New NESes, ideas, development, etc

[Terrance888]

When the sun rises in the west and sets in the east. When the seas go dry and mountains blow in the wind like leaves. When your mind quickens again, and you bear a living NES. Then a master piece will be born, and not before.

 

[Thlayli]

LoE, when do you expect to launch this masterpeice?

LordofElves is waiting on some map changes that need to be made to bring the NES to its full potential. Specifically, I'm adding mountain ranges and rivers, and then NK will take over to refine Eltain's coastlines and add climates.

As of now the mountains are about 50% done. I will probably have my portion done by Friday or Saturday, though I can make no promises for NK's speed.

So I would put LoE's start date at some time early or mid-next week, giving you plenty of time to draft the most elaborate and detailed high fantasy concepts of your NESing career, I'm sure.

 

[thomas.berubeg]

Good News, everyone!

LoE, have you decided whether we're playing cultures for the first few turns, and then civilizations? or am I completely misremembering something else?

 

[Lord of Elves]

LoE, have you decided whether we're playing cultures for the first few turns, and then civilizations? or am I completely misremembering something else?

In the beginning players will take charge of various cultures. These cultures will probably be pretty broad; think early migratory peoples in the very, very beginning. The beginning turns will essentially be the ET through the quasi-mythical past, with lots of room for feats of magic and possibly supernatural/divine intervention. Over the course of the first few turns these cultures should become more established, fragment and combine as appropriate, and result eventually in disparate and independent polities that players will take control of. Ideally, each player culture will spawn a number of polities weak and strong alike, that can trace their roots back to that group.

The first few turns will be comparable to the "First Age" or the "Mythic Age," or whatever term you consider appropriate. This will be the time for the crafting of great artifacts, the construction of great cities and so on. Not that these things will be impossible once the "game proper" begins, but they will take significantly more time, as the early turns will last hundreds to even thousands of years.

Also magic is fading from the world and all is lost.

 

[Nivyi]

I made a cool adventure/fantasy style map (more like donjon worldgen made it) that could be possibly be used.

 

[thomas.berubeg]

In the beginning players will take charge of various cultures. These cultures will probably be pretty broad; think early migratory peoples in the very, very beginning. The beginning turns will essentially be the ET through the quasi-mythical past, with lots of room for feats of magic and possibly supernatural/divine intervention. Over the course of the first few turns these cultures should become more established, fragment and combine as appropriate, and result eventually in disparate and independent polities that players will take control of. Ideally, each player culture will spawn a number of polities weak and strong alike, that can trace their roots back to that group.

The first few turns will be comparable to the "First Age" or the "Mythic Age," or whatever term you consider appropriate. This will be the time for the crafting of great artifacts, the construction of great cities and so on. Not that these things will be impossible once the "game proper" begins, but they will take significantly more time, as the early turns will last hundreds to even thousands of years.

Also magic is fading from the world and all is lost.

The Mas'soul Orcs

The Mas’soul Orcs are divided into ten “Clans,” each distinct in habits and culture, but still related by common beliefs, kinship ties, and ancestral history.

The Orcs of Mas’soul believe they are not native to this continent, but rather originate from an island far out at sea, an Island they called Soul. This Island was a marvel of magic and engineering, every inch of its rocky mass carved with elegance and grace unknown to the orcs on [This Continent.] The Orcs of the Mas’soul lived happy and content, their legends say, ruled wisely by an Immortal Emperor who communed with the gods to learn their wisdom. The Floating ships of the Soul Island travelled the world over, bringing back wonders from the four corners of the world: finely wrought gems, exotic animals, Secrets of the magical arts. But like all proud people, the Soul Orcs became consumed by hubris. The Legends of the Mas’soul differ on what happened: Some claim that the Emperor Offended a god, others that the Emperor was struck down by treachery, and with him, the Island. Still others claim that the Soul Orcs had tampered with the very fabric of reality in their magic workings, allowing in a dark foulness. All that the Mas’soul Orcs know is that in a day and a night, the Island sank beneath the waves.

The Mas’soul orcs were the ones lucky enough to make it to the Air-Harbors and climb aboard one of the massive floating trade vessels. Because of proximity to the harbors, the population aboard the vessels were the lower born orcs: Sailors, Soldiers, craftsmen, the occasional Hedge-Wizard, and very little of Soul High Culture survived. The only thing of Magical Worth that were on the ships themselves were the Seeingstones, magical artifacts that allowed a captain of an airship to see ahead for storms and other dangers, communicate with home, and talk to other ships.

For months, years, even, the Ships drifted, supplies became scarce, and storms took their toll. Tens of ships were lost at sea, their cargo of refugees drowning.

Finally, the enchantments holding the great ships aloft unraveling, the ten remaining vessels drifted into view of [This Continent.] The ships crashed at a certain distance from each other along the coastline, and the people aboard were forced to make do with what little skill and knowledge they had, forming each of the Ten Clans, and spreading far and wide over the land. Raids, and once they grew strong enough, conquests against the local people became barbaric necessities and eventually a way of life. The Soul Orcs slowly diverged, though none lost the memory of who they were: The Mas’soul, the Exiles of Soul. They dream of their lost homeland, dream of their lost splendor and glory, and hope, against all hope, to find some evidence that they are not the only survivors of the Glorious Island of Soul.

Thoughts?

 

[Terrance888]

I like the idea, but naming it SOUL really makes it hard for me to take them seriously.

 

[Lord of Elves]

I like the idea, but naming it SOUL really makes it hard for me to take them seriously.

I also find the name a little bit jarring, but this is secondary to some more integral issues: first and foremost, the beginning of the NES should be approached as, for all intents and purposes, the beginning of time. The events of the first few turns will likely be regarded as approximated myth and legend by the end of the ET. If anything this is the era of pre-history, or at least the earliest historical record. As a result cultures should, at the very beginning of the NES, not have any historical background other than the bare minimum of how they believe they came to be, how their society is organized and so on.

Finally, even at the mythic dawn of the world (which may or may not include the intervention of godlike beings), the type of magic that you propose would be out of character for the setting. Even the greatest of mages at the dawn of time could not make an airship. More practically speaking however, a mage might be able to hew a pass through a mountain or carve a canal through the earth, or speed the migration of a great mass of people, etc. Furthermore most cultures (I am of various minds on how to enforce this distinction) are not particularly accepting of powerful mages, who normally become hermits or figures of immense power that act independently of non-magical states. While it is not unreasonable to think that your people might have friendly relations with a mage, or have produced a great mage who owes some cultural loyalty, or have produced some lesser mages with significantly limited powers, having an entire social caste of mages would not fit within the setting.

Otherwise, the essence of your culture is sound, and this is the type of background that would be assembled over the course of the ET and provide context for polities during the "NES proper."

 

[thomas.berubeg]

OK, that's what I was trying to get a feel for.

 

[Amesjay]

Looking forward LoE's NES, though in the meantime I was gonna start working on one of my own.
One idea I had was everyone would be proper english gentlemen heading to Africa (imagine Heart of Darkness) to get ivory, conquer the locals, etc.
Was wondering if anything like that had been done before, or if anyone had any suggestions about the sort of template I should use.

 

[Immaculate]

Thomas,

That was very original and entertaining.

 

[Golden1Knight]

@Thomas, Your story reminds me a lot of Númenor, but at the same time is different because it is not easy to imagine a civilized Orc, and even an Orc extremely advanced culturally. That's good, because it breaks the cliché that only men, elves and dwarves can be so advanced. It would certainly be interesting to see how these people would do in exile.

 

[thomas.berubeg]

@Thomas, Your story reminds me a lot of Númenor, but at the same time is different because it is not easy to imagine a civilized Orc, and even an Orc extremely advanced culturally. That's good, because it breaks the cliché that only men, elves and dwarves can be so advanced. It would certainly be interesting to see how these people would do in exile.

That's a bit what I was going for: Most fantasy (and real life) has that story of the wonderous land that gets too big for it's own britches, and gets smacked down.

I guess, though, in LoE's NES, one of us will have to be that person.

 

[Lord_Iggy]

Of the Dawn of the Middle Race

It is said that, in the beginning, humankind was but a single tribe.

In Dan, the primordial forest, they were born.

They were the middle race, and they would be neither the wisest, nor the most foolhardy. They would never taste immortality, but neither would their lives be ephemeral. They would not be overpoweringly strong, but they would not be perishingly frail either.

The middle race was formed from the soul and substance of the world. It was their gift to be the children of the earth. It was their doom to be forever tied to their origins. Forever would the fate of humans, and the fate of their world, be entwined.

Of Nyo, The Father of Men

Foremost of the first sons was Nyo. Nyo was born into full, vibrant adulthood, nude in the noonday sun. He bore no blemishes, and had no birth-scar upon his belly. He took a stone, and sharpened it upon another until he had fashioned a blade, and with it he slew a deer and took its skin. Thus did man first steal the flesh of beasts, and bend it to his own will. This was to be the first way of man.

With the sinews of the deer, a shaft of wood and his hewn blade, Nyo fashioned an axe, with which he felled a tree of pine. With the fallen tree, he built a shelter, to isolate himself from the world that had birthed him. This was to be the second way of man.

With the branches of the fallen tree, Nyo lit a fire, and above it he cooked the meat of the deer. The scent drew his brothers to him, each of whom bowed before him, and received their meal so that they might eat at his side, within his house. All but one did this without question.

The last brother, however, did not bow. He strove to take the deer for himself, for in his heart he desired to possess the house for himself. Nyo was angered, and he drew his axe and slew his treacherous kin. This was to be the third way of man.

Of Sa, The Mother of Women

Foremost of the first daughters was Sa. Sa was born into full, vibrant adulthood, nude in the moonlight. She bore no blemishes, and had no birth-scar upon her belly. As night fell on the first day of the middle race, Sa gathered her sisters, and approached the House of Nyo.

She entered into the house, and was at once entranced by her host. Nyo too was immediately captured by the apparance of Sa, his counterpart. Nyo bid Sa and her sisters to join his feast, and they did so glady. When the deer-meat was finished, Nyo bid all but Sa to depart. They did so, and in the dying light of the fire, begat the first human child. Outside, each of the first sons and daughters took a pair from their opposite, and did the same.

Of The First House of Humans

Sa and Nyo were sister and brother to their kin in age, but mother and father to their kin in wisdom. Nyo taught his brothers to hunt, to build, and to kill. Sa taught her sisters how to forage, trap and heal. Thus, around the first hall of Nyo, a village grew in the heart of the forest of Dan.

 

[thomas.berubeg]

Nice, Iggy!

 

[Arrow Gamer]

The Seven Clans

In the north, at the center of a mountain whose heart is fire, the first dwarf was forged. Shaped from metal and stone, he was the earth made flesh, created by the very Smith himself. Gifted a pickax and a hammer, he was sent to wander the world, through the empty wastes of the time. A castle he built himself, in the center of his birthplace, empty but for him and his treasure. Sitting on his throne, he stayed for eons, still as the rock from which he was hewn. It may have been this way for eternity, but the Smith took pity on him and crafted him a wife from the beauty of a diamond.

Together the two ruled happily, the wife willingly consummating her marriage. Six-and-ten children she bore him, 8 boys and 8 girls, each man given a piece of land to lord over. In turn, each man took a daughter for a wife, and the dwarven race prospered.

From these eight sons the clans are descended, each claiming a son as their ancestor. Through the Age of Heroes they lived in peace on their lands, united by the ancient magic of blood. Each generation, the sons of each clan would wife the daughters of the others, binding them closer. At times, they united under one banner, to fight off the monsters and roving orcish clans.

But then the pact was broken, and war erupted between the clans. Brother against brother, wife against husband, the land way in ruins until the clan of Harald was struck from the land and every descendant of them exiled or slaughtered. Peace returned, but the pact was broken and could never be restored.

For a thousand years they lived in uneasiness, until the mists of time receded and the present age was reached. No more wars have begun, but bitter feuds are no stranger tot he Seven Clans. Still, the Smith is merciful, and the Seven have prospered. Despite the peace, however, a tension is there which cannot be exiled as easily as the Clan of Harald. Battle is looming.

 

[Lord of Elves]

Iggy's and Arrow Gamer's templates are both good examples of the type of writing I am looking for in early culture proposals, and I'm very excited to work with their submissions.

 

[thomas.berubeg]

The Mas'sool Orcs

The Mas’sool Orcs are divided into ten “Clans,” each distinct in habits and culture, but still related by common beliefs, kinship ties, and ancestral history.

The Orcs of Mas’sool believe they are not native to this continent, which they know as Aresool, but rather originate from a tropical volcanic archipalego of islands far out at sea, an archipalego they called Sool, the Orcish word for Home. The Sool orcs believe that they were born from where the flowing magma of the volcanoes met the foam of the sea. In Sool legend, these islands were a paradise: fruit grew on every tree, fish was abundant, life was generally good and easy. The Sool orcs had a vibrant trade culture, plying the waves in large catamarans. Shells, jewels, gold: The Orcs were happy. And of course, it could not lost.

Sool Legends are strangely silent on the cause of their loss of the archipelago, but archaeological evidence from around the world links the Sool Migration to evidence of a super-volcanic eruption. Presumably, the eruption showed enough signs to allow the Sool to attempt to escape the islands.

The Catamarans and ships of the Sool were not perfectly suited to large distance travel. However, in a pinch, with a bit of luck, entire oceans could be traversed. The losses must have been horrendous, and the scars on the cultural psyche of the Sool orcs even worse. Sool shared stories tend to revolve around the idea of being unworthy of their original paradies, and of seeking to recover that lost glory.

Evidence shows that Sool orcs arrived at least ten different locations on Aresool, more or less concurrently. The refugees presumably were forced to make do with what little skill and knowledge they had, forming each of the Ten Clans, and spreading far and wide over the land. Raids against the local people, and once they grew strong enough, conquests, were at first a barbaric necessity for a people whose legends are silent on the subject of war, and eventually a way of life. The Sool Orcs slowly diverged, though none lost the memory of who they were: The Mas’sool, the Exiles of Sool. They dream of their lost homeland, dream of their lost splendor and glory, and hope, against all hope, to find some evidence that they are not the only survivors of the Glorious Island of Sool.

Better?

 

[Lord of Elves]

Yes, that is better, but for the sake of argument and for lack of having a finished map, I'm going to get nitpicky. Ideally your background should be primarily mythical and not rooted in fact so much as hinting at it. Mythic homelands are great, and I like that angle a lot, but I feel like you could be doing more with it in terms of establishing that mythological, legendary feel. Right now it reads just a bit too much like legitimate historical account, if that makes any sense.

 

[thomas.berubeg]

Yes, that is better, but for the sake of argument and for lack of having a finished map, I'm going to get nitpicky. Ideally your background should be primarily mythical and not rooted in fact so much as hinting at it. Mythic homelands are great, and I like that angle a lot, but I feel like you could be doing more with it in terms of establishing that mythological, legendary feel. Right now it reads just a bit too much like legitimate historical account, if that makes any sense.

Absolutly makes sense. I'll work on it. More legend, less history.