Empire!7 - Into the Depths: Out-of-Character Thread (CWBG)

[Volthawk]

To elaborate on this round's Steward artefact request, the general idea is something to help with Great Projects. Don't have a particular mechanical effect in mind beyond that at the moment, though. Will have a think about that.

[Corona]

Hey Corona - just looking at people's posts and I'm pretty certain you already have Merchant support in region 10

Thanks for telling me, I meant to target region 5.

[MappyPK]

@MappyPK heard you're moving into tropical, Welcome!
Anything you can give us on the region location os it wet, airy, dry???!!?? We needs to know.

To be honest I'm not entirely sure how the underwater can be anything but wet, haha

[Aerin]

Here's a proposal for the 25 holy site faith bonus of the Lux-Glossian Way (tier 1 tech equivalent).

Great lengths for great discoveries

Followers of the Lux-Glossian Way are always striving to discover the unknown facets of the world, whether those be new stories to sing, unique resources to barter, or extreme natural wonders to venerate. Merchants, clergy, diplomats, colonists, and explorers who follow this branch of the Way are willing to tolerate long, perilous journeys through the vast wastes while in cramped conditions with carefully rationed supplies in order to reach seas that few have swum.

Nations that have adopted the Lux-Glossian Way may route through wastes regions when taking actions. Each action that includes one or more wastes regions on the path occupies a Specialized Ship for that turn. Each waste border crossed adds 0.5 effective regions for distance penalty calculations. Military units may not be transported in this manner.

[farothel]

I'll be on holiday from Saturday. While I will have internet (normally) the first days, it will probably not be all that good and from the 8th until the 19th or 20th, I will have no internet at all. From then on until the 29th (when I'll be back) it's probably spotty again. So I'll probably be able to post in the round, but I won't be able to react to anything as I'll be in my internet-free period then. So please don't attack me or anything in that period. The next round I'll normally be able to do as well, if all goes well.

[Corona]

Tropical round 11 political map

Spoiler: map

Show

Kaarme has been removed from the map. This is not a propaganda move on my part, rather it has become apparent that cacti is not playing, notwithstanding that the GMs did not officially confirm it in an opener (AFAIK).

[Autumn Stars]

writeup for sersi's tactical doctrine, as worked out with role!

Dissertation In Practice
+12 to enemy leader loss roll (-2 points)
-10% enemy casualties (-1 point)
-10% own casualties (1 point)
If fighting defensively (-0.5 points), +1 to Tactical Maneuvering (1 point), +2 to battle roll (2 points) and -10% casualties for both sides. (0 points)
If outnumbered (-0.5 points), +1 to Tactical Maneuvering (1 point), +2 to battle roll (2 points) and -10% enemy casualties. (-1 points)

Working from her Dissertations on the Path of War, Sersi has refined her strategic advice, and is now ready to put it into practice. Gravetenders under her command exploit their superior strength and reach to claim a position and hold it, fortifying with traps. The fact that defensive combat suits the Gravetender mindset much more readily than offensive means that those under her command shine in situations that might seem otherwise hopeless.

this tacdoc provides the following benefits in the following situations:

• When attacking:
  +12 enemy leader loss roll.
  -10% enemy casualties.
  -10% own casualties.
  .
• When fighting defensively:
  +12 enemy leader loss roll.
  -20% enemy casualties.
  -20% own casualties.
  +2 to battle roll.
  +1 to Maneuvering.
  .
• When attacking whilst outnumbered:
  +12 to enemy leader loss roll.
  -20% enemy casualties.
  +2 to battle roll.
  +1 to Tactical Maneuvering.
  .
• When defending whilst outnumbered:
  +12 to enemy leader loss roll.
  -30% enemy casualties.
  -20% own casualties.
  +2 to Tactical Maneuvering.
  +4 to battle roll.

[Epinephrine_Syn]

Quite tentative Eco 10 idea, at least a turn further away, as I'm only up to 8 Eco as of the start of round 12.

Mamomachines
Requirements: Graduated Symbiosis
Fluff: Infusing spiritual matter is a science. It is very, very easy to wring out every drop out of anything even remotely perceived as valuable, if you carry a little bit of avarice in your bloodstream. Money naturally talks, but with this, you can give your money a megaphone.

Mechanics: Every treasure you spend has an individual 16.666% chance to add a +1 to the roll furthest down the action chain. ABS Rep drops by 1 during a turn you activate this technology.

(Ex: With a Buyout spending 1 treasure, you have a 16.666% chance to make the +1 a +2.)
(Ex: A Merchant Marine spending 3 treasure to add a +1 and 2 Troops to a war action gets 3 16.666% chances to add a +1 to the battle roll, making it fairly likely to get to a +2, and possible to get up to a +4 (0.46% of the time).)
(Ex: Spending 1 treasure to activate an Artifact that enhances an action has a 16.666% chance to add a +1 to that action)
(Maybe a minimum of "To a rep of 0" on the ABS drop? Or could drop you straight to -3 ABS potentially. I'm indifferent there, that's more a fluff thing.)

[LapisCattis]

Attention:

Due to ongoing GM health issues, Round 11 will be extended by one week and therefore will end on Sunday, September 11th at the normal time of 10 am EST. This is to ensure that the GM has a chance to recover and catch up on the sizable backlog of questions and approvals. Apologies for this late announcement, enjoy the rest of your weekends.

[Tychris1]

Is war also being extended?

[farothel]

Is war also being extended?

From Discord:
LapisCattis — vandaag om 08:01
The ExplWar deadline will remain where it is, so no more new ones of those

[farothel]

Attention:

Due to ongoing GM health issues, Round 11 will be extended by one week and therefore will end on Sunday, September 11th at the normal time of 10 am EST. This is to ensure that the GM has a chance to recover and catch up on the sizable backlog of questions and approvals. Apologies for this late announcement, enjoy the rest of your weekends.

with the 1 week extension, I won't be able to post next round's actions until after the war/exploration deadline. As I didn't plan on starting any of that next round (I have exploration this round), please don't attack me as I won't be able to reply before the deadline.

[LapisCattis]

What a great start! I've pared these down, but please don't feel at all hesitant to strike them down if they still offend!

1. The Bubble: This orb floated up from the depths of the True Abyss within a great cloud of the Mother's Breath. Unlike the life-sustaining sulfides and other noxious boons, this bubble was filled only with the purest of water. Experimentation revealed that the Bubble could be made permeable, and water allowed to transgress its boundary, but when made again solid, it retains its water quality and its pressure.

Effect: As a Faith action, the holder of the Bubble may assign it to a region of Depth 1. Once per turn, they may then interact with this region as though they had the requisite depth tech. In addition, so long as the Bubble is active within the region, the holder may hold supports and take non-action defensive rolls without penalty.

2. The Capstone: This pyramidal stone of pure white rose from the depths within a great cloud of the Mother's Breath. It's plain that this belongs in a great edifice unlike anything in the Dead Seas.

Effect: When placed into a Great Project as part of an action to contribute to the project, the Capstone provides a piece of Communion to the locals, bolstering their fortitude and collaboration. This region now gains a +1 on rolls to resist one type of assault of the owner's choice: attacks, buyouts, conversions, hostile impressions or sways. This bonus may be reassigned with a Faith action.

Bubble v2 looks good!

For the Capstone, the reassignment effect would take place 1 round after the Faith action to change it, and as long as the Capstone is only used once (since it's part of a Great Project), it can't be used again, then the Capstone is also good

[LapisCattis]

Reminder! And some news

Round 11 will close tomorrow at 10am EST

Round 12 will be 2 weeks long as normal (ending September 25th)

Round 13 will be another extended round, lasting 3 weeks to end on Oct. 16th. The Exploration/War deadline for Round 13 will be the second Thursday of the round (Oct. 6th)

[Aerin]

Region 173 - Narcis's Rest

Spoiler: Geography

Show

The waters here were once vibrant and thriving, but now lie bleached and desolate after some unknown devastation. Most of the sea is uncomfortably shallow, barely eight feet deep from seafloor to surface without accounting for the innumerable branched coral remains still striving towards the sunlight. The bleached coral, rigid and brittle, obstructs movement in all places except for established corridors and telltale meandering swaths of past explorers. In the center of the reef, an oblong basin of deeper water is filled with a long and narrow submarine plateau. There lies the Temple of Narcis and the fledgling colony that has sprung up around its bones.

Spoiler: People

Show

No movement stirs the abandoned reef, no tiny fish make their home in the crevices and hollows. The only people that swim through these waters are the colonists who have dared to settle these silent seas. The Azure Shade seeks no glory by living here, only solace from the cutthroat intrigue and constant scramble for resources in Lux-Glossia's large cities. The colonists are an oddball sort, composed of those who didn't fit into the traditional female Lysimia dominated culture. No two are alike, yet they find community in each other's company. In exchange for distance from the Grand Matriarch's gaze, they provide rest and resupply to exploration parties on their way west and south.

Spoiler: Faith

Show

Rising up from the submarine plateau to skim the surface at low tide are the curved, bleached vertebrae of a goliath. It is difficult to image such a large creature as being anything other than a whale, but truly the remains could be any species of hopefully extinct gigafauna. Inside the grasping clutches of the rib cage lies the Temple of Narcis, a myriad of rooms and corridors outlined in fallen whalebone scaffolding and decaying kelp tapestry. Bars of sunlight and shade stretch across the temple floor, where thousands of merfolk bones are carefully laid one-by-one in organized rows.

Who built this place, and why? What manner of creature died here to be the backbone of the architecture, and why do its white bleached bones bear an uncanny resemblance to the dead corals that blanket the shallow waters? Who were the merfolk that now peacefully slumber, and who laid them to their final rest? What tragedy befell these abandoned waters?

Constantly surrounded by these questions, the insatiable curiosity of the colonists has driven them to invite the Brilhinte clergy to take permanent residence on the plateau despite the long journey from Costa Sereia and the subsistence living conditions. They hope that eventually the descendants of the merfolk resting here may be able to complete the temple's story.

Spoiler: Resources

Show

While none have deigned to stay for long, a few Brilhinte priests have visited the temple and requested that a great deal of decorative vegetation be placed inside to restore the tattered kelp curtains.

The only native life in Narcis's Rest is the tiny tubeworm species that lives inside the dead corals. The three centimeter long filter feeders were completely missed in the initial survey of the waters due to their tendency to vanish into their tubes for hours at a time upon the smallest sound of disturbance. Harvesting them is quite the challenge! It requires a skilled gatherer to camp out an area until they reemerge, then carefully collect the radioles without accidentally snapping a single dead coral branch. Tubeworm pasta, reminiscent of spaghetti, is a staple of local cuisine, but has a tendency to dye one's mouth various colors.

Spoiler: Christmas tree tubeworm images (Spirobranchus giganteus)

Show

[Rolepgeek]

This is an official GM response - Lapis's light sensitivity is making it difficult for her to work on a computer atm so I'm handling the typing up parts and working with her on this.

Is there a cap for how far below 1 this can push my Int?

I think I need to think about this further.

Core concept is- "now all of my stats are separate people that change dynastically ways and only when they do a special 10. Only the first of these "subrulers" gets a special 5 action" I thought that last bit was enough of a price that it didn't need further penalties.

An attribute being reduced to 1 would result in any further loss in that attribute being partially redistributed (randomly) to other attributes.

OK, so the Flowing Way just got to the 25+ Holy Site bracket, allowing us to pick our first faith tech for our respective schools. For the Cyphiri Way, would pretty much just copying the mechanics for Echo Chamber with different fluff (that'll be written up when I'm not catching up on half a dozen non-empire things and making sure I haven't missed anything here) and preferably switching the affected stat from Faith to Economy be allowed? I'm already heading towards a focus on dynastic stuff with my rough miracle idea, using the Way to predict the talents of new rulers and tailoring their education and training around that information, so the faith tech being a more focused and rudimentar application of the techniques that will be used there fits the direction of the school.

I'd want to hear the fluff for it, but the mechanics should be fine.

Miracle- Divination
If a Sakurado Empire rolls higher, after all modifiers, on a seek aid roll for an action after all modifiers, including those from the seek aid roll itself, and the Seek Aid Roll's final value would have been successful where the original was not, the second Roll is counted as a success, but not a great success.
This effect can only be applied once per round.

"Divination: Once per round, a Sakurado Empire may designate a Seek Aid action targeting a non-Military action as Divine Aid before rolling. If the final result of the roll for this Divine Aid is both higher than the result of the roll which it is Aiding, you may substitute the result of the Divine Aid roll for the result of the Aided roll, albeit with a penalty equal to one half of the difference between the Aided roll and the TN it was trying to achieve. This never results in a Great Success."

Technology- Scrying Surfaces
Requires: shiny objects

Rolling 18+ on a seek aid Roll results in a +2. This is calculated before Divination might apply.

This is fine.

Proposed Tactical Doctrine -

Carnage
Less a "tactical doctrine" than an utter lack of anything approaching tactics or doctrine. Through sheer force of will and physical might a leader can get the Magaramchi to the battle field. More or less. Once blood hits the water though, the army descends into a chaotic mess of fighting and feeding, attacking the army, each other and anything that happens to be nearby with equal fervour.
3 free sack attemps, ordered as City>Holy Order>Trading Post (the intent being here that bigger things are sacked before smaller things) (+6)
+50% own losses (as they turn on one another) (-4 points)
Base budget of two points (-2)

Three Sack Attempts is going to come with a cost premium from selecting the same option so many times - for three that's gonna be at least an extra two points.

Artifact proposum:
The Mother's Call
When doing battle with a civilization in violation of the Pax Arctica, distance losses occur every five regions instead of three. If battle occurs within one round of the inciting incident, also gain +1 to Battles.

Pax Arctica isn't official enough of an agreement for this to really be feasible. A limit to your bonus such that it only applies when fighting someone who's broken an arbitrary rule you set and may change at will isn't a limitation. Also, it would be every four regions instead of every three, not every five. Also, it can only apply 1/round (and need to go with the commander), as it's an Artifact.

Here's a proposal for the 25 holy site faith bonus of the Lux-Glossian Way (tier 1 tech equivalent).

Great lengths for great discoveries

Followers of the Lux-Glossian Way are always striving to discover the unknown facets of the world, whether those be new stories to sing, unique resources to barter, or extreme natural wonders to venerate. Merchants, clergy, diplomats, colonists, and explorers who follow this branch of the Way are willing to tolerate long, perilous journeys through the vast wastes while in cramped conditions with carefully rationed supplies in order to reach seas that few have swum.

Nations that have adopted the Lux-Glossian Way may route through wastes regions when taking actions. Each action that includes one or more wastes regions on the path occupies a Specialized Ship for that turn. Each waste border crossed adds 0.5 effective regions for distance penalty calculations. Military units may not be transported in this manner.

This seems acceptable with the change of each waste border adding 1 effective region for distance penalties.

writeup for sersi's tactical doctrine, as worked out with role!

Dissertation In Practice
+12 to enemy leader loss roll (-2 points)
-10% enemy casualties (-1 point)
-10% own casualties (1 point)
If fighting defensively (-0.5 points), +1 to Tactical Maneuvering (1 point), +2 to battle roll (2 points) and -10% casualties for both sides. (0 points)
If outnumbered (-0.5 points), +1 to Tactical Maneuvering (1 point), +2 to battle roll (2 points) and -10% enemy casualties. (-1 points)

Working from her Dissertations on the Path of War, Sersi has refined her strategic advice, and is now ready to put it into practice. Gravetenders under her command exploit their superior strength and reach to claim a position and hold it, fortifying with traps. The fact that defensive combat suits the Gravetender mindset much more readily than offensive means that those under her command shine in situations that might seem otherwise hopeless.

this tacdoc provides the following benefits in the following situations:

• When attacking:
  +12 enemy leader loss roll.
  -10% enemy casualties.
  -10% own casualties.
  .
• When fighting defensively:
  +12 enemy leader loss roll.
  -20% enemy casualties.
  -20% own casualties.
  +2 to battle roll.
  +1 to Maneuvering.
  .
• When attacking whilst outnumbered:
  +12 to enemy leader loss roll.
  -20% enemy casualties.
  +2 to battle roll.
  +1 to Tactical Maneuvering.
  .
• When defending whilst outnumbered:
  +12 to enemy leader loss roll.
  -30% enemy casualties.
  -20% own casualties.
  +2 to Tactical Maneuvering.
  +4 to battle roll.

Lapis has bid me ask that you simplify/streamline this, for the sake of the GM team as a whole. I would offer this, as a result:

Dissertation In Practice
If fighting defensively (-1): +2 to battle roll (2 points), -20% own casualties (2 points), and -10% enemy casualties. (-2 points), +12 to enemy leader loss roll (-2 points)
If *also* outnumbered (-0.5): +2 to battle roll (2 points), +2 to Tactical Maneuvering (2.5 points), -20% enemy casualties (-2 points)

[list][*]When fighting defensively:

• +12 enemy leader loss roll (-2)
• -10% enemy casualties (-1)
• -20% own casualties (2)
• +2 to battle roll (2)
• Total: 1 point

[*]When defending whilst outnumbered:

• +12 enemy leader loss roll (-2)
• -30% enemy casualties (-3)
• -20% own casualties (2)
• +2 to Tactical Maneuvering. (2.5)
• +4 to battle roll. (4)
• Total: 3.5 points.[/INDENT]

Quite tentative Eco 10 idea, at least a turn further away, as I'm only up to 8 Eco as of the start of round 12.

Mamomachines
Requirements: Graduated Symbiosis
Fluff: Infusing spiritual matter is a science. It is very, very easy to wring out every drop out of anything even remotely perceived as valuable, if you carry a little bit of avarice in your bloodstream. Money naturally talks, but with this, you can give your money a megaphone.

Mechanics: Every treasure you spend has an individual 16.666% chance to add a +1 to the roll furthest down the action chain. ABS Rep drops by 1 during a turn you activate this technology.

(Ex: With a Buyout spending 1 treasure, you have a 16.666% chance to make the +1 a +2.)
(Ex: A Merchant Marine spending 3 treasure to add a +1 and 2 Troops to a war action gets 3 16.666% chances to add a +1 to the battle roll, making it fairly likely to get to a +2, and possible to get up to a +4 (0.46% of the time).)
(Ex: Spending 1 treasure to activate an Artifact that enhances an action has a 16.666% chance to add a +1 to that action)
(Maybe a minimum of "To a rep of 0" on the ABS drop? Or could drop you straight to -3 ABS potentially. I'm indifferent there, that's more a fluff thing.)

The...fictional basis by which this works isn't really clear to me? The description you gave is neat, but it's not clear what's actually happening, making it hard to tell if it fits - which also makes it hard to tell if the mechanics are suitable. Once you can give us that info, we can review the mechanics properly.

Region 173 - Narcis's Rest

Spoiler: Geography

Show

The waters here were once vibrant and thriving, but now lie bleached and desolate after some unknown devastation. Most of the sea is uncomfortably shallow, barely eight feet deep from seafloor to surface without accounting for the innumerable branched coral remains still striving towards the sunlight. The bleached coral, rigid and brittle, obstructs movement in all places except for established corridors and telltale meandering swaths of past explorers. In the center of the reef, an oblong basin of deeper water is filled with a long and narrow submarine plateau. There lies the Temple of Narcis and the fledgling colony that has sprung up around its bones.

Spoiler: People

Show

No movement stirs the abandoned reef, no tiny fish make their home in the crevices and hollows. The only people that swim through these waters are the colonists who have dared to settle these silent seas. The Azure Shade seeks no glory by living here, only solace from the cutthroat intrigue and constant scramble for resources in Lux-Glossia's large cities. The colonists are an oddball sort, composed of those who didn't fit into the traditional female Lysimia dominated culture. No two are alike, yet they find community in each other's company. In exchange for distance from the Grand Matriarch's gaze, they provide rest and resupply to exploration parties on their way west and south.

Spoiler: Faith

Show

Rising up from the submarine plateau to skim the surface at low tide are the curved, bleached vertebrae of a goliath. It is difficult to image such a large creature as being anything other than a whale, but truly the remains could be any species of hopefully extinct gigafauna. Inside the grasping clutches of the rib cage lies the Temple of Narcis, a myriad of rooms and corridors outlined in fallen whalebone scaffolding and decaying kelp tapestry. Bars of sunlight and shade stretch across the temple floor, where thousands of merfolk bones are carefully laid one-by-one in organized rows.

Who built this place, and why? What manner of creature died here to be the backbone of the architecture, and why do its white bleached bones bear an uncanny resemblance to the dead corals that blanket the shallow waters? Who were the merfolk that now peacefully slumber, and who laid them to their final rest? What tragedy befell these abandoned waters?

Constantly surrounded by these questions, the insatiable curiosity of the colonists has driven them to invite the Brilhinte clergy to take permanent residence on the plateau despite the long journey from Costa Sereia and the subsistence living conditions. They hope that eventually the descendants of the merfolk resting here may be able to complete the temple's story.

Spoiler: Resources

Show

While none have deigned to stay for long, a few Brilhinte priests have visited the temple and requested that a great deal of decorative vegetation be placed inside to restore the tattered kelp curtains.

The only native life in Narcis's Rest is the tiny tubeworm species that lives inside the dead corals. The three centimeter long filter feeders were completely missed in the initial survey of the waters due to their tendency to vanish into their tubes for hours at a time upon the smallest sound of disturbance. Harvesting them is quite the challenge! It requires a skilled gatherer to camp out an area until they reemerge, then carefully collect the radioles without accidentally snapping a single dead coral branch. Tubeworm pasta, reminiscent of spaghetti, is a staple of local cuisine, but has a tendency to dye one's mouth various colors.

Spoiler: Christmas tree tubeworm images (Spirobranchus giganteus)

Show

Love it! Want to clarify - are you fine with your description of the geography not being reflected mechanically (the region having no Shoals or Roughs borders)? If that's fine with you, you're approved, feel free to put it in the Waters of the World thread.

[Autumn Stars]

that is an acceptable result for sersi's tactical doctrine!

[Volthawk]

I'd want to hear the fluff for it, but the mechanics should be fine.

Yup, I'll have the fluff up for it in the coming round. Just wanted to make sure the concept was valid before getting writing (particularly as for the last week or two I've been particularly unproductive when it comes to writing).

[Aerin]

This seems acceptable with the change of each waste border adding 1 effective region for distance penalties.

I'll accept this change! I'm just happy the concept got approved.

Love it! Want to clarify - are you fine with your description of the geography not being reflected mechanically (the region having no Shoals or Roughs borders)? If that's fine with you, you're approved, feel free to put it in the Waters of the World thread.

Oh, I didn't even think of that! I might add a line to the post to clarify that the corals are so brittle that they break at the slightest touch and thus don't actually hinder movement all that much. I have no issue with them having no mechanical weight.

[Kythia]

Proposed Tactical Doctrine -

Carnage
Less a "tactical doctrine" than an utter lack of anything approaching tactics or doctrine. Through sheer force of will and physical might a leader can get the Magaramchi to the battle field. More or less. Once blood hits the water though, the army descends into a chaotic mess of fighting and feeding, attacking the army, each other and anything that happens to be nearby with equal fervour.
3 free sack attemps, ordered as City>Holy Order>Trading Post (the intent being here that bigger things are sacked before smaller things) (+6)
+50% own losses (as they turn on one another) (-4 points)
Base budget of two points (-2)

Three Sack Attempts is going to come with a cost premium from selecting the same option so many times - for three that's gonna be at least an extra two points.

What about adding -1 to battle rolls (reflecting the lack of strategy) and a -2 to allied leader loss (as he's the biggest and at highest risk of "friendly fire".) By my maths, that balances?

[Epinephrine_Syn]

The...fictional basis by which this works isn't really clear to me? The description you gave is neat, but it's not clear what's actually happening, making it hard to tell if it fits - which also makes it hard to tell if the mechanics are suitable. Once you can give us that info, we can review the mechanics properly.

Okay so.

The fiction is that one of the primary spiritual capacities of Mammos is to enact its will through transaction, turning choice into compulsion. MAWbel, as the earthly* half of Mammos, can trace the remote micro gene and accentuate this link to tap into this power.

Of course, even with extensive technology for MAWbel to isolate and activate her spiritually infused genes, as well as to inject them into other medusa (or even other isolates through gene splicing)**, the power tapped is only a shadow of a fraction of a percent of the capacities Mammos possesses.

Still, it's enough to add a touch of persuasion to transactions you make.

We can brain storm the mechanics and fluff precisely, to see what would fit, and or other options that both might also fit and might mechanically work.

*is this settings equivalent still earthly?

** mamomachines is a play on nanomachines, I figured graduated symbiosis would be the technology for small organisms in your genes or what's it exactly.

[LapisCattis]

Regarding the delay in the opener, the Round 12 opener will be out tonight, though it may be barebones in sections. Rolepgeek was in a car accident and luckily no one was severely hurt, but Org actions for Round 12 will more than likely be limited and not a full 9 actions in order to focus on the actions that need to be posted by the orgs this round and to make sure Role gets some rest

[Tychris1]

Will my miracle be covered in the Titan update?

[Rolepgeek]

Will my miracle be covered in the Titan update?

I plan on including it, yeah.

[Frostwander]

Region Submission - Region 103: Taifre Mandala - The Hundred Trenches

Spoiler: Geography

Show

Ridges and canyons alternate in chaotic waves, forming a sea ‘floor’ that is rarely level or smooth. The rock is largely composed of multicolored limestone ridges. The ridgetops, most exposed to the heavy currents of the region, are barren but for hardier crustaceans and schools of larger fish. The valleys, sheltered from the harsher waters above, are home to sweeping coral reefs and thousands of species they house - including the Nereid, the only known sentient natives of the region. From above, this has the effect of a mandala-like swirl, alternating bands of rock and vegetation in a myriad of patterns and colors. It is broadly debated among the locals whether this pattern was natural or deliberately cultivated. This earns the region its proper name, Taifre Mandala, though colloquially it is often simply called the Hundred Trenches.

At the center of the region, like an eye of calm in the swirling trenches, sits the shallow basin containing the remains of the Temple of Duarge. It is the most intact pre-Calamity structure in the region, only recently identified by the Sereian visitors. Numerous hollow shell structures dot the basin, faded paint and carvings depicting all kinds of ocean life, from fish and seahorses to turtles and whales. Broken remnants of shoal enclosures and feeding pens litter the grounds between, now overgrown with seaweeds and corals. In the spiral arms of the valleys extending, many more-fragmented ruins speak of a once vast city, now only a shattered legacy to be explored and deciphered.

The passage of the Trawlers has left a scoured scar thousands of feet wide, marring one side of the mandala. Fortunately the primary settlement of Demeli was missed, but one of the outer collegiate grounds was less fortunate. While the staff and student body were evacuated, the campus itself was completely leveled.

Spoiler: People

Show

Nereid are a merfolk race, with a piscine lower body and tail meeting at the waist with a humanoid torso, arms and head. Adult Sereia typically measure two to five meters in length from head to fin, with the tail accounting for between half and three-quarters of their body mass. Skin and scale colors come in a broad spectrum, though very few Nereid sport the customized grafts of the Sereia.

Spoiler: History

Show

The Nereid have lost much of their history, but the scholars have begun to piece together things from the ruins and relics recovered by the adventuring scholars. They have traced their origins to a once widespread society of their race known as the Tritaol Republic. The republic, according to records, was a thriving high society of faith, philosophy, and martial prowess. Dozens of city-states formed a network of communities, and representatives of each governed in a senate according to their population. Grand architecture led to the creation of vast halls and temples.

Then the Calamity laid all this low. From pieced-together bits of writing, the scholars’ broad consensus (there is some debate on the meaning of certain phrases) is that a combination of corruption and complacency among the aristocracy was already fraying cohesion among the Tritaol people. When the apocalypse struck, the already weakened ties among the city-states collapsed. Without the nets of trade and support, most who survived the initial devastation succumbed to starvation, exposure, and infighting. Small groups formed, forsaking class and caste from desperation, managed to survive in isolation until the waters cleared and bonds could be found anew.

Spoiler: Resource

Show

Adventuring Scholars - Those Nereid who continue their education into the field of research have formed colleges. These schools are focused on furthering scientific knowledge through analysis of their predecessors and of the natural world. Groups of scholars take their studies from the halls of their schools into the wild currents of the trenches, which necessitates some skill in navigation and survival as well. Those who pursue these ‘field studies’ spend years training and pursuing a thesis under the supervision of a respected mentor before they are allowed to join or lead expeditions of their own.

Spoiler: Faith

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The Examinations - Nereid beliefs bear little resemblance to that of the republic that was their origin. With their survival dependent on careful study of their surroundings, knowledge and education have surpassed philosophy. The Examinations are a series of developed tests, where children and young adults can prove their retention of their lessons. These test for proficiency via memorization and deduction of four subjects: language, reading, mathematics, and scientific reasoning. An individual’s performance in the Examinations determine their prospects in the next level of schooling, and when education is completed, the career options available.

[Lumaeus]

Region 66
The Seas-Not-Yet-Dead

Spoiler: Geography:

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Tis an unweeded garden grown to seed / things rank and gross in nature possess it merely. -Hamlet I.ii

The Seas-Not-Yet-Dead, while not the sterile moonscape of the Dead Seas, are hardly liferich waters. Little native plant life exists, long since picked away by the Occupying Natives, who themselves are few and far between. Much like the neighboring Dead Seas, there seems to exist but one trophic level, that of the natives, with no extant life above or below them on the food chain.

How can such a place have gone so far to seed? The waters of the Seas-Not-Yet-Dead are not the unpolluted crystal of those of their neighbors but instead a cloudy fog, interrupted by rotting chunks that churn quietly through in the slow, enormous gyre that provides these waters no outlet. The ultimate resting place of the detritus of its neighbors, the Seas-Not-Yet-Dead are, despite their name, a rich rotscape, a necrothalassa of choking thickness.

The great stinking churn of filth settles in thick layers, and nothing inanimate stays uncovered for long. Layer after layer of rich decay settles in stultifying strata, stunting any effort to erect edifices. Dunes of death stretch so far as the eye can see--which in these waters is hardly half a fathom.

Spoiler: People

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Is the breath of Her hot in thy hair? -Algernon Charles Swinburne, Dolores (Notre-Dame des Sept Doleurs)

The Chrysomallon Kiwa are a unique race, cancrine mollusks whose cutting claws are coated in near-luminous hair. These extend three inches--half their body length--forward from their main shell, from which their reamining eight over-articulated legs riot outwards, between which a cancerous mass of eyes peer dimly out. The shell under whose rim these endless eyes squint slopes thickly back, glinting with specks of the same gold of the clawhairs, but otherwise the rude black of unworked iron dominates their greigite-based exokeleton.

The Chrysomallon Kiwa, proper to a place without property or permanence do not know any stability or structures beyond their holy sites. Instead, the only permanent features of the region are the Writhing Ways. All across the Seas-Not-Yet-Dead, ever shifting, rising, and dying with the currents of the glacial maelstrom above, the seabed is shot through with shining bands of gold. An observer tolerant enough of the choking waters to swim down to observe would find the Chrysomallon Kiwa in their millions, an endless vein throbbing with the slow shift of the seas. Hundreds per square metre, this crawling congregation clambers and creeps, catching cast-off chunks of rotting flesh that flow unceasing down the invisible river. Though the awful nature of the Seas-Not-Yet-Dead is such that the Corpsefall Drift, as it is known, sees fleshbergs many times the size of the relatively diminuitive Kiwa avalanche quietly downstream, the cutting claws of the crabs skillfully excise proportioned chunks on which to feed, the rest of the grey-hued hulk drifting on.

The ebb and flow of the Corpsefall drift mean that the Chrysomallon Kiwa occasionally cross over the (up until recently stoppered) Maternal Fonts. In these waters, though the Mother's Breath has only since the annexation begun to again fill the sea with her noxious blessing, the edges of the rifts hold a treasure unique in all the seas: sulfer jelly. The crabs feed on this ferrous slime, laying their eggs in its place. In so feeding, they find their hairs coated in both the jelly and the Mother's Breath, and it is on this that their third great food resource feeds. The clawhairs of the Chrysomallon Kiwa are a great orgy of feasting bacteria, and their bodies and byproducts serve as reserves when the shifting waters see branches of the Corpsefall Drift fall still and the Kiwa are forced to scuttle blindly in search of the new paths.

Spoiler: Government

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Nothing is yours. It is to use. It is to share. If you will not share it, you cannot use it. -Ursula K. Le Guin, The Dispossessed

Students of recent history would name the House of de Trenché Bleu the recent rulers of the Seas-Not-Yet-Dead, and by certain calculus, they would be right. A cadet branch of one of the great mer lineages of the north, the de Trenché Bleus had indeed for some decades laid claim to these waters. They fought constantly with the decay to build structures that would last. They sent messengers along the Corpsefall Drift to declare to the Kiwa their dominion. They sought to find legitimacy through marriage pacts with local nobility from the Cathedral.

Nothing beside remains. Round the decay of the house's wreck, boundless and bare, the lone and level sands stretch far away.

The Chrysomallon Kiwa know no government for to each is given what is needed. Food floats down the Corpsefall Drift, springs from the Maternal Fonts, and generates even on their claws. The cancrine creatures see the fall of nobility and quietly continue their rave.

Spoiler: Resources

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Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch'intrate. -Dante Alighieri, Inferno

A visitor to the Seas-Not-Yet-Dead from a life-blighted sea would know at first only the creeping horror of what is absent. Neither plant nor beast, but merely the Writhing Ways of endless cancrine feasting, below a sluggish drift of indistinct meat that make the waters, there is no other word for it, chunky. Instead of proper religion, veneration of deities, there is only the mad worship at pits of poison.

Such a visitor is blessed, for they have not yet glimpsed the brave new world. Oh woe it is to know what is to be known, to see what is to been seen! In the northern waters, before the snapping claws of the writhing way dissect the truth of the Corpsefall Drift, great bloated masses loom in the frigid waters. Almost unrecognizable as mer, these tragic composites and hollows form a portrait of suffering unlike anything known across the many seas. Most, by some foul grace, are dead, and those that cling to torturous life do so dumbly, sentience driven out by crude surgeries, by slow death, or by the merciful madness brought by pain.

These are the Pelagic Graftsmer, the seaborne cast offs and discarded remnants of Ennead projects. Some drift south absent of key parts harvested by avaritious tentacles; some come suffocated under the weight of parasitic additions unspeakable and unbearable. These make rich the Corpsefall Drift, and the Chrysomallon Kiwa are ever thankful.

Spoiler: Faith

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Now that we are sending you to The End / That great god / Tell him / That we who follow you invented forgiveness / And forgive nothing -W. S. Merwin, For a Coming Extinction

The Occupying Natives once held to a disorganized collection fo beliefs centered around the Fundamental Principle: Life calls to life. Born of a biology possessed of magnetic sclerite, the constant pull towards each other and to the ferrous concretions that over the Maternal Fonts--sites where life-giving sulfer jelly accrued--gave easy evidence to the belief.

It is no wonder that they took so easily to a faith centered similarly in union. The Chrysomallon Kiwa see the Eternal Communion not as a foreign faith, but as a deeper elucidation of the philosophy under which they had already operated. When their holy sites were revealed to be stoppered Fonts, it only confirmed for them that these Riftlings' Mother perhaps had grace enough for a second species as well.

Holy Site 1: The Low Rock
Once upon a time, there was a great sulfrous concretion, rust red and sunken near ten fathoms. As the slow fall of fleshdust sank ever more into the obscured Font, the pit around the Low Rock retained its depth--a unique depression in the otherwise level sand. Now that the font is opened, the rock shattered, it is still seen as holy. Here, the Mother breathes life to Riftling and Chrysomallon Kiwa alike, and the red rocks scattered around that gaping maw retain their wonder.

Holy Site 2: The Budding Fields
Across the empty waters, where the Corpsefall Drift is absent, there is no food to be found. This is the rule. Yet here, in what had seemed otherwise uninterupted barreness, sulfur jelly bubbled to the surface, saving the lives of many migrating Kiwa.

Now, this is a web of thin rifts, reopened with the coming of the Riftlings. The salvific wonder of the fields remains.

Holy Site 3: The Bounteous Atrocity
The current sweeping from the north brings the blessed detritus to these lands, but ever more with the rise of the Ennead, that bounty has grown rich. Mangled bodies of mer, lacking parts or possessed of tumorous blooms of additions, tumble ever inward, and here in the north of the Seas-Not-Yet-Dead, a becalmed doldrum waxes and wanes. Thousands of corpses dangle aloft, out of reach of the Chrysomallon Kiwa, a promise of the bounty to come.

[Feathersnow]

Region 120

The Dekapoloi

Spoiler: people

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This region is a rough conglomerate of hamlets, notionally ten spread out 'cities," each representing a different species or ethnic grouping. There are representatives from Otterian, Nautilite, Merish, and Crab-folk tribes, as well as Sakura-Jin Hermit Crabs, and other races as well. The Hermit Crabs are later immigrants, and not notionally one of "the ten." Levt are also not present, being restricted until recently to Qzzry'ya.
They have a democratic council, with speakers from each tribe answering to a grand jurist. The most recent grand jurist led the defense against the Sakura-Jin invasion. He has since converted and has been allowed to keep his titles in exchange for allowing the Ecclesiarchs to act as a veto on his power and name his successor.

Spoiler: Geography

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This land has rolling hills and variable salinity clines. It is interspersed with small villages that are organized by caste and ethnicity into ten "cities." The actual terrain is idyllic and pastoral.

Spoiler: resource

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This place is a calm, pastoral land where axolotl shepherds farm their strange basal vertebrate creatures for meat and nutritious glitter-slime they shed from their bellies.

The people have little building materials and move around constantly, living in tents. As a result, they need Textiles

Spoiler: Faith

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The people of this region have no organized religion, but pray to manifestations of nature personified, not unlike the Baalim priests of the Precursors, though they use different names. Theologians will study similarities to these discredited faiths in order to better supplant them. This is the first time Mer or Otterians have been attempted to be integrated into Sakurado in large numbers. Their bizarre biological needs and "family" structures may not be easily integrated and great care will be taken not to antagonize them or make the integration seem compulsory.

[Gengy]

Both of these region submissions will be updated once I know what their Required Resources are. However, I had the time tonight to work on them, so I did.

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Gosto G'Cor
(Region 137)

Spoiler: People

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As a colonized region, Gosto G’Cor – which roughly translates to Tasty Colorland – is predominantly Gotezhar. There are a few adventurous Mer as well, but the population is primarily focused on the younger, smaller Nuven of Gotezhar who wish for more skies in order to grow faster.

The rains in Gosto G’Cor are supposedly different, with a distinct flavor to them that the colonists say is an acquired taste. It is not poisonous, but even the rain is… swampy.

Spoiler: Geography

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Gosto G’Cor is distinctly brackish in it’s waters. Almost swamp like, it is full of flat plains sunk only about ten globes under the waves. It is supposed that before whatever happened to overflow the world with water, Gosto G’Cor was a swamp. And now it is just… a very briny sea; almost green in color in some spots, particularly near the southern border which slowly expands into a region full of waste.

The vegetation in Gosto G’Cor runs rampant, as it is much closer to the sunlight, creating a hunting ground for beasts of various sizes… but also a plethora of places for fish to thrive. Still, these fish are very skittish, as though they are plentiful and can hide easily, there are a number of creatures that enjoy a lite snack with nary a word of warning.

Including the new Gotezhar settlers, who find themselves enjoying having steady supplies of meat to eat!

Spoiler: Resource

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Export: Wild Armored Gharials are the biggest beasts around. These crocodiles rather enjoy fish. They can grow to large sizes, are covered with spines, and possess a toothy maw that is one-third the length of their body. Not to mention their reptilian scales are thick enough that most spears cannot pierce into the flesh below. Though difficult to come across - or make happen - deceased Gharials can be disseminated for creating arms and armor, toxins, and various esoterica.

There is one Gharial in the region – named Big Snapper – that can spit globs of some kind of acidic substance, and has grown to be four times bigger than any other Gharial that the colonists have seen. Big Snapper is given a wide berth, but the smaller Gharials are highly valued for their meat, their scales, and their teeth.

Some colonists speculate that the Gharials could be tamed somehow, but so far all who have tried have not returned and are presumed croc food. Gosto G’Cor gladly accepts fools, for they are delicious. Even if the smaller, more passive beasts could be tamed, no one wants to try to disturb Big Snapper. Some claim the creature to have Titanblood in it's veins; not a true Titan itself (it is still far too small for that) but perhaps the distant descendent of a long gone Titan. Or at least one that is hopefully long gone...

Required Resource: Spices
Ghotezhar settlers primarily came here because they heard rumors that they would be able to taste whole new flavors. It is why the region is called Tasty Colorland. The disappointment that the region is perhaps no longer as flavorful as it used to be (even if the rains have a uniqueness about them) has created a desire within the Gotezhar settlers for various Spices.

Spoiler: Faith

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Holy Site: "The Temple of Leocidia" [Brihinte]

Just below the surface of the water sits the remains of a stone temple. Walls decorated with constellations, strange winged and beaked creatures, and sun-and-moon patterns are laid out in a broad rectangle, and carved marble columns rise every few meters to breach the waves above. Where some of the columns and angled ceiling have fallen in, a gentle ramp of stone winds along the interior also to break the surface, leading to a slanted balcony open to the sky above.

Also known as the Temple of the Sky, those of Costa Sereia risked much to bring it back under their control. Supposedly Gosto G’Cor’s more tainted waters were cleaned away by beseeching Leocidia herself; for this reason, the Gotezhar respect the temple and leave it to the faithful of Brihinte to oversee.

Holy Site: "Big Snapper’s Rest" [The Flowing Way]

Near the center of the region lies Big Snapper’s hunting grounds. To warn away intruders from getting too far into the Gharial’s territory, a small village was one of the first to be built in the area. In addition to warning away people from aggravating Gosto G’Cor’s alpha beast, this village also serves as a place to study the Flowing Way. Joontar formerly from Ezcorher make Big Snapper’s Rest their new home, and guide the faithful through appropriate rites… which include “do not feed the crocodiles.”

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New Korasoon
(Region 174)

Spoiler: People

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New Korasoon is a far western colony for the Gotezhar and Mer of the Builder’s Union to come together. As such, there are a mix of peoples within the region, but those two species are the predominant ones. While the majority of New Korasoon are from the Builder’s Union, a few Lysimia from Lux-Glossian waters, have made their home near the border of Narcis’s Rest.

Spoiler: Geography

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New Korasoon seems to be endless slopes and dunes, with no sign of any thinking creatures and little vegetation save for a single, widespread variety of sweet-tasting plant. It makes it ideal for colonists to move in, but quite a bit had to be imported at first. After their arrival, it was noticed that there are the occasional schools of fish that come through, but they appear to be seasonal. Still, with proper planning, this - and the Sugarweed - does give the new inhabitants of the region enough food to live on.

The Colonists had a long, far, swim, through many varied seas; yet they planned for their arrival, and brought a number of building materials with them, quickly establishing towns and villages within New Korasoon. The Mer among the colonists took over duties of administration, and the Gotezhar spread out in order to find the best clouds.

Though there is little remarkable about the region, to the north and northwest, the waters grow very cold. This amuses many Gotezhar, who are used to far more temperate waters, but seem mostly unbothered by the lite chill they experience… so far as they don’t cross beyond the borders into truly glacial waters. Additionally, there is one spot to the southeast that houses a large coral reef. It is here that even more fauna can be found, but it is still a calm place, lacking almost any predators, which the Mer colonists find particularly unusual.

Spoiler: Resource

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Export: Sugarweed grows everywhere in New Korasoon, almost strangling everything else. On it’s own, it makes for a staple – and plentiful – crop that can be eaten simply by picking up the short strait stalk from the ground. The roots and stalk separate cleanly, allowing the Sugarweed to grow back untended. The stalk itself can either be eaten raw, or squeezed of the contents. The spice inside is sweet, and can be added to other dishes.

A single Sugarweed is about two globes in length, but barely a few bubbles in width. They are straight, almost grass like in appearance, but bulbous, hinting at the sugar-like powder that grows inside each stalk. Their roots are much bigger and stronger than grass, and because of this, the colonists guess that there was no room for other vegetation to grow easily.

Required Resource: Tools
While the settlers were able to make do with what they had already prepared, further building and laborious tasks will require more refined and complex tools.

Spoiler: Faith

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As colonists of an otherwise empty region, the Builder’s Union faithful brought their own religious beliefs to New Korasoon.

Holy Site: "Middish Fields"

A single Middish scribe - one Gaspard de Saulx - joined the caravan that brought all the colonists here. The Middish storyteller and recorder hopes to earn their title as sage of the Ironkelp Order by acting as a Chaplain for the faithful in the region. When the caravan arrived, de Saulx asked that they be allowed a large set of fields to himself. It is from here that the Middish (acting) Chaplain personally built a small open water stage area, from which they hold weekly services. de Saulx discourages his fellow faithful from referring to him as 'Chaplain' until someone from the Ironkelp Order officially confirms his appointment.

[Talis]

By my calculations I should have Rank 4 International Prestige next turn. This is my proposed World Wonder:

Polar-Confederate International Bank
A central bank established under the authority of the Seatide Confederacy to weld various trade interests into a single market. The bank consolidates the assets, accounts and debts of member states, issues a common currency backed by those accounts, and services transactions between members.
Effect: Any nation in contact with the Seatide Confederacy may adopt the Arctic Exchange Currency as a 2-action project. nations using the common currency get +2 increased Treasure cap, and can transfer 1 treasure to another currency user 1/turn. The Seatide Confederacy (or current controller of Seatide) automatically counts as a currency user. Additionally, the bank's controller can kick members out of the union, or choose to block any treasure transfer done through the bank.

[TheDarkDM]

Submitting a technology for approval:

Indah's Embrace

Effect: Allows traversal of Depth 1 regions.

Requirements: Aragonite/Calcite or other superhard mineral composite, Graduated Symbiosis.

Compelled to follow Indah's grand endeavor to the depths of the Maw, the Mistresses of the Lambent Syndicate fund a number of prospective inventors seeking a solution. The most promising proposal, in a strange twist of luck, emerges from the territories of Glistering Mistress Kirana, whose stewardship of the Khandeeps had previously served only to feed a growing blood lust. However, cultured strains of the extremophiles found in the vicinity of local aragonite clusters proved capable of establishing a symbiotic link with the mineral composite, grafting the organisms to aragonite constructs to allow a continued source of heat to maintain the crystal's structure and also providing a flexible pressure seal whereby such hardsuits could be fitted. The transparent armor of the Embrace, radiant with its residual heat, provides ample protection at depths previously lethal to the kucen and their thralls.