[unparsed]That's too broad Xhin. You need to be more specific, but not too specific that there might not be an answer to it. That helps keep the game going, and keeps anybody from feeling like they have too much to say on the subject. FLAGS is good, BIOLOGY is too general.

Example:

BRICKS

[unparsed]Public houses made of glass brick in Ialre. Relatively common.

INTERCITY TRANSPORTATION.

[unparsed][quote:9be0202d91="Mr. Saturday"]Public houses made of glass brick in Ialre. Relatively common.

INTERCITY TRANSPORTATION.[/quote:9be0202d91]

Melvillian cities are all connected via a countrywide train system. Large cities will also have high-speed train lines between them. The largest cities serve as hubs for the high-speed trains. There are also roads, but are mostly used by travellers going by either foot, bicycle or horse and the likes.

POPULAR LITTERATURE

[unparsed][quote:536e6d8fff="Yiuel"]POPULAR LITTERATURE[/quote:536e6d8fff]
At the times of Keis the Mapmaker, Ebeis immoderately enjoy telling exaggerated tales about how they conquered their freedom.
Siwis wallow in incredibly happy tales of how great it was before they lost control over the Ebeis.

Next one: Blind sectarianism.

[unparsed]In Sartai, a lot of people grow up with the Sartai sect of Latyaism, a religion that believes that the goddess Karuun came down to Etrea in order to unite the original Humans of Sartai and the Mbati tribe of Elves, and stop the destruction of both groups. Sartai Latyaism is much stricter about clothing, food requirements and strongly supports the idea that Danpyr aren't even "sentient" and that they along with other monsters, like dragons, should be killed outright. Most people in Sartain aren't even exposed to other types of Latyaism, let alone other religions.

Oh yeah, and 1000th post y'all!

TOYS

[unparsed][quote:0a420eb7c4="Xhin"]@Blake: Not every conworld is developed enough to have flags. Or toys. I just threw that in there so I could make a sardonic reference to kyonides' post.[/quote:0a420eb7c4]

That's the best part about these games, though; they encourage further development of our conworlds.


There are a number of psychoactive substances, but most of them are only actually useful for recreational purposes. Some people fancy that they can "astral project" by using the substances, and while certain individuals do make their livings doing this, it is in the same capacity that water dowsers do (by dumb luck, statistically their practice is an epic fail).

One useful psychoactive substance does present itself, however, in warfare. The Donloo tribe of the Southern interior forest uses a substance called Baht, which is made by distilling the sap of a small parasitic plant and injecting the resultant aromatic oils into beetles which are the cross of two species (and themselves cannot reproduce) but can tolerate the oil. This hybridized beetle produces and enzyme in defense to the poisonous lipid, which bonds to it and hardens it into a mass in the beetle's system. At room temperature the mass is hard, at body temperature it is soft, and near boiling it melts. This mass is removed and fashioned into a string by melting it down and pouring a thin trickle into cold water. The string is wrapped around a very small point to a dart.

Too large a dose immediately is simply lethal, but if entered into the body, the string is fashioned to come lose of the point and remain, slowly dissolving.

The long term effects are paranoia, visual and auditory hallucinations, and the loss of emotional attachment to the world. One soldier within a regiment hit with a barb will quietly dispatch his bunk mates in the night, and quite probably his Colonel too, if able, before deserting into the woods.


BODY MODIFICATION

[unparsed]Great substance.

[quote:af60b064a0="Blake"]BODY MODIFICATION[/quote:af60b064a0]

Melvillians are well known to know enough about how molecular biology works so that they can genetically modify their bodies. DNA resampling is fairly common, and their are even some mad scientists who created chimera-like beings. (Semaner, a character of about the time of all my stories, is such a being. He features four arms, two sets of different strengths, and a agile prehensible tail. He also have poisonous teeth.) They are still however in the beginning of that technology, so they haven't got far yet.

Others will however rely on technology. Most Orionites are fully equiped with technological novelties to help them in their work as Eyes of Melville and Protectors of the State. It may go as far as making those technologies part of the being.

However, Melvillians are not fond of scarrification or other marks that will painful to acquire. Some Orionites may be proud of a scar or two, but they are true scars from real battles. They prefer temporary modifications, if that can be. (Unless the change is molecular, then you are born with the change and used to live with it.)

FOOD HABITS

[unparsed][quote:65c51a4e4c="Yiuel"]FOOD HABITS[/quote:65c51a4e4c]

Oramyani never eat with their hands. They eat with a small two-tined fork and a wide flat spoon. Knives are considered cruder implements, so anything large is cut into bite-sized pieces before being served at the table.

Peasants do not eat in presence of aristocrats.

Noodles are a dietary staple -- either a short cylindrical noodle or a 1/2" wide, long thin noodle. They scorn food that grows in or on top of the ground. Organs of animals (heart, liver, brain) are relished as they believe it will give them the strength, cunning or stamina of the animal.

As with most things in oramyani society smell is very important.


VISUAL ARTS (drawing, painting, photography, film-making).

[unparsed][quote:a20c354b06="dragar"]VISUAL ARTS (drawing, painting, photography, film-making).[/quote:a20c354b06]
Kaelonir are the primary purveyors of drawn artwork, although they tend to see that as a lesser choice of medium than metalwork (it's less practical for martial purposes). Paintings are typically the work of Sidhe, using pigments drawn from the organic material around them to create elaborate and flowing pieces. Terkivor and Slativor tend to see "art" as how they arrange castoff items that they gather. Nephilim prefer to work in stone sculptures rather than paper/canvas mediums.

Among the human cultures, Dracien natives have the most developed drawn and painted art standards, with a focus on tribal designs and ornate borders around symbolic images. Ulor tends to focus on more standard classical fare, with vivid colours and bright scenery. Iath shows a darker side, with gloomy paintings done in pigments drawn from mineral deposits, holding more of a gothic-industrial feel. Cerelios encourages a more technical approach, where things like blueprints and schematics are considered to be the ultimate form of art. Xandrenian artists focus on creating erotica.

Industrialized cities in Veghinix make use of crystalized mana that has been specially processed for the capture and distribution of images. These crystals have been adapted for both photographic and cinematic use, with motion pictures requiring highly specialized (and expensive) projection devices to view. These crystals are sort of like film that require a bit of energy to activate. Mortals being the base creatures that they are, have also put these crystals to use in a booming adult entertainment industry with competition between the fiends and angels to secure market (the fiends using special crystals that steal souls, the angels trying to divert their business to protect those souls).

Next topic:
CIVIL RIGHTS

[unparsed]CIVIL RIGHTS


The civil right of the humans and other living world residents are boring and typical of progressive Elizabethan era politics.

The civil rights of the metaworlders, however, are more interesting.

No matter what one does, the guaranteed right of every native metaworlder is to never be denied entirely the immortality sustaining soul essence- to never be deprived, by any process of law, of their immortality.

They may not be killed.
They may not be denied the substance of immortality to sustain their last shred of being.
They may not be punished in any way that is unending.

They also have the right to a trial by a jury of their superiors, though that's nothing new- where the interesting bit comes in is when they are punished.

They cannot be killed by process of law, but they can be demoted in form and set to community service for a term of less duration than an eternity. They can have their part of the essence product reduced to such a trickle that their mental faculties regress to the quality of an insect, and they can be disassembled to the bare minimums of life. They can be given any form or state, so long as it does not permanently terminate their potential.



INGENIOUS IRRIGATION

[unparsed][quote:024e10315b="Tharivious"]
Next topic:
CIVIL RIGHTS[/quote:024e10315b]

in my setting, there's a city/compound/arcology (i'm not sure how to classify it really, at this point) called Cube McDravian. it's named after the dictator who runs it, who's also a "deity" in the setting.. that's complicated

basically, the people who live here are former humans who've been changed due a pretty violent movement, which was stirred up by McDravian himself. at the center of the conflict were two extremist groups, one with a radical feminist ideology, and one with a radical masculinist one. McDravian's role in the actual movement was to mediate its direction towards a more post-gender ideology, which addressed the "real" subconscious concerns that most of the leadership of the two groups had, those mostly being gender identity and inequity. incidentally, this has little to do with McDravian's personal cause, which is the standardization of the universe, order. combining these two groups is one step in a long process that still goes on today in the Cube

in order to build what they believed what they believed was utopia, this new group, the McDravites (which then, and now, has religious/social significance) felt they had to eliminate gender in all of its forms. the Equality Standard was drafted, which, to make a long and convoluted story short, laid the groundwork for a process that turned the majority of the Cube's citizenry into non-homosapien "post-peoples." they look something like this

the current leaders of this movement are all radically anti-gender, and they've taken the postgenderist ideology to very extreme lengths. this has affected most of the policy decisions they make in regards to what they call "sub-humanish" (this, for you transhumanists is a reference to "humanish", or unmodded humans). sub-humanish are people that refuse to change themselves to this new, and therefore, minimally gendered (there are some disputes about certain aesthetic features of post-peoples bodies that are reminiscent of human genders), version of humanity. they were for the most part relocated to an area underneath the Cube, called "Warsaw Ghetto," which is what it sounds like. an organization called the Democratic Transhumanist Union that shelters these waifs, and maintains sovereign government, is located there. agents of the Cube-proper are frequently dispatched to the Ghetto to grant 'special treatment' to so-called dim-trans and other enemies of the McDravite government

obviously, these people aren't given any rights inside Cube society, and are for the most part looked upon as degenerates. figured i'd have them toss around the word "gender criminal" just for good measure. a group that suffers special persecution is the biological transsexual (or "biotransee"). this is because of the belief that the transsexual's use of transhuman technology (sex change/advanced hormonal therapy/the controversial "gender tweaking" neurological operations) is immoral because it leads to the proliferation of gender. Cube leadership believes that the transsexual perpetuates "gender crime" because they typically seek to assume a traditional role in their target gender; on an ideological level, one they often cite in propaganda, they believe that this leads to the transsexual perpetuating their own condition among people with their disorder [ie, they give life the the construct of gender by making themselves caricatures of it], thus making it even more immoral

a fun tidbit though: anthropomorphs that adhere to the Equality Standard- that is, they don't use mannerisms of overt gender that Cube citizens find offensive- are allowed to maintain biological sex, and non public-womb style reproduction. this is because, generally, anthropomorphs appear as just "animals walking on two legs," and thus don't earn the ire of the Cube leadership who still remember the parts of gender identity that pissed them off. they are, however, required to wear vocoders that modify their voices to reflect the current pitch requirements of the Equality Standard. note that androgynous humans do not have this same benefit, and are classified as degenerates, because their features tend to reflect both male and female humans, as opposed to just "animal"

as a little bit of a detour, here's a short excerpt that one of the denizens from the Cube wrote. it's largely irrelevant, but it gives a little glimpse of what their society thinks about "civil rights" in general:

[quote:024e10315b]But this time was not self�s alone, no no. Self�s loneliness was served with a dish of Narco 9 variant, a legal, but scantily used form with clumsy, bumbling stream-swimming and above average strength. Circular in form, self�s love mate was thoroughly tentacled, with at least one every two or so feet around the outside of This Other�s circumference. Narrow from the profile, the middle membrane more resembled a discus when seen sidelong; truth be told, it was not much to see, and would likely not excite most radial-girth fetishists, despite the obvious attraction from the flowering blue cytoskeleton in its center. Self could care less what deviant desires they hold (self doesn�t understand such perversity, and never will), as could the Party, which only insists that all variants have comparable strengths to balance their weaknesses, and perform on par with the Equality Standard in day to day operations- somewhat folly in this one�s opinion, but only because self doubts the �well known fact� that postpeoples change their variant form at least 3-5 times a week. The fact that the so-called �change-Nazis� are singled out for their preference of variants, and with some frequency at that, seems to suggest otherwise- but what the fuck does this one know?

Obviously, when in the graces of such a fair companion, and This Other, judging from various preliminary ciliate battings, found this one equally enrapturing, it was only a matter of time before self�s cilia became quiescent and dribbling with cytoplasm. this one�s forest green modesty mittens, now bulging, were dropped immediately in favor of the natural funeral suit. Self hates democracy, and despises especially the thought behind people supposedly �free� of �tyranny� (leasing freedom from a slum-tyrant that changes every time their predecessor is forcibly ousted by Feds for turning off the water is a better way of putting it), but self will permit an analogy to the democratic process for crude humor�s sake: before the first primary was blown out of the water by a minority, self�s barbs were already rigging the voting machines in hot, damp swamp country.

The fraud was noticed by this one�s mate, who immediately set off on a tirade about such vapid topics as �trust,� �comfort levels,� and something called �foreplay� that must have come from the mindless human media that our censors fail to prune from the vast Intraweb. This is common in the Cube today, as yourselves in the Party must sense, particularly among those who pick specialty variants to attract attention to themselves. The irony (!) that this one cannot annunciate the word for �bundle of kindling� due to Mao�s meddling, but This Other can parrot idiotic babble from human entertainment- not knowing what it means, mind yourselves, but doing it because it�s the current trend- during an act that albeit is at least as base as defecation, but is pleasurable, and certainly moreso if reciprocated without senseless trendspeak and trendgesturing. The further irony of using the words �trust,� and �comfort� in a police State that one willingly submits to, bless its heart of darkness, let alone uttering the word �foreplay,� which this one understands to mean �the act of genteel before base copulation,� in a police State that within its six walls holds the Office of Corrective Discipline, whose acronym unintentionally reflects the amount of cognitive dissonance involved in the minds of the merciless (and rightfully so) denizens who toil to inflict objective sexual harassment on the most unruly human revolutionaries- all as lightly as a defective human thrice blinks his eye, or unknowingly taps his pencil ten times before writing in his adolescent diary.
[/quote:024e10315b]

that might seem a little strange, but what isn't told there is that the author is one of the so called "old guard" of McDravian. that is to say, this person was around during the original "gender revolution," and still harbors anger from a lot of that. in that same document, it would later be revealed that the character was one of the original leaders of the radical feminists that existed before McDravian united them with their counterparts

and lolz, looks like Blake got to the punch before me, so i won't post one of my own

[unparsed][quote:689dbbfb7f="Blake"]INGENIOUS IRRIGATION[/quote:689dbbfb7f]

Seveans, using the large flowing river that crosses their city, feed in water huge buldings that are used as hydroponic greenhouses to feed the city. A large part of those buildings are part of the Mountain-City, which goes almost 4 km high. It gives food for the whole city, including feeding beasts for meat, even though meat is not a popular dish. They also try some aeroponic greenhouses, but they are more difficult to manage, so they still mostly use hydroponic greenhouses.

CURRENCY (MONEY) OR THE EQUIVALENT

[unparsed]CURRENCY (MONEY) OR THE EQUIVALENT


In the living world, currency is boring. It's made up of silver, gold, other rare metals, jewels, spices, drugs, and generally items of value.

In the meta world, currency is based upon reddened sand- sand being a voracious substance that absorbs soul, and the red colouration indicating that it is 'full'. The red is cut with gold and usually cast into coins, true, but the gold it is cut with is worthless, and only included to buffer the sand for absorption of the soul, and to keep it stuck together. The roads aren't paved in gold, since gold is a bit on the soft side, but the alley ways are crusted with crumbled oxidized gold interspersed with empty sand.

The red is the true currency there, and its nature is the very purpose of the living world, and the meta world, and the very reason for any and all interaction that passes between them. Red is coherent soul; not just an item that gives a metaworlder more power, but one that makes the metaworlder more of itself.

It is the very nature of status and being, because the more they consume, the more they are. Smarter, wiser, more respected.

It's no mere GP, it's like corporeal XP, a devine food. So long as you eat the smallest measure regularly, you will never die, and the greater the volume that flows the greater a being you are. It is the difference between a worm and god- not merely a matter of property, but of internal person.


SEWERS

[unparsed][quote:bcc3ab2623="Blake"]SEWERS[/quote:bcc3ab2623]
Time to get more localized, I guess, since I haven't done much on this outside of two key cities:

In Krestaruth, a major city in my writings based in Iath, the sewer system is composed primarily of vertical pipes that descend straight down to the base of the city. Catch is, the city is built into the open caldera of a semi-dormant volcano called the Wound. The sewage is piped directly into the magma, where it is incinerated on contact. Not surprisingly, this is also their method of burial and trash removal.

In Ansildun, the main city in my Ulor-based writings, the sewers are largely like our own; underground tunnels connected to the pipes of the buildings above, but with a twist on the urban legends aspect. In Ansildun, the city is composed almost entirely of skyscrapers, where the higher-class of society is literally higher than the lower classes; ie, they reside in the highest floors of the buildings. No one is really looked down on until you run into the degenerates, who are cast out completely, and forced underground (gotta keep those shining cities shining, after all, and who wants to look at the derelicts?). The problem is, there are stories and rumours going around about demons living down there, too, and that the outcasts are starting to work with them.

Next:
MENTAL ILLNESSES (unique to the conworld, of course)

[unparsed]The Fear

In the South, before Retsil's defeat, it is common to have people go completely batshit loco, infected with incredible fear. They either snap and become gibbering lunatics, unable to function in society, or become fearless to the point where there's no way to coerce them.

BUTLERS

[unparsed][quote:ca8734ab86="Mr. Saturday"]BUTLERS[/quote:ca8734ab86]
Cerelios has an employment system based on birth order, which means that the job you are trained for and taught to perform from youth is effectively determined by random chance. Children born at a certain point in the birth order wind up as butlers for either the "upper class" (those born at the highest peak of the birth order and given positions as CEOs and engineers) if born at a lower point in the birth order, or as maintenance servants for the ur-Engines if born at a higher point.

Next:
PSYCHIATRY.

[unparsed][quote:9914d50d3e="Tharivious"]
Next:
PSYCHIATRY.[/quote:9914d50d3e]

psychiatry in my setting is considered "dragon science," a holdover from a previous time when it was used by dragons and their servants to control some parts of the human population

there's a creature called the metabolic vampire though, which is basically something that steals amino acids from other animals because its deficient. metabolic vampires that reap excesses (particularly those that prey on non-humans with radically different bodies) sell that excess to pro-dragon pharmaceutical companies. some of them are actually fitted with biology that allows them to produce the "drugs" on their body, in the form of edible secretions. the actual effects range from anti-depressants to pain killers. most of them have a side affect of extreme addiction when taken over a long period of time, which the vampires exploit (thus referencing the myth of vampire "domination" in a pretty basic way)

the nextmap is:
SINGLE-CELLED LIFE

[unparsed]SINGLE-CELLED LIFE

In Etrea, there are still some occations where completely new banches of simple creatures (mostly single-celled) come into being. Bethlemair, one of the nine Satans and often connected with plagues and insects, creates many of these beings spontaniously as it suites "her" through a process of imprinting minor spirits onto biological compounds found in various environments.

These new "viruses", "bacteria" and other entities are often very destructive if left unchecked by the Etre or Bethlemair. One of her outbreaks is a leading reason the north of the continent Sartai is on is rather barren. That and dragons.

As a side note, Bethlemair will say that her most successful project was Hrena, a cat sized butterfly-like being which is biologically more like a reptile. However, Hrena also lives on a steady diet of sugar.

FASHION

[unparsed][quote:0914a89034="bloodb4roses"]FASHION[/quote:0914a89034]

Melvillians are colorful when it comes to fashion.

[b:0914a89034]Formal dressing[/b:0914a89034]

There are two kinds of formal dressing : traditionnal and melvillian. Traditional dressing involves using one's culture's traditional formal dress. They vary a lot but are usually rich and remarkable. Melvillian dressing will be inspired by the various common institutions.

The most remarkable, and popular, is a formal variation of the Orionite suit, which includes white pants, a streched t-shirt and a brown over. It also includes the headband, which is a long tissue which you attached on your head. Tradition makes it that more respected people will have longer flowing bands than newcomers.

[b:0914a89034]Daily dressing[/b:0914a89034]

While everything is accepted, there is a traditional in Melville to make things rather simple. A lot of people will wear a simplified version of their traditionnal dressing, some will wear simplified versions of the daring suits of haute cuture, and others will wear simple shirts and pants. It is not uncommon for someone to where a distinct piece to show his citizenships and his culture.

However, Melvillians have come up with strict uniforms for people who have a sensitive work to do. Police, Firefighters and the likes will wear distinct clothings, and while on duty, they usually show no relation to a culture, except to the community they serve.

[b:0914a89034]Haute couture[/b:0914a89034]

Haute couture is famous in Melville, and designers have pushed the limits of what "daring designs" mean. And designers have fun on both men and women to desing things. While most people won't wear these on the utmost formal occasions, on parties and other gatherings less strict, Haute couture and other classy clothings are seen.

[b:0914a89034]On the 14th of July[/b:0914a89034]

On this day, Melvillians celebrate their Independance, and people have make it a tradition to be colorful. The Carnival of Rio is boring when compared to that day's clothes. Color and shapes are the rule, and people can go far and create masterpieces of mascarade.

[b:0914a89034]On the 31th of October[/b:0914a89034]

On that day, no clothing codes are effective, even for the sensitive works. While it is recommended to still wear what is needed to do his work, all other rules are torn, and people dress as they wish. While some people will go bare, most people will dress in daring ways, expressing their inner self as much as they can. The difference with the 14th of July is that here, color is not the rule : imagination is.

On the 31st's night, children will pass for candies (Halloween, brought to Melville by the HHers, formerly Quebeckers), older teens will have parties with friends, and so will adults. That day is a great celebration of one's individuality, and people like to show off. It is an unsaid rule to not laugh at how people have dressed on that day.

THE DESCENT OF (SAPIENT SPECIES)

[unparsed]In response to an expeditionary force to the harsh polar regions of Vor'u, the Shyana developed a specific strain of the Omega Virus (which i briefly explained here) that when the temperature surrounding the unit it is being stored in, in this case a full body suit with a space in between two layers, reaches a certain point it begins to magically generate heat. This effect is increased is the temperature continues to drop. Theoretically, because of its magical nature, there is no limit on the heat generation but this has not been put into practice because of a lack of interest on the subject.

INTERNATIONAL/INTERSTELLAR COMMUNICATION (which ever is relevant for your conworld)

[unparsed]INTERNATIONAL/INTERSTELLAR COMMUNICATION


Most communication in the living world is by written letter. Primarily, the post is carried by rail (human or mule powered, generally) if there is a depot near, or by sea if there is a port near, to be dispatched by rider or carriage (if roads) from the nearest transit hub to smaller hubs, and on to the destination.

When communications need to travel very quickly, birds are used. When communications need to travel very quickly, or involve packages too heavy for birds, or classified messages, null space may be used.


"SENTIENT" AQUATIC BEINGS

[unparsed][quote:182e519c36="Blake"]"SENTIENT" AQUATIC BEINGS[/quote:182e519c36]
Assuming that by "sentient" you mean sapient:

Aquia is the plane of elemental water in Veghinix, with multiple planar links to the oceans of the material world, which sometimes allow for the elementals to slip through. To use an excerpt from my wiki:

[quote:182e519c36="Veghinix Wiki: Elementals"]Water elementals are the inhabitants of Aquia, a cold, bizarre breed of creatures that swim the depths of the seas, stalk the foggy surface of the glaciers, and dwell in pockets of humid air beneath the surface. Composed of either water or ice, or some combination of the two, water elementals often take on a translucent, fluid appearance, eternally morphic and changing, but they prefer to take on forms that are as flexible as they are, serpentine and cephalopodic shapes being the most common. They hold to a strange sort of logic, wherein meditation and thought are seen as the only solution to any dilemma, and crushing obstacles beneath wave after wave of pressure is often the result. If one finds themselves opposed by water elementals, it may be wise to submit to their requests.[/quote:182e519c36]
Strange and unpleasant folks.

Next:
SOCIETAL OUTCASTS

[unparsed][quote:3f3953281b="Tharivious"]SOCIETAL OUTCASTS[/quote:3f3953281b]

Opposed to Melville, is the wide outlaw land of Arthabasquiare. It is not unified in any fashion, and Melvillians use that name only to describe the part of human civilization that isn't part of Melville.

When children born from Melvillian citizens reach adulthood, some of them refuse citizenship or even residency, and therefore they leave Melville. They end up, automatically, in that outlaw land. So there are a lot of people who left Melville freely that roam in those parts.

However, Arthabasquiare is also the abode of those residents of Melville that have broken the law. Since Exile is the only punishment possible in Melvillian law (they hardly have the concept of prison or something akin), exile has always taken place in Arthabasquiare. So you can meet a lot of criminals as well.

(Not all people that commited a crime end up in Arthabasquiare : some commit suicide, others will stay in the prison-like places where they stay within Melville but are denied the right to live within Melvillian society. Finally, people that do not have control over themselves are usually held in psychiatric hospitals, but the best is done to help them recover their control over themselves.)

Arthabasquiare also hosts the various States that are not sharing the Melvillian Constitution. They have their own laws, which can be harsh, and they aren't necessary unlawful. However, in relation to Melville, they are considered outcasts, but unlike criminals, are welcomed to Melville.

GENDER ROLES

[unparsed][quote:bd7a46ea6f="Yiuel"]
GENDER ROLES[/quote:bd7a46ea6f]

a nation from my setting called Fuir-Nim exists on a feudal-style government, which has as a national product scholarly labor (articles, theoretical science of all kinds, theology, bullshit philosophies of all kind, etc). in this system, the lowest caste of citizen is the academic, with the skilled laborer, the "professerf," the height of the peasant class

Fuir-Nim's leader believes strongly in the intellectual inferiority of women, and the nation is largely founded on his beliefs in this regard. it's hinted at that he was sexually abused, or otherwise mistreated by his mother, and that's the reason for this

anywho, below the peasant class is the non-citizen untouchable caste, comprised of women bred in a system of chattel slavery. i know what you're imagining, but think less Gor and more United States pre-1865- they're mostly used for labor

which comes to another point: most men in Fuir-Nim are homosexuals, aligned with two of the dominant cultures in the nation that are based heavily on irl gay subcultures (similar to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twink_(gay_slang)] or [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bear_(gay_slang)] but more socially rigid than their real counterparts). while not a gender role specifically, they've become somewhat akin to that, particularly in the levels of jobs typically held by each of their members. this is a pretty huge point of contention inside the Nim government, since there are both twink and bear Lords. the original misogynistic principles of Fuir-Nim are based on Greek ideas about scholarship, and many leaders that are unaligned (like Lord Nim himself), find the disputes petty and counternationalistic, but have allowed it to exist

the nextmap is: PROFOUND COGNITIVE DISABILITIES (mental retardation and the like)

[unparsed][quote:69798d4fb1="Fetus Commander"]the nextmap is: PROFOUND COGNITIVE DISABILITIES (mental retardation and the like)[/quote:69798d4fb1]
Well, this won't be politically correct.

Due to the employment system in Cerelios, children born with mental disabilities are euthanized as soon as their deficit is diagnosed (usually within weeks of birth), regardless of station assigned by their place in the birth order. The flaw in their cerebral capacity is seen as a threat to the good of society, and they would be considered both a burden (if at a lower-end assignment) or as a dangerous liability (if at a high-end assignment, particularly in weapons corporations). The testing is so intensive, however, that any form of mental disorder short of trauma-induced disorders is detected, and anything from spectrum disorders to retardation is considered to be grounds for euthanasia. There is a small but significant number of parents who attempt to smuggle such children off of the continent (or at least out of the cities) for their own protection, but most see it as a normal way of life.

Terkivor, on the other hand, have a more practical use. They train the bodies of their mentally deficient offspring more rigourously than normal while completely ignoring other education, resulting in muscular brutes without much of a thought in their head. Colloquially termed "Orkheads" by other races (as a guttural, whooping "Orc!" [more of a wu-OH-ar-k, actually] sound is all the vocalization they seem to learn), they're usually thrown in front of Terkivor raid parties as disposable meat shields to absorb the first hail of fire from their enemies.

Next:
RELIGION

[unparsed][quote:fb69920b0e="Tharivious"]
Next:
RELIGION[/quote:fb69920b0e]

there's a type of creature in my setting called a "glimmer sapient", which is effectively a being that is sometimes, well, sapient (as in, has human-like capacity for "intelligence" and reasoning), but loses that when its body is bombarded by some types of particles. the reasoning, which is handwavium obv, is that its neurology depends on some kind of quantum unity, which if disrupted, changes its cognitive state. there are very few types of particles capable of doing this outright, but many laypeople and even some scientists believe that it can happen randomly as common particles like protons collide in appropriate locations (none of this is proven)

there is a religion that's come up from this belief, called the Church of Shit Immortal. it exists mostly inside what's known as the DeFayo Territories, an urban King Kong ghetto; 'urban' in that its built on top of the ruins of ancient industrial cities, 'King Kong' in that its surrounded by a wall designed to keep its racially caricatured inhabitants (the DeFayo; read: drow) inside, and 'ghetto' in that its dangerous as fuck to live in

the God of this religion, or rather, the God the religion is built to avoid running afoul of, is the glimmer sapient Forrest the Elder (who may or may not exist, in-world). he's a kind of Cthulhuian being, a cruel asshole, but the basis of the religion is that there exist other deities who are both exponentially more cruel and bigger assholes. it may not be pretty to worship Forrest, but better him than someone who might be worse (and the life of a DeFayo isn't that pretty anyway)

now here's where it gets a little obtuse:

the Church's tenants hold that because the quantum universe is probability based, and highly probable actions are "maintained" as reality (i.e. events such as a fist passing through a solid wall are relegated to "impossibility" by their extremely low probability), the humanoid universe should mimic that because it is natural. in this religion, human statistics, like those proliferated by social scientists, are seen as divine mimicry or God's will on earth, because their mere construction, according to the Church, acts in veneration of the higher quantum laws of probability

the Church believes that to go with the prevailing statistical trends is to become immortalized in reality, and considers deviating from them to be "quantum tunneling", which is a direct reference to their glimmer sapient God's existence: an errant particle of a certain type tunneling could lead to the demise of his consciousness (if only temporarily), which, according to the Church, is detrimental because it will lead to [at best] terrible punishment, or [at worst] his destruction and the subsequent take over of the universe by what they term The Anteplantational Eldritch, a force of glimmer sapient deities who are increasingly worse than Forrest

the overall idea: don't deviate from what your situation dictates, don't deviate from what the metadata from media says about your situation

the religion does believe that the change of statistics over time is also natural, and that there should be no attempt to outwardly evangelize the faith because nonbelievers are a part of the grander scheme of things. however, the statistics rarely change due to the fact that their existence perpetuates the behavior of people in the Territories. the term "Shit-Immortal" is a reconstruction of the information processing term "poop" as it refers to data (a term that is archaic on melkrin); it's also a reference to the DeFayo condition as being in a "stagnant" state forever

most DeFayo don't adhere to this religion strongly, and its clerics don't write its primary doctrines themselves. most of the actual dogma is reaped from the multitudes of statistical information found in melkrin's media, and sorted into a kind of "streaming bible" (think one of the big signs on a US megachurch, but with a shitload of numbers on them)

a splinter group of this religion is the Church of the Anteplantational Eldritch- those who, through presumed ignorance of the laws of the cosmos, or intentional maliciousness, want to depose Forrest and replace him with the more harsh deities. the typical followers of this religion are the Uppity Niggers (and yeah, that's what they're called in-world), who are DeFayo that go against the grain of violent strife inside the DeFayo Territories to rise to academic or societal prominence- something rare, but ambiguously depicted. many of them are what you might call social reformers, and many are also insane cultists who really want to have society swallowed by an otherworldly horror ala the Order of Dagon

the nextmap is: ATHEISM

[unparsed]Atheism doesn't work in my conworld. The gods are very real, to the point where you can, and sometimes do, interact with them. Instead of atheists, there are antitheists, those who want to kill the gods. They're a relatively powerful group of people, populated by a diverse spectrum of races. The leaders of the pack, however, are the Ingiai, who were created and enslaved by Retsil. After they achieved freedom, they came with a biiiig ol' chip on their shoulders about divinity. They are, in their mind, just like you and me, only with DIVINE SUPERPOWERS. Also they're dicks. So, instead of reasoning with these beings that live off of belief and play games with mortals, instead just kill the fuck out of them.

NEXT TOPIC: Racist epithets.

[unparsed][quote:8031ddfe9a="Mr. Saturday"]NEXT TOPIC: Racist epithets.[/quote:8031ddfe9a]
Easy.

- Kaelonir: Dross, Bladeling; for a culture heavily built around metalwork, using a term for the impure refuse of the forging process is pretty high on the list of insults, Bladeling refers to their bond to a single weapon, implying that that's all they're good for.
- Terkivor: Shitbeast; due to their poor hygiene and tendency to smell horribly unpleasant, 'course, they could care less. Other epithets are common and varied, but almost everyone uses this one reflexively.
- Sidhe: Cow/Sow/Doe, Wispet; comparing their usual inactivity and reliance on others to hunt/protect/fight for them to female members of herd species, Wispet refers to their typically frail and soft appearance as an implication of weakness.
- Nephilim: Stonehead, Relic; Stonehead refers to their general appearance, Relic likens them to a useless thing from the past, which their typical melancholy can easily reduce them to.
- Slativor: Pulphead, Swine; another reference to bodily odours, as Slativor constantly smell of wet wood pulp, Swine refers to their boar-like tusks, and is equal to calling them pigs (which they consider to be unrefined creatures with no standards).
- Humans: Forgettable, Lost; a reference to the fact that the other races believe their differences stem from a titan or other magical influence interfering with their evolutionary process, while humans are the same base beings that they all descend from.

Next:
BEASTS OF BURDEN (not including the normal animals from the real world, cows/horses/etc)

[unparsed][quote:77a243288e="Tharivious"]
Next:
BEASTS OF BURDEN (not including the normal animals from the real world, cows/horses/etc)[/quote:77a243288e]

i have a creature called a 'discipline snail' that sees a lot of use transporting children within the annals of the school system of Gottes Wille, a nation that's basically a large, enclosed "one room schoolhouse" that a fascist government uses to reeducate amish people

the snail preys on these birds that roost on the shoulders of the cloud giants, and have roosted there for all of their evolutionary history. all of these giants have Tourettes Syndrome, with coprolalia, and thus they swear a lot. the birds parrot this swearing

the basic method of the snail's predation is that it opens a small hatch on its operculum, baits the birds with mating calls, then predates them when they enter. the inside of its shell has tentacles that grapple them, and pull them into its gullet, but it can't see them while they're in there, so it has to listen to their sounds by tucking its frontal antennae behind it into the hatch. over time, it's adapted to listen for the profanities the birds parrot, but its only able to gauge them very generally with its antennae, creating a very broadly defined "profanity filter"

usually, these things are used as school buses, because saying a swear word (or even "masking") might get you slapped in the face with a tentacle. it's rare that students are actually predated, just because they're too big to fit into the animal's gullet, but it does happen

the animal is also used for transportation of goods, as it has a hide that extends beyond the shell, which regenerates very quickly if hollowed out using a well known industrial process. basically, the animal's body grows around the structure placed inside of it, so its a kind of living vessel. because it's operculum is the only part that contains extended anatomy (the tentacles), most of the rest is free space anything people want to put in it. the driver steers the beastie around with a machine hooked up to it's fist-sized brain (the creature itself can be anywhere from the size of a car, to the size of a small house)

the nextmap is: ILLEGAL SEXUAL ACTIVITY

[unparsed][quote:be45522921="Fetus Commander"]ILLEGAL SEXUAL ACTIVITY[/quote:be45522921]

Hard one for Melvillians.

Sex between consenting adults, whoever they are, is not illegal. They can pay for it, they can fool around with dozens of adults and have great orgies, and it is still legal. (We could even imagine a situation where two partners intend to have sex, and will be so masochist as to kill each other whiel doing it. It is not considered illegal if the partners were consenting to go that far.)

When it involves non-adults however, it all comes up to the idea of coming of age. When a child has enough maturity, he gets a few freedoms for himself, like having sex with other people. Sex between adults and such teenagers is not forbidden, again if they are consenting.

However, sex with a child that has not come of age is reputed illegal, as he has not the maturity to give his own answer. However, if he is courageous enough, he may discuss it with his parent, and the parent might give leave.

However, sex between the parent and his child is automatically illegal. Sex between a partner of the parent and the parent's child is also illegal. Sex between non-consenting people is illegal. Finally, child-child sex is also illegal, but with two exception : when both children were hiding their acts or when both parents are fully aware of what is happening. Finally, a parent cannot give leave for sex if the child is not consenting. Using coercision is reputed to void any consent.

FAMOUS DRINK (may be alcoholic or non-alcoholic)

[unparsed][quote:9470b09dd6="Yiuel"]FAMOUS DRINK (may be alcoholic or non-alcoholic)[/quote:9470b09dd6]
That would have to be Xandrenian Feywine, an alcoholic beverage only made on that island and commonly used as an aphrodisiac or simply to boost virility and stamina.

It's brewed like most other wines, using a mixture of grapes, native berries, and the seeds of the death blossom (a sapient plantlike creature of humanoid form, typically female and typically attractive, that has been suffused with fiendish energies). The result is a very thick alcoholic liquid that nearly resembles a syrup and needs to be cut down with a clearer liquid before consuming. However, instead of using water for this purpose, the Xandrenians make use of the dream-sweats caused by the feverish dreams of victims haunted by the fey.

This results in several types of Xandrenian Feywine, depending on the dreams that caused the sweats. Most are made using the sweat caused by the erotic dreams resultant of a nymph or muse visiting the dreamer, with a sweet and vibrant taste, and these are the most famous types used as aphrodisiacs and sex aides. However, another type is made using the sweats of dreams caused by nightmares, trolls, and redcaps, which has a distinctly more bitter flavour, and is used primarily as a hallucinogenic beverage by writers trying to add more horror to their work.

Naturally, this is a difficult product to create, since there's no way of knowing what dream was had when the sweat is being collected. Or rather, there would be no way, as the manufacturers typically strike deals with the fey that have made their homes nearby to go and create the dreams that they need. Even so, sweat production is a limited resource, so the Feywine carries a steep price.

Next up:
ANACHRONISTIC TECHNOLOGIES

[unparsed]Wait wait wait. Sweat in wine? Do you... even understand how to make booze?

Also: The railgun shotgun that Tinker carries is completely batshit loco given the magical nature of the world. All of Ingge, really, is pretty much anarchonistic.

Next topic: JUNK FOOD

[unparsed][quote:3f87e217b7="Mr. Saturday"]Wait wait wait. Sweat in wine? Do you... even understand how to make booze?[/quote:3f87e217b7]
I do, actually. As mentioned, that's an after-fermentation additive to thin the final product. I didn't feel like going through the full process, which involves applying magical energies to stabilize the endorphins created by the dream, cooking out the salt, and the sheer volume needed to produce enough of it for a single bottle. If you expected it to be normal sweat after it being mentioned that these are fey induced (re: supernaturally generated) dreams (which the fey also feed off of, being creatures of dream and whatnot), well...

[quote:3f87e217b7]Next topic: JUNK FOOD[/quote:3f87e217b7]
Cerelios markets several varieties of cookies, snack foods, and other convenience snacks in prepackaged forms to make it simpler for their workers to go between home and their jobs. One of their favourite products is a snack bar formed of a granola-style core that has been rolled in a mixture of caramel and nuts.

Next:
CHILD REARING

[unparsed][quote:0395b0cb26="Tharivious"]CHILD REARING[/quote:0395b0cb26]

When children are born in Melville, they are assigned a single main parent. In order, the parent would be :

- The mother of the child
- The father of the child
- Someone chosen by the mother of the child
- Someone chosen by the father of the child
- Someone from the mother's parental family
- Someone from the father's parental family
- Someone else (true adoption)
- The State

Usually, there are enough people wanting to adopt children so that the State never becomes the parent.

When the main parent is assigned, all the adults of the parent's House are also considered the child's parents. (Though they may change, if the main parent changes house, though it is uncommon and not recommended to do so.)

Together, all the adults of the House take care of the children of the House. At around 12 years old, it has been a tradition to assign a child to an adult not of the family (generally a close friend of the family though, but sometimes it might be a grand-parent or even a friend of the child, as long as he is adult). This adult becomes his tutor, being a ressource when he needs support yet might want to have someone out of the family to support him. The tutor also guide the child in adult life, and it isn't unheard of teenagers to have their first adult activities with their tutor. Parents still have the charge to accept or not things.

A child comes of age when the adults feel that their child is ready. He is brought to a judge, where he applies for Melvillian residency (He then goes through the whole immigration process : he is not automatically granted residency or citizenship). A child can also come of age on his own, presenting himself in front of the judge. When he has obtained his residency status, he may leave, or stay. If he stays, he may also apply for citizenship. If a child passes the Voter's Test, he automatically is granted residency status and thus is considered adult.

Parents' role

The parents' role in all this is to teach the child how to live on his own, and to live within society. For this, they can receive all help they wish (as long as they give back for those services), this includes schools. (Schooling is not mandatory in Melville, however, since it's cheap and since schools are usually good, all children go to school nonetheless.)

Parents also have to consent for their children. However, when the child becomes a teen, it is usual for parents to grant privileges to consent for some things to good children. However, privileges are also responsability, and when a teen is given a privilege, he also accepts the consequences of his privilege. And the law is strict that when a privilege was granted, unless the child refuses it before the act, the child is fully responsible. The child must accept the privilege as well.

(Official privileges are usually signed in front of judges, just to make sure all is clear. Melvillians like written laws.)

NUCLEAR FAMILY

[unparsed][quote:a1f101312d="Yiuel"]
NUCLEAR FAMILY[/quote:a1f101312d]

in my setting, there's a fae technology that allows women to have shit tons of children, which is colloquially termed the "feywomb." basically, it's a two way portal mounted in her reproductive system that accepts sperm, and allows the Unseelie geneticists on the other side to milk genetic information from a number of ethnicities and subraces very quickly. in return, they grow her embryo in their labs. the idea is that because the fae are traveling on ships headed away from melkrin at faster than light speeds, the time that it takes to grow an embryo, and then insert it back through the portal, is significantly reduced. the process of timed insertions is managed by some kind of computer. most of these women have children as frequently as 1-2 weeks

a religion called Singularity Mormonism often uses this as an extension of their lifestyle, which favors larger family units. the scientists' desire for more genetic information makes matriarchal polygamy (and sometimes patriarchal polygamy, depending on the sect) a prerequisite, thus it is this religion that first caught their eye, and it has remained favored. it's not uncommon to see one of these families churning out roughly 100 people in a year's time, with some help from bioarchitectural fabrication, and rigorous fitness

for the most part, these are families similar to those on earth. their particular brand of religion instills in them a slightly younger than average (for us) sexual education, and young men especially are encouraged to submit sperm, even through masturbation, to the local feywomb. the problems posed by incest among closely paired relatives don't really exist, because the produced embryos are either screened to remove corrupted information or randomized (in which case, the woman isn't even recieving the product of her partner's sperm, but another stocked in the Unseelie labs; this is highly important to the faith, because it affirms their gosphel of God's pan-ethnic reach)

the nextmap is: FAMOUS REFORMERS

[unparsed][quote:81bc46a5a7="Fetus Commander"]the nextmap is: FAMOUS REFORMERS[/quote:81bc46a5a7]
Going to have to use the term a bit loosely, since politics aren't exactly common in Veghinix (mostly monarchies, theocracies, technocracies, and dictatorships, actually) but it still fits for a few groups.

The leaders of the five Chorums (the five houses of angels; Justice, Generosity, Kindness, Mercy, and Hope) could be considered to be reformers. They work to oppose corruption where they see it, and generally profess to have the best interests of everyone in existence at heart. Of course, they generally go too far and wind up doing something just as detrimental to the ones they want to help (not that that's unusual for political reformers). In particular, Delphiel of The Sheltering Brotherhood (the Chorum devoted to Kindness) would fit the bill, as she attempts to work within the same methods of operation that the fiends use to corrupt mortals, in order to save them.

Another qualified group would be the Penumbrals, divine agents who work to protect the metaphysical Balance between opposing forces. They originally formed because the fiends and angels were guiding things off course, and (though this is unconfirmed, as even as a designer I'm unsure if the deities in the setting exist or are constructs of myth) the guidance of their god Umbrien. Their sense of reform is a bit unconventional, as they could be trying to protect a community from a corrupt law enforcement agency one day, and acting as a squadron of assassins putting down a resistance group the next. They're a contradictory group, and they're aware of it, and perfectly alright with it. Not surprisingly, most have at least some degree of antisocial tendencies.

Next up:
COMMUNICATIONS METHODS

[unparsed]I believe that this topic has been done before...

[quote:60758dedf4="SaLien"]

INTERNATIONAL/INTERSTELLAR COMMUNICATION (which ever is relevant for your conworld)[/quote:60758dedf4]

But for the sake of resuming this thread i will answer the question...

The Tre-Khan Empire has developed a magical system that allows the exchange of thoughts, feelings, images, etc. between two or more people*.

These small stations, consisting of a fist-sized crystalline orb used as a focus for the magical technique, require the person/people that are entering said communication to simply perform the required manipulation of magical energy and to focus on the participants faces.

Requests can also be sent to other peoples stations by visualizing the face of another. This results in the nearest station glowing a pale blue and a humming noise given off. Only the requested person will hear these effects.

The level of interaction between participants can vary, depending on the willingness of the person to let others into their mind. The different levels are as follows;

- Full Interaction; access to every thought and memory of the people partaking, the ability to send and receive thoughts, emotions, images and other sensory information. Usually only used between lovers
- Mid-Level Interaction; access to recent memories, the ability to send and receive thoughts, emotions, images and other sensory information. Used mainly between friends and family
- Low-Level Interaction; ability to send and receive thoughts, emotions, images and other sensory information. Used between large groups, mainly as a social forum.
- Restricted Access; Ability to send and receive thoughts. Used in formal situations, usually for interviewing and sales.

100% of the Tre-Khan populace is able to manipulate magical energy

Next Topic:
WORLD CHANGING BATTLES

[unparsed][b:a957e35273]WORLD CHANGING BATTLES[/b:a957e35273]

On Taasao, the ultimate WCB has been the [i:a957e35273]End of the Benevolant Empire[/i:a957e35273]. War was raging all over the civilized world, and people were killed by millions in a seemingly endless war. History remembered another war of that kind, which ultimately ended all civilization.

The Benevolant Empire had begun exactly from that first disaster, trying to build a society where magic would not overwhelme the world and lead to its destruction. And the leaders, and the people, were now realizing that, despite the fact they achieved something great, Magic was a cursed power, and they were now again goinf into ultimate destruction. So, with the last strength they had, the delivered a double gift to the world.

Their first gift was a great battle. All people that survived it transmitted the story to their children, and even today, people have legends of how the sky was bright, shining with the power being wielded by the Magicians and other great and potent leaders. It seems to have been a battle even greater than the one that led to the civilization collapse. But today, one side remembered their ultimate fate, and they had no hope in survival, so they gave everything they could to destroy with this last stand all that was left of the Magicians on Taasao.

The second gift was one hidden for the future. In secret, some leaders and scientists created a people. They were given a deep hatred of Magic, and bodily tools to destroy Magicians on sight. Able to support the naturally used magic, they could not tolerate a high concentration of it, and they certainly could not tolerate Magicians (as some of their tools were obviously to densily magical). And when the final battle ended, the last Magician freed that people (and endured the most horrible fate, as he was slain in pieces), and a genocide occured, cleansing the planet from Magic. The people grew in number, and killed more Magicians, and when Magic receded, they created Technology through natural science, and were ultimately able to erase Magic from the face of the world.

So all this, described as the End of the Benevolant Empire, changed Taasao in a way that would make it impossible to return to the time before and Magic as it Was.

IDENTITY SYMBOLS

[unparsed]Latyan Paladins of all species and of most versions of Latyanism use tattoos for several purposes. One is as an aid for a summoning spell for personal weapons. Another is to mark someone as a paladin, and even tell who is who. Many famous paladins can be recognised by their tattoos alone. Some of the tattoos are attributed to people of certain ranks, others for those who accomplish certain tasks. Still others, like those used for summoning, are personal to the owner.

POPULAR PETS OR COMPANION ANIMALS

[unparsed][quote:9c483b7623="bloodb4roses"]POPULAR PETS OR COMPANION ANIMALS[/quote:9c483b7623]
In Iath, the pet of choice is typically a large dog called an ergeth hound that is roughly the size of an English mastiff, but more closely resembles a husky or even a wolf. They tend to be well mannered and easily trained, but are also often trained by law enforcement, military, and criminals to serve as guard dogs. More rarely (for obvious reasons), bears are kept as pets by those that want some prestige of having an immense, dangerous animal as a pet.

Residents of urban Ulor don't really have the luxury of keeping large pets due to the skyscrapers that compose the cities, so they tend toward smaller creatures such as typical housecats or terriers. However, the most common pets are predatory birds such as falcons and hawks, which are trained to not only serve as relatively (compared to their wild counterparts) docile companions, but also as pest control to keep rodent populations down.

Xandrenians are a bit different. They tend to keep other people as pets. Rather than a master-slave relationship, there is a trend among them to take on owner-pet dynamics with one taking care of another much as we would care for an animal. These relationships are one of the few non-sexual relationships on the island, mostly as a result of regarding the 'pet' as little more than an animal.

Cerelios shows a trend of keeping small, non-sentient machines as pets, usually no larger than a dog or cat. Rather than feeding and walking them, the owner maintains the machine's working parts and keeps up its supply of oil and fuel.

In Dracien, the most common pet in standard society is a constrictor snake. Here, they are seen as symbolic representations of the Endless One, the divine force worshiped by the Assembly of Eternal Wisdom (regardless of its true purpose). Outcasts who reject the faith, on the other hand, have taken to a more blasphemous and dangerous sort of pet, capturing or stealing young drakes and forcing domestication upon them. These outcasts tend to live very difficult lives, as other dragons hunt them down once they discover that a drake has been captured.

Next:
CRIMINAL JUSTICE/PUNISHMENTS

[unparsed][quote:4ce32c6e8b="Tharivious"]CRIMINAL JUSTICE/PUNISHMENTS[/quote:4ce32c6e8b]

Melvillian law only provides one punishment in its laws : [i:4ce32c6e8b]Exile[/i:4ce32c6e8b]. For any offence against the laws, it is the only punishment judges can give freely without consultation. Exile can be of three kinds :

- [b:4ce32c6e8b]Eternal [/b:4ce32c6e8b]: Plainly speaking, it's suicide. The criminal must kill himself.
- [b:4ce32c6e8b]External [/b:4ce32c6e8b]: The individual leaves Melville completely. When the offence is only against a local law, he just has to leave the community, and may stay elsewhere in Melville. (Such laws are uncommon however, and regions where there are such specious crimes are usually shunned upon.)
- [b:4ce32c6e8b]Internal [/b:4ce32c6e8b]: The individual stays within Melville, but lives in prison. Prisons are not a place where people are being taken care of : it's a free for all premise, and you are lucky to stay there alive for more than a few months. Transition houses also exist where people with social problems may stay instead.

However, before such punishment is applied, the criminal can instead try to bargain a price for his crime. This is easily done for crimes against material. It can also happen when no violence beyond light threat occured. (Threat is a crime in Melville, and severely punished when it comes do death threats.) However, most crimes involving violence against people are not so easily paid back. Indeed, for a murder, tradition has made it that bargain is impossible. The bargain means that he does not need to go in exile, and the crime is taken as fully forgiven.

This applies when the criminal is judged guilty. However, someone might not be judged guilty, bu yet wasn't proven innocent in the eyes of the judge(s). People call it the doubt judgement, where the case stays open, and the individual is still accused. Since he was not judged guilty, he cannot be ostracised (nor can he be limited in his activities), but his duty is to prove his innocence (the accusing party may as well find more evidence for guilt). Tradition has made it that people that would live without problems afterwards for a few years were basically held as innocent.

RITUALS CONCERNING COMING OF AGE

[unparsed][quote:d68d996f4a="Yiuel"]RITUALS CONCERNING COMING OF AGE[/quote:d68d996f4a]
I'll cover three of them:

Kaelonir: When reaching an age where the elders of their community deem a young Kaelonir to be mature enough, the Kaelonir undergoes the rite of awakening, in which they are bonded with their blade spirit. This involves something akin to a Native American vision quest with a heavy focus on spiritual cleansing. While in a trance, they see the spirit animal that will guide them through the rest of their life, and select the weapon with which they will focus their future training.

Terkivor: When a young Terkivor reaches maturity (age 7 by human reckoning - they age roughly twice as fast), they must face a test of their abilities and survival instinct. They are drugged and brought unconscious into the wilderness around their community, left behind alone, and given only a rock, a steel bar, and a wooden board to defend themselves. If the Terkivor returns home alive within a week, they are welcomed into the community. If they fail to return in time, they will be beaten by their family unit, often to the point of suffering cerebral trauma and being thrown into training with the Orkheads (mentioned previously in this thread).

Xandrenians: Xandrenian children are raised in group homes with no knowledge of a biological family, in which they are "cared" for by bizarre fey called Childkeepers. Childkeepers are pale, ghastly creatures closely related to redcaps, trolls, and other nightmarish entities, who specialize on terrorizing the children into behaving the way that Xandrenian society will require of them (ie, completely without mercy, compassion, or affection for another living being, unless it somehow furthers your own goals). For these children, life is a bleak and unending cycle that deadens them to concerns beyond the self. Family is meaningless, country is meaningless, even wealth is fairly meaningless unless you are secure. When a child grows to adolescence (typically age 14-15, as their bloodline ages slightly slower than other humans), the more benign (if such a thing exists [ie, it doesn't]) fey such as nymphs and their kin begin to visit them, encouraging thoughts that develop their minds to think in the manner of the promiscuous and wantonly sexualized society of Xandrenian adults. This phase overlaps with the work of the Childkeepers for two to three years (until the subject is 17-18), when they must face a final test of their mettle to determine if they can survive in the world around them, in which they are subjected to the nightmarish visions that affected them the most as children. If they succeed, they are welcomed into Xandrenian society, if they fail, they are gobbled up by their nightmares and never seen again.

Next:
LEGENDARY HEROIC FIGURES

[unparsed][quote:0e3d652f8a]LEGENDARY HEROIC FIGURES[/quote:0e3d652f8a]

Among the Melvillians, they don't have any related to their own culture, however, the constellation Orion, when viewed as a Warrior, has been an inspiration to the order of the Orionites, Melville's army.

A lot of their leaders were considered famous. However, their greatest leader has been Kevin Saey, taken as legendary because he could defeat anyone almost instantly. No one ever knew what have made it possible for him to be so quick, but noone dared to defy him while he was still in full strength. They don't even remember a time where he could be defeated. But this can be confronted to archives, and the oldest reports about him already depict him as an accomplished Orionite, even young. And the first few comments find it weird. Noone ever came back again with such capacities.

FAMOUS OATH

[unparsed][quote:14e8505df6="Yiuel"]FAMOUS OATH[/quote:14e8505df6]

All Qatama warriors take an eternal oath of allegiance to the Empire and the honor of their respective clan. The oath is seen as ultimately the governing cause for punishment when a warrior fails his/her duties in any way.

A similar oath is exchanged between mates during union/marriage ceremonies.

Roughly, in English, the oath is;

"Without pause, and with the honor of my ancestors I, [name], pledge eternal dedication and undying allegiance to the Qatama Empire and my clan, the [clan name], only the absence of breath in my lungs, or blood in my veins shall keep me from my duty."

ANARCHICAL SUBCULTURE

[unparsed][quote:d4787bf86e="Sano"]ANARCHICAL SUBCULTURE[/quote:d4787bf86e]

The Orionites, that military order of Melville, is fairly anarchical.

They have no official leader. In that, they are a miniature of Melville or Sevy themselves, since Melville has no President (or something akin) and Sevy, despite being the largest city, has no Mayor. Because this is common among Melvillians, that doesn't make the Orionites more anarchical than Melvillians (though there are some places in Melville with such strong leaders, but at a more local level, usually).

What makes them anarchical is their chain of command. The Orionites, except on very special occasions, do not work as a single army. They don't even have true officers, who would lead them into the war. Instead, they work in small dispersed teams. Some groups may be large (over a hundred), while others might limit themselves to 5 or 6. There are also lonely warriors roaming, but this is less common especially near Melville. Groups of two or three might travel a lot for observation purposes, and among larger groups, specialization occurs.

When they need a bigger army, those groups will join their forces. If they need a leader, or people to make decisions about strategy or other tactical subjects, they will choose one among them, usually from merit and knowledge. Nothing however is permanent. There are some people (like Kevin Saey, in the earlier post) that receive a great load of respect from their skills, but this is informal and cannot be taken as law.

This versatility to be able to quickly form larger and smaller groupings without loosing much efficiency has made them famous. However, all this has been helped by technology : since they have long-distance communication, they use it to transmit information on their position and what is happening around them, giving them the possibility to know more about their surroundings. And since skill is very important in such army, the military academies of the Orionites are fairly long to get across the full course. (They even have permanancies is their bases for their warriors to learn more.)

It should be noted though that this anarchy is ruled by a set of laws, endorsed by all Orionites, and they have an elected assembly, aking to the Assembly of Voters of Melville, which purpose is to oversee the application of law and its needed modifications. (Not all Orionites may take part in that legislative institution, but a fairly high percentage.)

AN IMPORTANT LAKE

[unparsed][quote:32ef7fab0e="Yiuel"]AN IMPORTANT LAKE[/quote:32ef7fab0e]

Lake Katala ([b:32ef7fab0e]katala gujra[/b:32ef7fab0e]), located in the Katala Realm, the South Western realm of the Qatama Empire is the most important freshwater source of potable water and certain types of foodstuffs in the Katala Realm. It is held in reverence as a sacred point in the natural world and a few traditional rules govern the behavior of the Qatama at Katala Gujra.

1 - Bathe using the water, but not submersed in the lake

2 - Take in the water, but do not take from the water (rhetorical axiom against waste)

3 - Keep sacred the water of Katala Gujra and let no one else forget this




INCEST

[unparsed]INCEST

Danpyr travel very often and one can not always be sure of who is a cousin, or in some cases even a half-sibling. Because of this, and because the Danpyr population is much lower than most other races on Etrea, only mating with parents, children, parent's mates (with exceptions), siblings or half-siblings is considered incest.

HATS or HEADGEAR

[unparsed][quote:32d3afab52="bloodb4roses"]HATS or HEADGEAR[/quote:32d3afab52]
Most cultures in Veghinix wear hats on occasion. Most soldiers wear some form of helmet in combat.

As far as anything unique, the men of Dracien have taken to wearing twisting, spiraled turbans that seemingly have no end (ie, curves in on itself so that the ends of the material are bound together, like a Klein Bagel, with more twists to it). These are typically only worn regularly by public officials, but most men wear them during religious ceremonies. The tradition originally began as a way to symbolize the Endless One.

Next:
UNCONVENTIONAL PARASITES

[unparsed][quote:30ba3aceb3="Xhin"]
NEXT: RITUALS OF DESECRATION[/quote:30ba3aceb3]

One of the twelve nomadic tribes that inhabit the Valshne Wastes has a ritual that occurs after a victorious skirmish against one of the other tribes.

The enemies dead are collected and have their thumbs and eyes removed by the shaman of the tribe* using the ceremonial gold knife of his station** before the next sunrise***. This ritualistic desecration of fallen enemies is believed to cripple the dead in the after life.

*It must be noted that because of an event 300 years previous, which caused the creation of the wastes, magic is not able to be used upon the desert continent of Valshne. So the title of shaman is not one of a magical nature, it is more in the nature of a herbalist or healer.

Gold, not only being very scarce in the Valshne Wastes, is believed by all tribes on this continent to be able to cut the soul.

* This tribe believes that the souls of the dead are collected at this time.

TERRAFORMING METHODS

[unparsed][quote:eca424de2d="SaLien"]TERRAFORMING METHODS[/quote:eca424de2d]
The current state of Cerelios where society has been unified into a handful of massive cities is an effort in terraforming-of-sorts by the ur-Engines. When either the World Machine sent them, the things simply crashed to ground, or an ancient society created them (whichever history is believed - I can only say which one I like best), the ur-Engines set to work in creating an environment that would allow technology to flourish and grow more rapidly than it would otherwise, and to ensure their future safety.

This took form in Cerelios, where they secured a following of mortals who could assist in their maintenance and spread the ideology of technological advancement. Over a few centuries, this expanded into several cities, and eventually overtook the entire continent. Due to their devotion to the cause and to the machines themselves, the citizens who reside under the Order of the Clockwork Hand are little more than the seeded algae to the ur-Engines that are the first step toward making the world ideal for their needs.

Next:
FORMS OF DEGENERATE BEHAVIOUR

Tell us more!

[unparsed]Some male Salthans trim their head spikes, which is a sign of rebellion, and some cases (but not always) homosexuality/identifying self as female.

The closet thing to what would be the modern "punk" movement is the anti-establishment party, a political party that basically votes against and provides counters to any law that is accepted by the majority.

Next: GESTURES (RUDE AND POLITE)

[unparsed]GESTURES (RUDE AND POLITE)

World 4 (N�jadol�): Throughout much of the culture for much of its history, raising one's open hand with the palm down and pointing it at someone of equal or higher status is pretty rude. A more acceptable greeting would be raising both open hands with the palms up. This is acceptable when addressing an equal [i:ebc8dc191b]or[/i:ebc8dc191b] a person of lower status.

An [i:ebc8dc191b]extremely[/i:ebc8dc191b] rude gesture, particularly in cities during the height of the states power, is pointing with the closed fist. This is essentially an extreme version of the pointing-with-the-palm-down gesture.


FAMOUS LINGUISTS

[unparsed][quote:4e56082cac]Famous Linguists[/quote:4e56082cac]

Marcus Talyorson was a sort of combination anthropologist, diplomat and linguist. He went to saltha on a trip early in the post-war peace to write about the cultures of Salthans. He brought along his son, Zackary.
He wrote a short blog of his trips (sadly with not much detail, but I hope to explain on). The trip was considered faily sucessfull, and he made quite a few return trips and published a number of papers and books on his journeys.

Next: (Not sure if it's been done) [b:4e56082cac]Religious Sects/Cults[/b:4e56082cac]

[unparsed]A cult to Daneth, considered heretical in Sartai and nations influence by Sartai culture and religion, is a mystery cult dedicated to the Goddess of Darkness. Many of the members in Sartai also go to shrines to Karuun and the other main gods and goddesses of Latyanism. They believe that as Karuun is the deity of light, and Daneth the deity of darkness and night, neither could be complete without the other. A main tenet of the cult is that Karuun reveals a path that many can follow, while Daneth urges her followers to find their own way with some guidance.

Next: [b:3909888a6a]Trends from another culture.[/b:3909888a6a]

[unparsed][quote:70e656df1b][b:70e656df1b]Trends from another culture[/b:70e656df1b][/quote:70e656df1b]

Hesilians, who are descended from Rassolean colonists, have adopted many trends and cultural oddities from the native Gallarabad, who still have their own nation inland and on the west coasts.

They have taken to owning thekarros, which are wolf-like weasels that replaced dogs in Gallarabe culture. They also no longer eat monkeys, apes or bears, and have taken to eating various amphibians and using certains insects to supplement their meals, which are mainly composed of seafood, deer and seal meat. They�ve also taken to havoda, a drink which comes from the seeds of the hhav�d tree, which are egg shaped coconuts the size of an orange.

Aside from culinary trends, they�ve also taken to the Gallarabe style jackets; a leather backing, covered in flax weaves, and with three inch flax �streamers� hanging off the back. The basic design has been modified, with the flax replaced with normal cloth, and prefering the more basic checkered pattern than the intricate weaves of the numerous Gallarabe tribes.

Gallarabad are known for their monocle-like lenses; made of crystal and held on with a leather strap, they can be used to magnify vision, see magical auras, or give the wearer thermal vision. They have been adopted by Hesilians, especially by mages and the navy, and are slowly finding their way into the market in Rassoly.

Also some common gestures; an upwards nod in Gallarabe culture is a challenge; �come slit my throat, I dare ya!�. This meaning has overriden the old Rassolean meaning, which was to show trust in the other person. Another Rassolean gesture was to open your hands palm up in front of you to show that you were unarmed, but in Gallarabe culture it shows that you are prepared to cast magic; again, the Gallarabe meaning has become dominant in Hesilian culture. The Gallarabe gesture of clasping your hands together in front of you, which is their version of showing yourself to be unarmed and is the formal greeting gesture, is becoming more common as a greeting gesture amongst Hesilians, who otherwise just shake hands.

Incidentally, in Gallarabe culture, holding your hand out towards someone with the palm up, when accompanied by bowing your head, is the same as bowing in western culture IRL.


Next, [b:70e656df1b]Discrimination[/b:70e656df1b]

[unparsed]In Cerelios, the Astranir are viewed as an affront to everything that the ur-Engines profess as being worthy to exist. Due to their affinity to a supernatural power (distant Fey ancestry that manifests as an ability to use a limited set of magical abilities regardless of formal training), they are treated the same as any magic user. By which I mean "hunted down, imprisoned, and put into the incinerator".

Next topic: PANDEMIC OR ENDEMIC DISEASES

[unparsed][quote:b5e56768e0="Tharivious"]Next topic: PANDEMIC OR ENDEMIC DISEASES[/quote:b5e56768e0]
In [i:b5e56768e0]Canticles[/i:b5e56768e0] there's a disease going around human-inhabited space that was spawned off the common cold awhile back and took on a life of its own. It's only fatal in extremely rare cases, and is extremely short-lived symptom-wise, but the individual affected ends coughing up blood.

It's far from pandemic--closer to endemic, but you'd probably call it much less common--but the Five Prime are susceptible to a rare but serious disease called "Loss of Identity Disorder". To understand this I have to first describe what one looks like. A Five Prime is radially symmetric about five radii, and has upward-facing coverings that plate its core. Color patterns on the plates are unique to every individual, like a fingerprint, and are identical on all five sides. Five Prime identify others visually using these cues, much like humans look at faces. If one contracts LID, these markings fade to nothingness and the individual so affected literally loses his/her identity.

Next topic: [b:b5e56768e0]UNUSUAL ARTFORMS[/b:b5e56768e0]

[unparsed][quote:765fb4daf0="Rorschach"]
Next topic: [b:765fb4daf0]UNUSUAL ARTFORMS[/b:765fb4daf0][/quote:765fb4daf0]

In a large Victorian-esque city in my (psuedo)setting, the homeless, particularly homeless children, often live in the foundations/basements of buildings that are in disrepair inside nests of shredded newspaper, books, social service forms, etc. Since their lives are often short and rarely sedentary, they often abandon these nests or die in them, leaving detritus and trash behind.

An unknown outsider artist, who may be a mentally disturbed elderly homeless man or an activist professor in the social sciences, has been creating paper mache sculptures out of these empty nests. The sculptures often use one of the large pieces of garbage found in a nest as a base, over which the strips of newspaper and other documents is pasted. Afterward, he (or she) decorates the sculpture with small bits of trash and filth from the nest, as if it were glitter. The artist usually discards the sculptures once they are completed, leaving them inside trash cans and on street corners, where they are often found by police and other homeless persons.

Next Topic: [b:765fb4daf0](in world) CLICHES[/b:765fb4daf0]

[i:765fb4daf0]edit[/i:765fb4daf0]: I'd like to request that the reply be by someone other than Fetus, since I'm fairly sure I know what his response will be.

[unparsed][quote:e77c91d64a="Nugan"][b:e77c91d64a](in world) CLICHES[/b:e77c91d64a][/quote:e77c91d64a]
In works of fiction, gravity in space. This is due to the histories of the D'Sari, humans, and everyone else with the vast space-traveling experience they have all had up to that time. In films, TV shows, whatever (unless it's a comedy, which even then gets clich�d unless used sparingly), having gravity in space is frowned upon (unless it's due to acceleration, centripetal or otherwise, which, due to scientific accuracy and the availability of space travel and space stations, is always welcomed when used in the correct circumstances).

Next topic: [b:e77c91d64a]YOUR CONWORLD'S ERSATZ VAMPIRES[/b:e77c91d64a]

[unparsed][quote:7023bb51cc="Rorschach"]Next topic: [b:7023bb51cc]YOUR CONWORLD'S ERSATZ VAMPIRES[/b:7023bb51cc][/quote:7023bb51cc]
The redcaps of the Nightmare Fey continue in the vein of their real-world myth roots, but with a few twists. Rather than simply dipping their hats in the blood of their victims, they bathe in it, absorb the nutrients (in this case, since they're Fey, "nutrients" means adrenaline and other fear-induced hormones) through their skin, and wear the coagulating mess as a badge of honor. Ephemeral legends persist of an ancient (relatively speaking; ancient to the Fey is a lot older than it would be to mortals) redcap that has spent all of his or her existence in the Nightmare form, never turning back to the more benign gnomish shape. Such a redcap would likely be capable of doing things that only higher archetypes of Fey can normally achieve, and possibly be approaching ascension to godhood.

Next topic: [b:7023bb51cc]Victimless Crimes[/b:7023bb51cc]

[unparsed][quote:880dd735b5="Tharivious"]
Next topic: [b:880dd735b5]Victimless Crimes[/b:880dd735b5][/quote:880dd735b5]

The Avamnus steals the memories of everybody who knows its subjects, making the world forget them before wiping their minds entirely (coma)... so, that's basically victimless, because nobody is left sad. Like killing an orphan nobody knows about.

I suppose just the end part is victimless, since the person has been erased before being completely wiped (leaving no victims)- the torment it subjects those people to as the world slowly forgets them may technically have a victim, even though the crime itself is turning the person into a nobody.


Next Topic: [b:880dd735b5]Unconventional Furniture[/b:880dd735b5]

[unparsed][quote:e254c97a30="Blake"]Next Topic: [b:e254c97a30]Unconventional Furniture[/b:e254c97a30][/quote:e254c97a30]

The beds of the Five Prime look like stools. They just set their bottoms on them and retract their legs upward to sleep.

Next topic: [b:e254c97a30]IDIOSYNCRASIES IN YOUR CONLANGS[/b:e254c97a30]

[unparsed][quote:9d3e684a1e="Rorschach"]Next topic: [b:9d3e684a1e]IDIOSYNCRASIES IN YOUR CONLANGS[/b:9d3e684a1e][/quote:9d3e684a1e]

You are very much into conlanging, aren't you? :(

Anyone's conpeople use their stools as beds?

[unparsed][quote:6ef81ae0da="Rorschach"]Next Topic: [b:6ef81ae0da]IDIOSYNCRASIES IN YOUR CONLANG[/b:6ef81ae0da][/quote:6ef81ae0da]

Jezzali has its tense marking marked implicitly by one's combination of main noun cases in the sentence.

Next topic: [b:6ef81ae0da]Outer-Space/Inter-Planar/Dimensional Travel Methods[/b:6ef81ae0da]

[unparsed][quote:3fd3b0ba8a="Sakir"]Next topic: [b:3fd3b0ba8a]Outer-Space/Inter-Planar/Dimensional Travel Methods[/b:3fd3b0ba8a][/quote:3fd3b0ba8a]Interstellar travel is primarily handled by FTL-ships. Due to the time-distortions caused by FTL-travel, these drives are prone to random failures, earning them the nickname "gremlin-drives".

Next topic: [b:3fd3b0ba8a]Architecture[/b:3fd3b0ba8a]

[unparsed][quote:8c7d3057c7="intermundi"]
Next topic: [b:8c7d3057c7]Architecture[/b:8c7d3057c7][/quote:8c7d3057c7]

My C conworld, one of the only ones I have with a properly traversal multiverse, has a defunct realm where the Architecture is alive.


In defunct C realm, Architecture builds you!

[unparsed]*yearns for a Next Topic and thonks Blake on the head with a Coke bottle*

:D

[unparsed]Oops, sorry. I was tired.



[b:66d4966a2c]Next:[/b:66d4966a2c] Interesting forms of insomnia in your conworld

[unparsed][quote:bab1d24c79="Blake"][b:bab1d24c79]Next:[/b:bab1d24c79] Interesting forms of insomnia in your conworld[/quote:bab1d24c79]
(Upcoming Osara v.2) When an [i:bab1d24c79]era[/i:bab1d24c79] (a living being made of earth aika cells - that is, a "normal" being from the reader's point of view) merges with an [i:bab1d24c79]eyai[/i:bab1d24c79] (a being of air aika cells), the resulting being, called a [i:bab1d24c79]siunad[/i:bab1d24c79] (a merger of elements), can rarely sleep during the first months because most of the time there is always one of the two elements awake and kicking. Death of both is a common result of a merger, which explains why it's so seldom attempted.

[i:bab1d24c79]Next: Optics.[/i:bab1d24c79]

[unparsed]Technicians in Veghinix have learned ways to encode images into crystals that can be projected as holograms when a certain concentration of light and movement is applied to the gem. These holograms can range anywhere from a single, static image (small, pocket-sized crystal) to a multiple-hours-long film (anywhere from a gem the size of a fist to one the size of a large dog, depending on the length of the film). For motion pictures, a secondary unit in the form of a metal cylinder like that used in the old Victrola players is required to play the video's audio aspects.

Next up: [b:6a211e58e4]Cultural Obscenities[/b:6a211e58e4]

[unparsed]Cultural Obscenities

Gallarabad long ago found a number of caves in the Hesili Mountains. They expanded them and turned them into a network of tombs that stretched underneath the entire mountain range, and only the casteless can even enter these tombs, or even touch the bodies of the dead (with the exception of warriors who kill others in battle). So when the foreign Rassoleans came along and started burying and burning the dead, the Gallarabad were horrified.

Over time the Gallarabad have become accustomed to the foreign traditions, but they still believe it obscene for any Gallarabe to be burned after death, or to even be buried anywhere except under a mountain. They also believe it obscene to eat, drink, sleep, or make physical contact with any human when in a graveyard; that is, if they ever approach such places. There are still many Gallarabad who believe only the casteless can enter places of the dead, for there may be restless spirits who will possess anyone of higher standing.

They also believe it obscene to lick one's lips while looking at someone, as this is taken to mean that they want to eat them.


Rassoleans, and pretty much any Malolectan for that matter, believe it obscene to show one's naked form in public, or to talk about sex; both practices are not unusual in Gallarabe culture, as they are very open about sexuality, and they rarely bother making clothes for children, as they are only children for such a short time.


Atnir meanwhile, think it obscene to speak ill of the dead, or to speak the name of one who has died within the last month, as doing so may draw their soul back to the earth, and prevent them from entering the Gate of Stars to the Nextlife.


Next: [b:4a79305ac2]Unusual sports[/b:4a79305ac2]

[unparsed][quote:bad72bdc39="Avjunza"]Next: [b:bad72bdc39]Unusual Sports[/b:bad72bdc39][/quote:bad72bdc39]
The D'Sari have a game played in low planet orbit that is loosely translated into English as "orbital hockey". It is played in three dimensions with actual spacecraft, the aim of which is to try to maneuver a metallic sphere into a goal.

Next: [b:bad72bdc39]Unconventional Humor[/b:bad72bdc39]

[unparsed][i:1d21253123]Orbital hockey looks like tricky fun. In a simplified form it would make a good video game.[/i:1d21253123]

[quote:1d21253123="Rorschach"]Next: [b:1d21253123]Unconventional Humor[/b:1d21253123][/quote:1d21253123]
Ebei humor can be puzzling to the other species. They have a unique way of merging jibes and self derision that pulls the mocked one on the mocker's side. Diplomats are taught the art, and even war talks are considered gross if nobody laughs. Finding examples that a human would understand without a series of footnotes is beyond my ability.

[b:1d21253123]Next: Punctuation, smileys, icons, symbols.[/b:1d21253123]

[unparsed][quote:74025d79fe="Leo"][b:74025d79fe]Next: Punctuation, smileys, icons, symbols.[/b:74025d79fe][/quote:74025d79fe]

[b:74025d79fe]Punctuation:[/b:74025d79fe]
In Ciani�gia/Ĉa��ĝa* writing, vertical dashes as full stops, and small circles are used as speech marks (two in a vertical stack at the start of what is said, and one at the end). Horizontal dashes placed between letters is like writing with CAPS LOCK on or using a !. A small square either side of a question have the same function as the �? in Spanish.

*A consonantal alphabet with diacritic vowels. Written right-to-left, top-to-bottom. Used primarily by the Niocaci to write the Niocu Language, commonly called Lu Talnoli (The Speech). Modified from the Abene syllabary, which was used by the Acarin.

[b:74025d79fe]Smileys:[/b:74025d79fe]
The Niocu smiley looks like this
[quote:74025d79fe]8 D[/quote:74025d79fe]
except not sideways.

[b:74025d79fe]Icons, Symbols:[/b:74025d79fe]
The symbols of the Niocaci Tribes, Royalty, the Malolectan Religions and Philosophies; they are all used in various instances; sometimes people will substitute one of these symbols instead of writing the whole word; like drawing a crucifix instead of writing christian or christianity, or a crown instead of writing king. These symbols have also often been used on national flags; military, governmental and clergy uniforms.


[b:74025d79fe]Next: Toys[/b:74025d79fe]

In Adpihi people’s headgear depends on the season, the climate, the local ecology, their jobs, and what they can afford. Those who have a choice, take great care in their choice (which is mostly based on their personal aesthetics), and also great pride in it.

In Reptigan the main thing about hats is the hat-etiquette which is observed so strictly by members of the Service Corps. There’s more to it than this —— e.g. it can depend on what duty one is assigned —— but the main thing that comes to my mind is, when in uniform and indoors, one should wear one’s uniform hat if and only if one is armed, and one should go bare-headed if and only if one is unarmed.

In my dwarves-elves-humans-mercentaurs conworld, what hat one wears depends partly on what race one is.
Dwarves typically wear hard hats with a light above the forehead, angled just a little bit down (so they won’t have to look directly at their feet to see what they’re about to step in!). Because dwarves spend 40 hours a week in mines.
Humans usually wear broad-brimmed flat-brimmed hats to shade their faces and necks from the sun. Because they’re usually working in grasslands with few trees taller than people. The brims on these hats are adjustable, to keep e.g. rain out of their faces and away from their collars. They often (or usually?) have veils or earmuffs or something like that that they can deploy from the hat in case the wind gets cold or the rain starts falling sideways or there’s something like a duststorm of pollen or dandelion fluff or whatever.
Elves generally work in the woods. What they need a hat for generally falls from straight up. Mostly (gentled) rain; also the excretions of arboreal animals; and things that fall from trees. Usually not branches, unless they’re working on pruning the trees, or lumberjacking. Often fruits or seeds or nuts. Once in a while, depending on what sorts of trees are around, really big, heavy nuts.
I can’t think of any reason any mercentaur would ever wear a hat.

Next:

CANDY

@Riven:
Whose turn is it?
If it’s yours; Candy?