Lore Week III!

[Rias]

Getting close to the end of 2013, and I haven't done a Lore Week yet.

What do you people want to know?

[Lysse]

What does it mean, the Fasa li Nuam were the first druids? Do ther druidic traditions predate the Faewyr and Dwaedn Wyr?

Are the Dwaedn Wyr traditions carried down from the original Faewyr homelands, or was it developed in the Lost Lands?

What was the kingdom of Old Aetgard like? (It'd be nice to know what it was like when it was in full swing, as well as the early years AND the declining years)

Are there any current cults to Vodr? How is it believed Vodr died? Is he considered more 'mythological' than the other deities, because of his 'death'?

What are some creation myths that the cultures of Arad typically believe in?

[Nootau]

I would like to know more about Shadgard's origins. How was it started, also would like to know how it relates to the iron wall barrier. Was it there before the town was or was the town there and then the wall placed? How did the Wyr react to a group settling in that did not respect their ways or were the Wyr in the area only afterwards? While it was the first city, I oddly cannot remember much about it, just that is was always there.

[Rias]

Note: Dwaedn Vil will be moved to a different part of the map soonish. It's super close to Shadgard only because it was one of the first guilds, and released when the wilderness consisted only of a handful of rooms.

[Rias]

And another note: Referring to Dwaedn Wyr as simply "Wyr" isn't the best idea, since that just roughly translates to "people" and is far too broad (see Faewyr, Dunwyr, and it's surely used with a multitude of other Faewyr groups). If you must abbreviate, better to refer to them as "Dwaedn."

[Jaster]

I'd like to know more about the Guild of Thieves. I know there are multiple smaller "chapters" (if you will) of the Guild in different cities, but do they communicate with one another? If so, to what degree?

I've always understood that they are separate entities, but are still all "the Guild of Thieves" and not "the guilds of thieves". That would imply that perhaps there is a governing body over all of the chapters, although the identity or identities of that body would not be known by the public and would most certainly be unknown to most of the Guild as well.

Basically, I'm asking for more detail where you likely would want to remain purposefully vague. Lol.

[Barius]

What is riln?





Come on, you knew it was coming.

[TwistedAkai]

I'd like to know what a riln is, and I'd like to know more about the Viali caste system.

[Drayla]

Okay, something I have been wondering about for quite a while: Why did Mistral get founded on a platform over the water? Why were the Vatnfjall Ruins abandoned in the first place, and why didn't the founders of Mistral just clear out the old ruins and live there, since one must travel through the ruins to get to and from Mistral anyway?

[qinweiqi]

Have there been individuals since Vito that could channel their inner light without training?

[qinweiqi]

What was the first major invention/innovation of Grumm?

[Barius]

I'd also like to see more info on the different racial cultures. There are still races that have no information on the Wiki. Faewyr, Giganti, Huec, and Parren have nothing. Anything that can be filled in regarding general lifestyle would be great. The Immortals section is also sorely lacking.

For a specific question: Who exactly are the Faewyr, and how do they relate to the Dunwyr?

[Rias]

What does it mean, the Fasa li Nuam were the first druids? Do ther druidic traditions predate the Faewyr and Dwaedn Wyr?

First druids in Arad. Whether they or the Faewyr were the "first" is debatable. Faewyr had already practiced druidry before ever coming to Arad, certainly. Dwaedn Wyr get their druidism from their origins as a Faewyr group.

Are the Dwaedn Wyr traditions carried down from the original Faewyr homelands, or was it developed in the Lost Lands?

Faewyr homelands. Probably added some of their own unique twists over time, of course.

What was the kingdom of Old Aetgard like? (It'd be nice to know what it was like when it was in full swing, as well as the early years AND the declining years)

I'll get back to this one later. You can at least get a glimpse of some of their archetecture by exploring the Vatnfjall Ruins and Valeria (if you can get admittance to the latter).

Are there any current cults to Vodr? How is it believed Vodr died? Is he considered more 'mythological' than the other deities, because of his 'death'?

There are certainly groups that still believe Vodr lives, or at the least believe he continues to have influence despite having been "defeated" or losing his mortal body or being banished (or whatever they attribute his defeat/death/disappearance to). Some of these groups worship or serve or follow him, and some of them seem to have power because of it, though whether that's through the power of Vodr or their own (some kind of elemancy, perhaps) is a topic of debate.

What are some creation myths that the cultures of Arad typically believe in?

I'll get back to that. I've been wanting to reveal some info on this particularly for the Huec and Giganti people for a while now.

I would like to know more about Shadgard's origins. How was it started, also would like to know how it relates to the iron wall barrier. Was it there before the town was or was the town there and then the wall placed?

Shadgard started as something kind of like a tourist destination. Some people from Aetgard discovered Redrock Canyon, and within it, the statue that stands in what is now the Town Commons. Further in was the Barrier. There were also some stone dwellings carved into the canyon walls. Back then, the place was called Sjagardr. This became a popular spot for people to visit in order to observe the curiosities, and naturally some entrepreneurs set up little shops, inns, taverns, etc. around the area to accomodate visitors.

When the Plague hit western Arad, Sjagardr was hit just like everywhere else, though due in part to its tiny population (not many people actually lived there) and that fact that after the plague started, they didn't really receive any visitors (fewer plague carriers), it was lucky enough to suffer less. In the aftermath of the plague, as survivors were finding places to band together and try to create a new life, Sjagardr was one of those places. It was a well-known spot and was already populated by some survivors, and had some facilities there already. Also, unlike the larger towns and cities, it wasn't overflowing with plague-ridden rotting corpses, which is always a plus. Sjagardr became more settled and populated as survivors heard about it as a new haven, its name was bastardized into "Shadgard" as Common Speech became more ... common.

After it became more of a town and less of a tourist attraction, the mining operations started. They had a good supply of pine from the surrounding forest, but the residents needed metal. The first mines were started near the Barrier, with the secondary purpose of exploring what might be behind the massive solid wall. As they dug further in and saw how startlingly deep the Barrier went, the town council began to worry about whether it was a good idea to discover whatever was behind the thing. It was decided to abandon the mines there and start new ones in a different area of the canyon (where players can go now). Later on, the old mines were converted into facilities to be used by a local chapter of Church.

I'd like to know more about the Guild of Thieves.

Maybe Greer will chat with you about it sometime.

What is riln?

I've never really decided. It's some kind of coinage, or at least something similar to coinage. I'm tempted to go with the typical pieces of silver and gold, but that's just so boring!

Viali caste system

I'll get back to that later, though it might not come up during this Lore Week.

Why did Mistral get founded on a platform over the water? Why were the Vatnfjall Ruins abandoned in the first place, and why didn't the founders of Mistral just clear out the old ruins and live there, since one must travel through the ruins to get to and from Mistral anyway?

Vatnfjall was one of the more prosperous cities of Aetgard. A local leader of the city had a fancy keep built on the mountain out over the crystal-clear sunny lake, with a long bridge leading over to it. A small platform was built on the lake around the keep to house various facilities as well as local nobles and other people in positions of prestige and power, as a way to kind of separate themselves from the commonfolk. It eventually became its own little district for the nobility, and had things like a fancy music theater and other hoity-toity-we're-so-sophisticated stuff like that.

Then the Plague hit. Vatnfjall was hit hard, its population wiped out. The nobility on the platform forbade people to seek refuge with them. However, they still depended on the goods and services of the people on the mainland shore, so they couldn't completely cut themselves off, and so they were infected with the plague as well.

Later on, groups of plague survivors were looking for places to live. Some of them began repopulating Vatnfjall, particularly areas that were mostly abandoned during the peak of the plague (less rotting/plagued bodies to clean up). They avoided the bridge leading into the foggy gloom they found always surrounded the lake. They did well for a time and built up a decent community in the ruins, and things were looking good. However, that's when the canim struck. The beastlike men kidnapped people and raided supplies, or at the worst, just killed and ate people on the spot. The canim quickly got a foothold in the Vatnfjall ruins, and the residents living there fled over the fog-shrouded bridge and over to the lake platform. They were able to set up some guards and use the bridge as a choke point to keep out the canim invaders. Being surrounded by the lake, the people were able to sustain themselves on fish. As their community grew, they were able to build some boats in order to reach the mainland shores and gather other resources, there, but they never risked going over the bridge and through the canim-overrun ruins of Vatnfjall.

These days the lake-town has grown, and the platform has become pretty crowded. They have enough resources now to have well-trained guards and sentries, as well as their trained varhounds which help sniff out the skulking canim in the ruins. They find it worth it to patrol the centravel avenue through the ruins to their lake-town in order to allow visitors and commerce to easily reach their town. The canim population has dwindled somewhat but hasn't died out, and the people of Mistral Lake haven't yet found it necessary to try and rid the ruins of the beastmen in order to repopulate it - they're doing very well in their new town, thank you very much.

Have there been individuals since Vito that could channel their inner light without training?

Yes, but they're rare. No, player characters can't be one of these individuals.

What was the first major invention/innovation of Grumm?

The toilet! But really, I couldn't say. Something to think about, I guess.

I'd also like to see more info on the different racial cultures. There are still races that have no information on the Wiki. Faewyr, Giganti, Huec, and Parren have nothing. Anything that can be filled in regarding general lifestyle would be great. The Immortals section is also sorely lacking.

Working on it.

For a specific question: Who exactly are the Faewyr, and how do they relate to the Dunwyr?

The Faewyr are from another continent to the west/northwest (I'm working on a larger world map right now on my other screen! I almost have a name for this continent, not sure I like it though). One of their great raider sea-kings established a settlement in northwestern Arad, which eventually (over a very long time) grew into the powerful kingdom of Aetgard (which was also bolstered by immigrants from various other places, many of them from Grum or Ivial, and some from overseas).

The history of the Dunwyr is largely unknown. There are several theories and speculations of course. The Dunwyr claim to be protectors of the land, working to reclaim the lands for the Wilds that have been seized and ravaged by humankind. They claim Faewyr origins, as is made obvious by their name "Dunwyr", "wyr" being the Faewyr term for "people" or "people of".

[qinweiqi]

Has any culture developed a hand-language (like sign language IRL)?
It is less likely to have developed given the esp network allows for broad communication and writing allows for somewhat private communication (albeit slower).

Also, how do the various cultures feel about their languages? (I know the wiki mentions Fasa speak to other Fasa primarily in Fasa and not in common.)
Specifically:
- Do cultures share their language freely? (perhaps the Perrans?)
- Do cultures not teach outsiders the language? (perhaps Fasa?)

Edit to add: Are any languages spoken and not written? Written and not spoken (dead languages?)
Do any languages have both verbal and gesture component (such that one could not effectively speak properly with one's hands full)?

[Makkah]

Do we have moons?

[Kiyaani]

Jaster will moon you.

[Kiyaani]

I'd like more overall towns lore - Mistral and Shadgard background is great so far. What is the background for the Corvus Outpost? What was it before Sceptus took over? Why did he choose that location? What about Keth, Nelra, Morhollow, Westbrook and Emleth? Each of those towns has a distinct feel to them and are vastly different from the others - what causes this diversity in an area that's not *that* widespread and was once a unified kingdom? Are some inhabited mostly by certain nationalities that influence these conditions?

Also, and this may be more of a suggestion, but, can we get more character histories for the more notable NPCs? Things that everyone would know just from having lived in the area. Alternatively, some might have history that can be just added in-game. Gain rep with certain factions or join a guild and the NPC will have more ask options - ask NPC about background, ask NPC about guild role, ask NPC about family etc. I know there's a few cases where people have joined guilds not knowing even who their 'leader' is and not everyone reads the wiki. It's hard to say you work under someone if you don't know what their goals/motivations are or what they stand for.

[Rias]

Has any culture developed a hand-language (like sign language IRL)?

There are some out there, but nothing that has wide usage. It's less cultural and more organizational, though.

(Stuff on cultural languages being shared or protected)

I don't know that there are any cultures that promote the spreading of their languages. With the invention and widespread adoption of the Common language, ancestral languages are more a matter of traditional pride.

Giganti, Nuum, and the Rhuidim are all very protective of their languages. (The Rhuidim have their own language?! Yeah, I'm leaning toward that. Probably heavily based on Nuum.)
The Huec language is probably the strangest and most difficult language for foreigners to understand or learn. The Huecs prefer others don't pick it up, and probably scorn foreigners who [attempt to] speak it.
Some Viali would probably sneer at non-Viali speaking their language, while others would find it as something to compliment a foreigner on achieving, or even take it as a compliment that a foreigner went out of their way to learn the Viali tongue.
Faewyr aren't particularly protective of their language, but they're not going out of their way to spread it around.

Parrens and Hillfolk don't have their own unique languages; they speak Common. They're young cultures that got their start after Common was widespread. Given their history, though, a fair amount of them probably know some Faewyr and, less commonly, Viali.

Can't speak for the Fasa since that's Rithiel's thing.

Edit to add: Are any languages spoken and not written?

I'm thinking they all have some form of recording records. Nuum use their hieroglyphs, Huecs use some form of pictographic glyphs as well.

Written and not spoken (dead languages?)

There are some areas where markings and writing can be seen on the walls that aren't readable by anyone. HOW MYSTERIOUS!!

Do any languages have both verbal and gesture component (such that one could not effectively speak properly with one's hands full)?

Nah.

Do we have moons?

At least one, as many descriptions reference moonlight. Probably just one, not solid on that yet though.

What is the background for the Corvus Outpost? What was it before Sceptus took over?

It was a fortress ruin from old Aetgard. Not a lot of history known about it, as it was completely abandoned (see ruin) when Sceptus got there. Most likely either abandoned due to lack of necessity, or wiped out by the plague. Might be fun to come up with some historical tidbits to be added around the place at some point, though.

Why did he choose that location?

I thought he mentioned that a few times. I don't think it was supposed to be common knowledge, though. I'll have an NPC divulge it soon to some Corvites, I guess, since it sounds like Sceptus didn't after all. And then 10 seconds later people will tell other people anyway, and someone will post it on the wiki, most likely. No, I'm not bitter about stuff that's supposed to be secret being blabbed for no apparent reason other than "Hey guess what secret stuff I know about!" (Note on previous comment: Applies to various people, not just Corvites)

(History of hamlets)

Don't know if Zoiya had any particular histories in mind when she made the hamlets.
Morhollow seems to have some obvious Giganti/Grummer influences to it.
Emleth is just some dismal backwater village, not a lot to it, really. They do have some strong local traditions and an influencial (in their village) town council that is probably a big reason why the residents stay there instead of leaving to try and find a better life in one of the nicer towns. Plus, some people probably just prefer the quiet, simple life there. It's also not always as easy as one might think, picking up your life and moving elsewhere.
Keth is a pretty typical quaint little village as far as I can see. They've got a few homes built into some of the hills which are remeniscent of hobbit-holes - that's probably just the people adapting to the land.
Nelra seems to have a "nomadic Nuum or Fasa" vibe to it. It's less a hamlet and more a bunch of tents. Why haven't they moved in so long now? WOULDN'T YOU LIKE TO KNOW!!
Westbrook has the whole "living in the trees" thing going for part of it, which is probably just an idea to whoever the first settlers were. Maybe it was originally a defensive decision. I've always imagined for some reason that Westbrook occasionally has trouble with brigands or canim, but Zoiya's the one who made the place, not me.

[Makkah]

Caldwell: where is it? any history (esp. with the monk that resided there) to it or was it just kind of a way to test mechanics and combat? will it make a return?


Upon research, Rias posted this over 2 years ago:

Caldwell has a good amount of storyline and purpose behind it, as can be guessed by whole "eternal winter, glacier-engulfed, revenant-inhabited ghost city" thing. I have more areas planned around it to be released in the future. The background history will be revealed through events and new area expansions around it, as well as clues that will be placed around those areas for explorers to find and piece together on their own (I've always enjoyed that aspect of exploring in games).

Geographically, Caldwell is at the foot of the only mountain pass in the entire Spine mountain range which bisects the continent. That pass is now blocked by the glacier, and that combined with Grum's Great Wall to the south prevents any travel between the two sides of the continent. Which is how Grum (and much of the rest of the East) prefers it, as they consider the West quarantined due to the relatively-recent plague, the resen infestations, and the abundance of nethrim on that half of the continent.



So I guess my question is... has anything new been attached to Caldwell in your mind?

[Rias]

Caldwell will certainly be seen again. It's to the southwest of Shadgard a ways, east of Lapis, around the foot of the mountain pass that once provided access east to Grum but is now blocked by a massive glacier. The place has always had a history and a purpose but it's being developed further. The priest there (not monk - he's not associated with the Church) has a definite history and purpose, too. I'm glad he sparked curiosity, but he was meant to be mysterious. I hope to visit his story (and that of Caldwell and the surrounding area) someday, but who knows when the wilderness will reach that far?

Note: Caldwell was one of the first areas I made, and it's still probably my favorite.

Another note: Some NPCs arrived around Shadgard one time who were from the Caldwell area, but the people who interacted with the NPCs didn't seem too interested in their reasons for traveling that way from "somewhere far to the southwest". I tried to make it all intriguing and everything, too. :' (

[Drayla]

I don't believe I will be able to make the Skype meeting, but I will try. Another quick question, in case I can't make it: the 'infested' towns scattered about, specifically Tarueka and Dusklamp, were they remnants of existing towns from before the plague, or were they established after the plague by groups of survivors? And what is the story (both IC and OOC) behind yet-to-be-opened city at the T-intersection just southeast of Mistral?

[faylen]

Kiyaani, your comment about joining a guild and knowing little about their leaders or goals is exactly why I asked the questions about the Udemi. Even now, my character knows very little about how her guild leaders think or any guild policies because I don't even know ooc. Realisticly though, she should probably know more than she does.

Also the question about dusklamp made me think. I know there's a gate to a new dusklamp area, is that ever meant to be open, or is it that it's open now but I just haven't found the trick? Any history behind dusklamp new and old would be great.

[Kiyaani]

I had you guys in mind - the whole Gunther thing - when I asked that actually <3

[Acarin]

Who is the guy on the door of the structure at the end of Deepwell?

[Kiyaani]

While we're on the subject - who is the statue of in the temple in the outpost?