CCC - New (sub)culture round - VOTE by 1/4

[ol bofosh]

I'm gonna leave my three cultures to others. I'm not sure if I should do a new culture or do a subculture. So many options!

[Hydroeccentricity]

Where can I get information about existing cultures, like the Torcs, etc?

[clawgrip]

Check here: http://zeebwiki.org/

Anything not on there you can probably find by following the links here: viewtopic.php?f=4&t=42801. Probably best to check the voting threads, because they usually have a bunch of links in the first page directly to the various submissions.

[Hydroeccentricity]

From the ashes of the Torc's most recent empire, The Sacred Groves.



The Sacred Groves is the most common name for a confederation of city states along the rivers arising on the western flanks of the mountains on the northwest of Zamdae. Although they have at least some cultural influence over most of the drier parts of northwestern Zamdae, the core of their territory, which holds the vast majority of their 3 million citizens, covers only 87,000 square kilometers, an area about the size of Serbia. Since much of the area is arid, intensive irrigation-based agriculture and sericulture are necessary. Also, there is a fairly large urban population, though the urban centers tend to be small. The largest town, and de jure capital, has a population of only 50,000.

The area that would become The Sacred Groves was first colonized by munkees from further east around 4200, fleeing political upheavals in the empire. Dry climates are never hospitable to munkees, and settlements remained small. A few mining communities had limited integration with the imperial economy until around 4600, when even this lifeline dwindled. The major towns of The Sacred Groves were founded around this time as small villages cultivating fields and orchards by river banks and on hillsides that afforded some amount of moisture. The turning point came in 5100, when the first tree golems appeared. The western flanks of the mountains received a steady trickles of refugees that became a torrent once the empire began to collapse. The orchards of the villages became fiercely defended sacred spaces protected by walled cities and sizable militias. The tree golems pose only a small threat generally, since the well guarded orchards surrounded by barren desert pose a small reward for a large risk to the golems.

The harsh desert climate always necessitated frugality when it came to using wood. Munkee society was generally built of wood. Trees provided shelter, shade, food, building materials, and spiritual comfort. The west had always had strong taboos against felling trees for utilitarian purposes, and as the groves became increasingly essential to survival these taboos became strict edicts. A village or town's grove is its most sacred space and a commons for the community. All important social rituals take place there, and its residents (i.e. the trees) are treated as privileged residents, each given a name and carefully registered by age and appearance. A sapling that sprouts from under a slab of pavement will often see an entire building demolished so as not to disturb its growth. Each grove is said to house its own local variety of heke, and sacred artifacts (some of them brought by refugees from the east, or by defunct imperial trade routes from far away lands) are kept among the branches of the highest trees.

Politically, the confederation can only mobilize resources on a large scale in times of crisis. The rest of the time the central court rotates from one town to the next according to a regular cycle, officiating over various rituals and mostly doing very little. The business of ruling mostly happens in Apuron, as does most intellectual pursuit, but the language of the people is pidgin or sign. Most citizens have a vaguely defined sense of loyalty to the confederation as a whole, and will reluctantly fight to protect the orchards of a far away city-state. But local culture reigns in The Sacred Groves. Some towns specialize in mining, others in luxury goods, still others in dried fruit, pottery, or rope. Although the desert imposes a strict limit on the available resources, The Sacred Grove's technological level is not insignificant, even compared to the empire in its heyday. Minted coins are used for important transactions and taxes, fine cloth, jewelry, and cosmetics are within reach for the middle classes. Literacy is high among elites. And recent improvements in furnace temperatures have allowed for a wide variety of beautiful porcelain and stoneware.

The general habit of munkees is to maintain a certain degree of gender symmetry, and The Sacred Groves continues this tradition by holding separate courts of men and women. The courts' responsibilities are divided, with the men's court dealing mostly with matters of long distance trade, military operations, and the organization of labor parties, and the women's court dealing mostly with civil disputes, small scale economics, and social welfare. Both courts share the responsibility of tending the orchards. In the 4000s most villages were ruled primarily by women, with men's councils handling only conflicts between men. But the influx of refugees caused an increase in the scale of governance and the role of men in government.

[ol bofosh]

What year are we in for this round?

Edit: I want to do something with an En Soki offshoot in P1. Refugees from the fall of the Faichesi kingdom, they encounter primitive amphibimorphs, which they take as their new slaves (though they just think of them as intelligent animals that can do useful tricks). In the north of the square there is a small population of monkees.

[KathTheDragon]

I'm gonna pull out and give my dragons up for adoption. I don't really have the time to devote to sorting them out.

[Matrix]

What year are we in for this round?

Whatever you want.

[ol bofosh]

Or rather between what years?
5000 to ???
5500 to ???

[Matrix]

1 - 5500

[Hydroeccentricity]

Munkee dressed for dry weather!

[Matrix]

Click for full size.

The Tumatimarh, by 5000, consist of a series of six paramount chiefdoms. In ages past, their nomadic ancestors had a range that extended farther west, but they were pushed east by Leinopheon's expansion.

Through extended contact with the Mecongai, the Tumatimarh have gained a series of beliefs that blend together the Mecongai Interpretation of Swiiva Ngizwayadri, the eastern Mecongai Philosophies, and the indigenous belief in various spirits. They believe that the chiefs of the mortal world have a great power in a connection to the spirit world, which is ruled by the Heavenly Clan of Porhō, his wife the Sun, and his two sons, Mokō and Rhaho. The hierarchy of the spirit world is seen as the example to which the chiefs aspire. Porhō is a greatly benevolent paramount chief whose love and care for his subjects knows no bounds. In this way, mortal chiefs are expected to be greatly generous in their duties of goods redistribution and the meting out of justice. On the other side, those subordinate to the chief must do as the chief says, so as to return that same love and care to him. The dead are recreated by Porhō to serve in the spirit hierarchy. Where they are positioned in this hierarchy reflects the goodness - or lack thereof - of their actions in life. The creation of idols and fetishes to contact the spirits is expressly forbidden - it bypasses the natural order established by the Heavenly Clan. Stelae are erected to commemorate great events, but a stela must not depict the event, else it becomes an idol to the event, which could be used by anyone to do all sorts of nasty things, like, say, bringing the ghosts of warriors who died in a great battle into the mortal world to cause trouble. Warrior clans are given the highest position in society, because they are the ones able to bring the order that the chief needs to properly follow in the example of Porhō. Warriors and shamans paint their bodies with various designs said to grant them their power. However, shamans, as situated outside the hierarchy of the chiefdom, are shunned and reviled by many. The secrets of the body paint designs and other various rituals used by chiefs and warriors are closely guarded.

The Tumatimarh are known as a hearty people who love celebration. Chiefs primarily express their expected generosity in frequent potlucks. Being a fluvial and coastal people the Tumatimarh eat a lot of fish. Living in a grassland as they do, they are also adept hunters. They also practice some basic, grass-based horticulture. Gender relations are generally cordial and relatively equal, though there are some imbalances, like the majority of chiefs being men. Women who are mothers are expected to focus on their children, but the state of motherhood is not considered the default for women. On top of that, mothers are centres of their families. As such, they tend to hold more power in society - through command of their children - than women who have chosen to not be mothers. Also, it's not a permanent binary choice, between being a mother and not. A mother whose children have all come of age can go take up some other role in society again, though their influence in society may wane if they don't keep up in family politics. Most men don't hold much personal power in society - what power they have access to usually comes from familial connections to influential mothers. The exception here are chiefs, who, again, are usually men, in the example of Porhō. Even then, chiefs play a kind of balancing act between their own power and the power of their mothers. A general hierarchy of Tumatimarh society would be Chiefs > Warriors (Mothers > Men & Women) > Laborers (Mothers > Men & Women).

The paramount chiefdom of Nořhamonur is something of an anomaly, because its paramount chief is actually an exiled Leinopheonese Portraitist - called Ngottamon in Mecongai, or Nořhamon in Tumatimarh - who was able to set themselves up in Tumatimarh society through shows of force and great feats of hunting. Nořhamon is generally disliked in the other five paramount chiefdoms, who see them as a shaman, since as a Portraitist, Nořhamon encourages the creation of idols of themselves. They are also aggressive, frequently sending raiding parties down into the valley, and even into Leinopheon, where they are seen as something like a bandit.

War is not uncommon along the Tumatim - Nořhamon sends raiding parties regularly, and even amongst the other paramount chiefdoms, there can be territorial disputes, or so-and-so insulted whatserface, among other casus bellorum. Of note is that there are various tribes of nightpeople to the southeast of the Tumatimarh, which extend even into the southwest of the shown map. The people of Kipamhikim are in frequent conflict with these tribes, who like to use their nocturnalism to sneak in to Tumatimarh villages and steal stuff.

[zompist]

The Heresiarchs of Lulweon

Background

Around 2500, the Dragolms of the Golden Crown turned their large rocky heads to expansion. Many primitive tribes of
humans and munkees were incorporated into their empire. Then they met the Cagers of
Lulweon.
There was a sizing-up period-- neither type of golem was quick to act-- and then centuries of
war. The Munkees of Č'irah, to say nothing of the other peoples of CCCP, were given a respite by
this war.

The two sides were well matched, but on the whole the Cagers slowly lost ground. Dragon-based
golems were stronger than munkee- and human-based ones, especially those modified to hold
an actual ape inside. (Occasionally dragons were captured, and draconoid golem-cages could
be created-- though since the supply was so low, the techniques for keeping them alive lagged.)

The Heresiarchs

Around 3000, a schism developed in Lulweon. The Cagers had incorporated the war into their
Law, which meant it was unquestionable and must be pursued till it finished. But the golems
were rational enough to see that this policy might as easily lead to utter defeat. This would of
course violate the Revelation, golems' duty to protect other sentient life.

This troubled many, but a sect in the far east went so far as to question the Law. Their initial aim
was to only reform those portions of the Law which contradicted the Revelation. They divided
the Law into portions which facilitated Revelation, portions merely compatible with it, and
portions antagonistic to it.

It was observed that the Revelation also applied to the golems
themselves; this had never really been considered before, as no existential threats to the golems
were known. But now the Law had to be evaluated based on this perspective as well.

The initial corollaries were that steps must be taken to preserve as much as possible of Lulweon
in case of defeat. Thus underground cities were built, and shipbuilding was developed in case an
escape by sea was necessary. New offensive weapons were developed. There was also fervent magical and technological research made
into building better Cages.

The combination of evaluating the Law, and doing practical work, led to the true Revelational
bombshell: a re-evaluation of the notion of risk. The Law was worked out based on an aversion
to behaviors that led to obvious harm. But the sectarians were now used to thinking about
disasters that had not yet happened. Actions approved by the Law might fail this new higher
standard. When all risks were taken into account, actions disapproved might be better after all.

To the majority of Lulweon's golems, this sort of thinking had passed from eccentric to heretical.
The sectarians, now persecuted except in some eastern areas where they formed a majority,
embraced the title. Yes, they were heresiarchs!

Independence

There were attempts at confronting the heresy, and thoughts of war. However, the nascent
science of the Heresiarchs excelled in defense: it would be a huge undertaking to conquer their
territory. A few violent encounters ended badly-- and, perhaps ironically, triggered the
majority's aversion-lawmaking. The Law now said that the Heresiarchs were to be shunned.

The Heresiarchs were disappointed to be ostracized, but they were too busy with their reform and research to be
set back for long. In essenece, they had created a mechanism for reviewing Laws for
compatibility with Revelation, with practical necessity, and with a changing environment.
About half the Law did not meet the new requirements and was abandoned. Some new laws
were created, but the process of adding laws was greatly slowed down.

Improvement of the Cages

The Cage thaumatechnology inherited from Lulweon preserved life but not vitality or sanity.
The initial goal of Heresiarch research was simply to increase their vigor, in case they must be
transported underground or overseas, or hidden in remote valleys. Uncaged munkees were
known to use opiates; these were tried on the Caged, but results were disappointing.

Perhaps other drugs? Stimulants were tried, but these paraxoxically reduced lifespan. One
researcher was convinced that the stimulants would be better absorbed through the ears, and
created Cages with ear-tubes. The dosing didn't work, but astonishingly, the ear-tubes did. The
caged apes could hear and speak, and this seemed to perk them up substantially. The golems,
like suddenly enlightened zookeepers, began for the first time to consider the mental health of
their charges.

It took centuries of experimentation, but by 3500 the cages had evolved into something very
different. The Caged had all the senses available, could interact with others, could even direct
the movements of their cage-golem. It was not so much a matter of encasing another sentient,
but of giving them a new, rock-hard body. The relationship between the two minds was much
more symbiotic; indeed, it could be said that the caging now created a new munkee-golem or
human-golem hybrid. By adding new organs and melding nervous systems, it was even
possible to retain sexual activity-- though pregnancy was not possible, nor was it possible for
golems and non-golemns to have sex together.

The hybrids naturally transformed society in the Heresiarch enclave. Individuals were more
distinct; the Law was less important; munkee clans and values now applied to the Heresiarchs
themselves; there was even an interest in the old munkee gods.

The practice of caging was never reconsidered. From a punishment in munkee/human society,
it was now an aspiration: it was the elite that, in effect, took on near-impermeable, near-
immortal bodies. (As a corollary, strict control over the Uncaged continued: the elite had no
interest in sharing power. However, maintaining control was easier than the old days, when fear
was the only real motivation.)

(In this brief account I skip over setbacks and opposition. Not all golems approved of these
changes-- but the objectors were outvoted, or exiled themselves. Also, symbiotic union was
hardly the original goal of either side. All sorts of dreadful alternative paths were pursued.)

What next?

For most of the period before 3500, the Heresiarchs had their hands full with their research
program and maintaining their independence. (Occasionally they had contributed to the
Lulweon war effort; more often they resisted both parties.)

By around 3700, though, their research orientation and the greater dynamism of hybrid brains
had produced breakthroughs in science, industry, agriculture, and warfare. Weapons had been
developed that were devastating to both Dragolms and the Caged of Lulweon. The Heresiarchs
could think of expansion. Should they concentrate on their old enemies, or perhaps expand
into the lands of the Č'irah?

[Mornche Geddick]

The Dazi (escaped slaves from Tsargoki)

Tsargoki society has been battered, but not beaten, by the effects of the Great Wobble and C. irrumpans, the brain-infesting amoeba. The strengthening of the ambient magic has also had far-reaching effects. The most significant was some members of the slave caste discovering they could cast spells.

These were simple spells at first, like raising light, lightening loads, curing minor skin complaints, but it was enough to worry the Elite Castes (who were on edge anyway in bad times like that). Laws were passed banning humans from using magic. But because magic made their hard lives a bit easier, the humans carried on doing it behind their masters' backs.

Here are just a few of the laws and by-laws enacted in various towns and country estates in East Matrixia.
1. No light is allowed in any human dwelling after dark.
2. Any human caught using a spell will be flogged.
3. No human is permitted to travel outside their home farm without written permission from their master.
4. Any human trading in magic items or cantrips will be hanged.
This law caught not only genuine witches and wizards, but also midwives and traditional healers, and was naturally very unpopular.

Some by-laws and plantation rules verged on the ridiculous.
5. No human is to carry a feather.
6. No human may keep a red object in their dwelling, whether clothing or pottery.
(Feathers and red-coloured objects were sometimes used in spells).
7. No human is to say his master's real name out loud.
8. No human is allowed to read or write.
9. No human is allowed in a room with a mirror.
(The last was enacted by a plantation owner who turned out to be afflicted by C. irrumpans.)

Other laws were more sinister.
10. Any human who learns that one of his race is using or practising magic and fails to denounce the criminal to his master, will suffer the same punishment.

The humans had always been told that they were weaker, less intelligent, less brave and less honourable than the three Elite races. They needed the warriors to protect them, and owed them unconditional obedience. Now they saw their masters becoming more fallible and more cruel, the reasoning was looking more than a little threadbare. They were getting better at magic, too, in spite of the persecution. Starting around 4150, there were a series of slave revolts, which were brutally put down.

Hitherto, the humans had been kept in their lowly station by the brutal fact that they had nowhere to run to except territory controlled by the mad golems. Now some of the human magicians at the very edge of Tsargoki territory discovered they could cast golem-repelling spells. Some of the rebellious slaves became desperate enough to flee westward and hope to fend off the golems by themselves.

[Mornche Geddick]

The Da:zi Nation
(Da:zi comes from dasir, the Tsargoki name for human).

Da:zi history begins when a band of some three hundred humans of all ages, led by the messianic prophet Klarot, travelled west over the Eastern Matrixian mountains. Klarot was taken by many to be an avatar of the Old Race, but in sober likelihood he probably was a victim of C. irrumpans, as he started with hallucinations and grandiose plans, but sank into depression and near-catatonia at the end. Luckily, when he became unable to lead, his place was taken by one of his wives, Ksikirtyak. She was the most powerful magician present by some way and beat down his inner ring of devotees by sheer power. As a canny politician, she kept Klarot alive, ruling in his name as regent, “interpreting” his bizarre and increasingly rare “prophecies”, and gave the task of caring for him to two of his wives, who genuinely loved him. Shortly after her coup, the band, now swollen to nearly a thousand, moved north to escape an incursion by Tsargoki warriors, with most people on foot and Klarot carried in a makeshift litter.

Under her rule, the little colony, which had everything going against it, kept going. The Da:zi had to learn nearly everything from scratch, from family life to war. They lived by garden agriculture and herding, and were joined by other escaped slaves, who had vital skills like metal-working and wheel-making, and cloth weaving. They also had to be constantly on guard for golems and Tsargoki forces. Ksikirtyak sat under a plane tree, giving judgements and laws. These people had come from a society where they were regarded and treated as the lowest of the low, and they often behaved like it. The early years were plagued by crime, quarrels and feuds. Possibly nothing caused more trouble than the sexual mores they had inherited from the Tsargoki. The Elites had enjoyed a Droit de Seigneur over their underlings and they often used it as a means to boost their own ego and to put the lower in their place. But now, with nobody enjoying a stable status except Ksikirtyak and her magicians, and the little circle around Klarot, the jealousies and resentments that had been repressed boiled over. A Da:zi chief who demanded Droit de Seigneur might find him- or herself murdered by the injured spouse, or even by the concubine. Ksikirtyak eventually had to outlaw Droit de Seigneur and give up her own male concubines.

The big breakthrough came when somebody discovered a spell that could control the mad golems and make them obey verbal commands. As long as the charm was re-cast regularly, a golem could even be kept around as a permanent servant. True, if the charm failed, the golem would go on the rampage. Also true, sometimes a golem would fall to pieces without warning. True, the golems had no sense of ethics in either state, and were often used as murder weapons in feuds. But on the whole, the benefits outweighed the problems. The Da:zi set to work to capture and tame the mad golems, and soon they had several dozen. They soon proved very useful indeed.

[Mornche Geddick]

The Da:zi moved further north, into the steppe, to evade a Tsargoki expeditionary force sent to wipe them out. Ksikirtyak sacrficed several golems in a raid on the Tsargoki army which was chasing them, and sent the rest back into Tsargoki territory. When the news came through that the golems were rampaging in their own country, the Tsargoki were forced to abandon their expedition in a hurry. The Da:zi were eventually able to replace their stone servants, though it took several years.

They now live mainly by herding, and use their golems mainly for draught. Previously, small hand-carts and rickshaws had been pulled by humans. Now larger wagons can be pulled by golems, and by the reindeer-like hoofed mammal which the Da:zi have domesticated. Sometimes Da:zi will ride on a golem's shoulders. It is a matter of great pride to the Da:zi that they have succeeded where the Tsargoki failed, in conquering the stone demons.

What they have not been able to do, however, is create their own golems. They can only capture and tame wild ones, which venture less often into Da:zi territory. The knowledge that the Da:zi have golems at their command has so far deterred the Tsargoki from further attempts against their unwelcome new neighbours.

Socially they have reverted to monogamy, propelled by the fact that women tend to be slightly better magicians than men, a factor which makes for equality between the sexes. (Chiefs of both sexes are still known to take concubines, but by bribery rather than by force, and in a rather shame-faced and hush-hush manner.) They are now organised by families and clans. Because strong magicians may appear in any family, no wealthy clan has been able to become an Elite Caste.

They live in tents most of the year round, following the herds, but in some places they have built stone huts which they occupy part of the year. Even wealthy families do not own more goods than they can fit on a wagon. They practice weaving and dying, leather-work, cheese-making, and metallurgy, and mine copper, tin and iron in the mountains. Most Da:zi have some skill with the sling, bow and spear, and with basic magic spells like raising light.

They have taken the C. irrumpans parasite with them. Although the rate of infection is not high enough to wipe them out, (and many die of natural causes first) everybody knows someone who has fallen victim to the Melancholia or the Black Dog. Without any understanding of the cause, they may have stumbled on a cure. A magical healer created a spell to kill tapeworms and hookworms; it also cleans the parasite out of an asymptomatic carrier. It may take years before anyone realises that regular use of the hookworm spell can prevent you falling victim to the Black Dog. The Da:zi don't realise what they have there.

[zompist]

I think we have 6 entries so far. (Matrix has 2, counting his additions to the Mecongai.)

Feel free to slip an idea in, especially if you're new! It doesn't have to be full-fledged, and you're encouraged to base something off an existing culture.

If you want to do it but need a few more days, tell me.

[Matrix]

(Matrix has 2, counting his additions to the Mecongai.)

I thought that additions to one of your own cultures didn't count as an entry in this round?

[Clearsand]

Sorry I'm so late, but here's my subculture:

The Eastern Nespeks

In the last days of the golem ruled Empire of Nespek, before the civil war, there was a peaceful population of fishermen on the Eastern shore of the Nespek peninsula. For the most part, the peaceful fishermen knew and cared little of the politics of the capital and many had never met another species other than a golem. They did not care than the golems ruled them and many even believed that the golems were the only things bringing fish into their nets. This made it all the more surprising when one day one fisherman caught something more than a fish, something that would ultimately bring the empire to an end.

Eš, a fisherman living near the top of the eastern shore of the Nespek Peninsula, saw something or someone falling from the sky while he was making his way back home after a long day of fishing. Curious, he rowed his boat to the spot where he had seen it land in water. There he found someone struggling in the water. Before Eš could do anything, the drowning victim had grabbed hold on his boat and hauled itself on. It sat up and Eš came face to face with a scar-faced orc. Eš had never seen a sentient creature other than a human or golem and was filled with terror by the orc's dark green, ape-like appearance. He yelled for help and almost jumped of the boat to swim for shore before the orc grabbed him by the throat and uttered an unintelligible word: "Qikr." The orc then seized the oars and rapidly rowed the boat to shore where the orc made Eš show him the way to his hut.

In subsequent days the orc basically took over Eš's small fishing hut, eating his food and sleeping in his bed. Once Eš got over his shock and his fear of the orc, he realized that the orc was actually quite intelligent and began to become friends with him. He was still irked by the orc's rude entrance and the monopolization of his property, but he grew to like the orc's rough manner and hardiness.

The orc eventually communicated its name as Toupitk. Eš and Toupitk's relationship was less that of friends as it was of two fellow criminals. Toupitk began to learn the Nespek language from Eš as well as the other fishermen in the area that Eš had introduced to him. At first, others were afraid of Toupitk, but he possessed considerable social skills despite not being able to speak fluently and grew to be liked by everyone in the area. He had that sense of authority and knowing what to do that was deeply ingrained in the culture of the Eastern Nespeks.

As Toupitk began to gain an understanding of the Nespek language, Eš pestered him more and more about who he was and where he came from and why he fell from the sky that day. Toupitk would tell him no more than the fact that he came from far, far south where there were many orcs. Toupitk held back from telling Eš about their ability to shadow realm, seemingly because he didn't want the Nespeks to know why he had come here and not returned to his homeland.

One day, almost a year after falling from the sky, Toupitk indicated that he wanted to go to the capital. Eš resisted, not wanting to go through hassle and danger of a long journey to the busy city of Káikeš, but Toupitk was not easily swayed and they were soon packing their bags. When they arrived at Káikeš, the first thing Toupitk noticed was all the golems. He was disgusted by the human subservience and the huge palaces/temples the golems had had the humans build. He became increasingly angry throughout the day, so much so that Eš suggested they should leave even though the first day at the capital was not yet over. Toupitk agreed. As they were leaving the city, they passed a huge monument covered with columns being build by humans to honor the death of a prominent golem. As they watched, a column collapsed, killing a dozen human Nespeks. They golem overseers roared in anger and demanded to know who was responsible for building such an unsturdy column. Eš was horrified, but Toupitk was livid with anger. He yelled at the golems in broken Nespek saying that they should let the people go and build it themselves. The golem were confused and ordered that Eš and Toupitk go home. Eš practically had to drag Toupitk away as he shouted curses at the golems.

In the following months Toupitk began spreading a dangerous message to the Eastern Nespeks: Golems were not gods and they were just taking advantage of humans to do their dirty work. At first the fishermen were hesitant to believe him, but they started to realized that Toupitk was echoing doubts they had been having for many years about the holiness of the golems. The golems didn't oppress their lives in particular besides taxes, but they felt that it was against the culture of the sea to let their fellow man be needlessly oppressed. As Toupitk gained speaking skills a small group of people, mostly local fishermen, began to rally around him. Independently of Toupitk, people started a kind of secret organization to discuss the unrest they were feeling. All the talk went nowhere until more than a year later when the golem leader of the northeastern part of Nespek died.

The Start of the Civil War

Nespeks up and down the coast were called in to build a monument to the golem, including Eš and almost all of the few hundred followers of Toupitk. The barons also ordered Toupitk to go and help with the construction along with Eš. Everyone complied at first, but after two months, Toupitk's followers struck back at their overlords. They had planned the attack since before even coming to the site. The golems didn't even know what hit them before they were incapacitated and all of the workers had escaped into the woods.
From their, the rebels stormed nearby palaces and made their way through the countryside, taking control of the golems. the civil war raged on into the capital and across the country. The war dragged on for nearly a century and essentially destroyed the Nespek civilization. Eš and Toupitk both died early in the war when the resistance movement went to the capital for the first time. They were replaced by new leaders from the original band of rebels. Nobody ever found out where Toupitk came from or if he confided in Eš, but it is likely that he was a criminal of some type escaping from his country with untrained shadow travel.

[ol bofosh]

I've been meaning to do this, but haven't had the time, so I've just this little contribution to share.

Square P1 - Sentan kindgom (humans with some amphibimorphs and monkees)

Sentan is a human kingdom located on the coast South-West of Torcopea, to the south of the old kingdom of Faichesi.

With the fall of the kingdom of Faichesi, slavers and Hozongluists found that they had to adapt to the new world, but some didn't accept this and wanted to keep their traditional values.

In 4241 a few ships sailed South, looking for new land, free from the occupation of other humans and monkees. They soon came upon a rainforest and set up a colony. They found amphibimorphs, and because they were so primitive and didn't speak as humans do, they were regarded as intelligent animals. They were "domesticated", being used for their natural farming skills.

In the beginning they had a council of elders ruling them, or rather forming a temporary aliance whilst vying for power. Soon one elder, Sentan, and his family took the upperhand, and formed the beginnings of a kingdom.

Within few hundred years, the Sentan dynasty was well-established, built on the the work of amphibimorphs, who didn't show signs of being upset, but who knows what happens behind those froggy eyes? Most of their civilisation is sea-based with some land farming. The forest has proved impenetrable and dangerous in parts, and the people of Sentan have contracted strange illnesses, so they haven't made much headway inland, meaning that many amphibimorph bands go undisturbed. And in the North of their part of Torcopea (P1) primitive tribes of monkees live, also uncontacted by Sentan.

[clawgrip]

Not sure if this is eligible for the round, since the Ggazzei, the culture from which this subculture originates, were given to me by Hydroeccentricity, but this is the first I've done to develop it, and it does involve a subculture, so this seems like a good time and place to post it, so here it is.

The Pouzxat
The Pouzxat culture origated from the south of the main Ggazzei region. The Pouzxat were originally impoverished peasants who lived around the palaces of Touzy and Reqta. Poor weather conditions led to the migration of many of these destitute peasants to the Bakna and Ordon hills to the southwest, where for several centuries they adopted a semi-nomadic lifestyle.

Over the centuries, a distinct culture began to solidify, which eventually developed into the Pouzxat culture. Around 1800, they began to establish larger permanent settlements along the Ggazzei-Cesɔn trade route. The main settlement, Zzear, became relatively prosperous as a trading hub. The Pouzxat acquired goods from both cultures, and fortified Zzear in order to ensure trade continued smoothly, as it was the lifeblood of their civilisation. They expanded southward along the trade route, creating a network of Pouzxat-controlled trading posts. This continued for several centuries, during which time the Pouzxat adopted the religion of the Cesɔn and increasingly developed bureaucratically and militarily, in order to protect trade interests.

At the beginning of the 3rd century, as the Ggazzei civilisation began to collapse, Pouzxat prosperity began to suffer as a result. Shortly after this, the Cesɔn began somewhat aggressively expanding northward. The southernmost Pouzxat settlement of Buddyr was occupied by the Cesɔn, who imposed taxes on Pouzxat trade. Pressure from the Cesɔn forced many Pouzxat north toward the Ggazzei palace regions.

Within a few decades, The Ggazzei found themselves overrun by the Pouzxat, gainst whose relatively sudden influx they found themselves scarce able to defend themselves. By 2420, Pouzxat military forces had entered the region, and in 2423, Uddmea quickly fell to the Pouzxat, who fortified their positions in the Ggazzei and Pouzxat regions against the advances of the Cesɔn into the original lands of the Pouzxat, and the nomadic Ggazzei raiders from the hills.

[zompist]

(Matrix has 2, counting his additions to the Mecongai.)

I thought that additions to one of your own cultures didn't count as an entry in this round?

You're right; misread my own rules.

[zompist]

OK, please vote! As there are not many entries, indicate 4 cultures, in ranked order. I haven't made links because all but the first are on page 2 of this thread.

clawgrip - The Ayīt [page 1]
Hydro - The Sacred Groves
Matrix - The Tumatimarh
zompist - The Heresiarchs of Lulweon
Mornche Geddick - The Da:zi
Clearsand - The Eastern Nespeks
ol bofosh - Sentan
clawgrip - The Pouzxat

[Matrix]

1. Heresiarchs
2. Da:zi
3. Sacred Groves
4. Eastern Nespeks

[ol bofosh]

1. clawgrip - The Ayīt
2. Hydro - The Sacred Groves
3. zompist - The Heresiarchs of Lulweon
4. Clearsand - The Eastern Nespeks

[Clearsand]

1. Heresiarchs
2. Da:zi
3. Sacred Groves
4. The Ayit