
Discord's two factor authentication fucked me out of my account a while back, but I could make a new one if you'd like?
 
My sneks are very not territorial, and they also eat people, so maybe mark that as a conservative talking point? "Not respecting borders leads to cannibalism," or some such.

Being unattached to particular plots of land as they are, any bits of the Shrek religion that do make it to the issash would probably be recontextualized as being about kinds of terrain. A god of the river, who brings fish and boaters. A god of the forest, who brings larger predators and lost children. A god of the ocean, who lures unwary issash into unsafe waters with visions of whales they will never eat.

Whatever form their religion takes, my giant muscular obligate carnivores are definitely primarily concerned with getting food.

Discord's two factor authentication fucked me out of my account a while back, but I could make a new one if you'd like?
Nah that's fine we can talk on SV. I had planned for the semi-nomadic groups of striga to have an animist religion which then cross polinated with the settled striga so if I reframed it as a polytheistic animist one it would fit well with both of your ideas. There could be some shared gods between the three but with different practices among the three species/cultures based on their kinship structures?
 
I like to imagine that the scholars of this world regularly argue about how the fuck certain species fly

Like

Schmeckle Scholar drinking chocolate milk from a magically altered cow: "Aaaahhh~ there are so many wonderful mysteries in the world, like how some magically inert species can fly"

Swarm Scholar who has refrained from trying to murder everyone in the room and lay eggs in them because the meat pie the Schmeckles made was satisfactory: "Holy zzzzhit how *Bzzzzt* have we not pondered that!?"

Honkilius having a Schmeckle make a sandwhich, then knocking the sandwhich out of their hands, and asking them to make it again so he can disassemble it: "HONK HONK HONK!" *Translation: My theory on this subject matter is that being magically inert does not necessarily mean being completely devoid of the effects of magic, natural wonders have been shown to exhibit limited magical properties without outside interference, like how the two moons should presumebly be causing tidal chaos, the main point I have is that it seems natural things occasionally integrate magic into their forms, but it does not necessarily mean that'll have control or other forms of mastery over it*

Swarm Scholar: "..... did you *Bzzzt* get that? I don't underzzztand honks"

Schmeckle Scholar: "He said something deserving of some bread"

Honkilius: "HONK!" *Translation: FUCK YEAH!*
 
Last edited:
Thanks to the prompting and popular demand of the discord worldspirits, let it now be known that this planet has two smallish moons and iridescent rings.

Question, how would these iridescent rings look like from someone on the surface of the planet? I've having difficulty picturing it in my head.

Also, @AMTurtle , would you be open to the possibility of the idea of an alliance between the geese and the parasitoid wasps?
 
Back
Top