The Map and Writeup
By popular demand, this thread is for discussion of Florida/Ictoria in 6500 AD, the MotF entry I made on 2019/08/25.
Comments coming soon!
Artist's Note: Document written by scholars in 7396 A.D. as a retrospective to an earlier age, 6500 A.D. Document is written as if 6500 A.D. is the "current year".
Ictoria has been inhabited for far longer than even its own inhabitants realize.
The people of Ictoria are well versed in their own history, though they can only know as much as their own records tell them. Despite generations of diligent scholars, there are significant gaps in their histories. It will be some time before they discover who built the ruined cities, and what destroyed them. They have yet to rediscover the heliocentric model of the solar system, much less the existence of asteroids, or the orbital mechanics required to redirect them onto a collision course with Earth.
Four thousand years before Dhar became the up-and-coming city of Ictoria, the seas were much higher, and this land was called "Florida". Florida was part of a great empire of incredible technological (though not moral) sophistication. The great minds of this ancient civilization had succeeded in a long held dream of theirs and brought back what they called "dinosaurs", or "feather beasts" in the modern tongue. These feather beasts were kept in captivity for the rich to look upon in a zoo called "Walt Disney World's Dino Kingdom Experience - Orlando".
All good things must come to an end, as it did for this great Prehistoric civilization. Falling mountains burning with fire extinguished life on distant continents, and sorcerers conjured up virulent plagues in retaliation. Entire cities were annihilated with single weapons, raining down dangerous toxins over the countryside. The people of the far hemisphere were virtually eliminated, with only small bands of survivors reverting to hunting and gathering. In the local hemisphere, people fared far, far better, with nearly one part in a thousand surviving these destructive events. The planet cooled, and over the next three thousand years, the seas retreated, then reached an equilibrium. The feather beasts managed to survive this conflict, escaped their confines, and spread across Ictoria and the Land Northward.
Today, it has been forty-four hundred years since the Fall of the Prehistoric civilization.
For the first thousand years after the great destruction of the Prehistoric civilizations, feather beasts were hunted for meat and slaughtered to protect the innocent. Quickly, though, man realized these beasts were smarter than they expected. For the next two thousand years, at least, man made a concerted effort to domesticate the feather beasts. First, the three-horns (triceratops) and plate dragons (stegosaurus) were domesticated and used as beasts of burden and as food animals. The white talons (Utahraptors) were domesticated and put into service as mounts for soldiers. Their ferocity on the battlefield was only matched by their loyalty and love for their caregivers. There is no better friend, and no worse enemy, than a white talon. Many other feather beasts were domesticated in this timeframe. The kitchi (oviraptors) are a notable example, though people question whether man domesticated them or they domesticated man. Kitchi were known for a proclivity to catch mice and other small rodents, similar to cats. Unlike cats, however, kitchi were able to kill larger rodents like raccoon and possums. Many people now keep kitchi just for the joy of their companionship, and many elderly women in Ictoria keep far too many kitchi in an attempt to make up for their own loneliness.
Ictoria has been inhabited for far longer than even its own inhabitants realize.
The people of Ictoria are well versed in their own history, though they can only know as much as their own records tell them. Despite generations of diligent scholars, there are significant gaps in their histories. It will be some time before they discover who built the ruined cities, and what destroyed them. They have yet to rediscover the heliocentric model of the solar system, much less the existence of asteroids, or the orbital mechanics required to redirect them onto a collision course with Earth.
Four thousand years before Dhar became the up-and-coming city of Ictoria, the seas were much higher, and this land was called "Florida". Florida was part of a great empire of incredible technological (though not moral) sophistication. The great minds of this ancient civilization had succeeded in a long held dream of theirs and brought back what they called "dinosaurs", or "feather beasts" in the modern tongue. These feather beasts were kept in captivity for the rich to look upon in a zoo called "Walt Disney World's Dino Kingdom Experience - Orlando".
All good things must come to an end, as it did for this great Prehistoric civilization. Falling mountains burning with fire extinguished life on distant continents, and sorcerers conjured up virulent plagues in retaliation. Entire cities were annihilated with single weapons, raining down dangerous toxins over the countryside. The people of the far hemisphere were virtually eliminated, with only small bands of survivors reverting to hunting and gathering. In the local hemisphere, people fared far, far better, with nearly one part in a thousand surviving these destructive events. The planet cooled, and over the next three thousand years, the seas retreated, then reached an equilibrium. The feather beasts managed to survive this conflict, escaped their confines, and spread across Ictoria and the Land Northward.
Today, it has been forty-four hundred years since the Fall of the Prehistoric civilization.
For the first thousand years after the great destruction of the Prehistoric civilizations, feather beasts were hunted for meat and slaughtered to protect the innocent. Quickly, though, man realized these beasts were smarter than they expected. For the next two thousand years, at least, man made a concerted effort to domesticate the feather beasts. First, the three-horns (triceratops) and plate dragons (stegosaurus) were domesticated and used as beasts of burden and as food animals. The white talons (Utahraptors) were domesticated and put into service as mounts for soldiers. Their ferocity on the battlefield was only matched by their loyalty and love for their caregivers. There is no better friend, and no worse enemy, than a white talon. Many other feather beasts were domesticated in this timeframe. The kitchi (oviraptors) are a notable example, though people question whether man domesticated them or they domesticated man. Kitchi were known for a proclivity to catch mice and other small rodents, similar to cats. Unlike cats, however, kitchi were able to kill larger rodents like raccoon and possums. Many people now keep kitchi just for the joy of their companionship, and many elderly women in Ictoria keep far too many kitchi in an attempt to make up for their own loneliness.
After the fall of the Jyllyn Empire, the people of Ictoria have lived in separate cities, towns, and villages, each with a surrounding countryside of rural farmers. Up until the last few centuries, these cities have been politically independent of each other. No city-state was powerful to dominate any other. That is not to say that peace reigned, though. Cities raided each other with both frequency and gusto. Only recently have the most powerful cities sought to enact more permanent dominions over their neighbors.
The oldest of the powerful city-states, Wean, is named for the goddess of weavers. The people of Wean take their faith very seriously and believe in its literal truth. The Devil's Prison, just a half-day's ride north of Wean, is literally the Devil's prison, for example, and denying this truth may get you ten lashes in the public square. The people and priests of Wean have a religious devotion to the equality of the sexes, which they take just as seriously as any other doctrine. Indeed, Wean is currently ruled by a benevolent queen and a council of noble men and women. Polygamy and sex slavery are forbidden, though debt slavery is permitted. Wean is not known to raid other city-states, and only fights to defend various sites which they consider holy. The people of Wean value charity and humility, and are well regarded for their art, music, and mathematics. The concept of rigorously investigating the natural world (also known as "science") is currently being rediscovered here. Wean is the second most powerful of the city-states, with most of the cities, towns, and villages on the shores of the Sunrise Sea paying tribute to Wean in exchange for defense against other city-states, barbarians, and highwaymen.
Today, Dhar is the most powerful of all the city-states of Ictoria. Dhar is named for the firstborn son of Vurden and Jatal, god of craftsmen. The people of Dhar are far more relaxed about their faith than the people of Wean. Other faiths are tolerated, if only barely. Polygamy is permitted but rare, with one in twenty men having multiple wives and one in fifty women having multiple husbands. Dhar leads the known world in steel smithing, architecture, and animal husbandry. There is no more ferocious beast in all the land than a white talon trained as a mount for a Dharian officer. The feather beasts are used for more than just war, however. King Kenegren paid, from his own treasury, for each farmer in and around Dhar to have his own juvenile plate dragon to help with plowing the fields. King Kenegren is well liked by his people. His rule is absolute, though he delegates much to his subordinate lords. While the king's father raided cities and towns all up and down the Ictorian coast, King Kenegren only sends his soldiers, sailors, and white talons to raid the cities of Najes Island (Cuba) and the Sandy Isles (Bahamas). The raiders bring back valuable loot and beautiful women, much to the delight of the men of Dhar. These raids also result in captured slaves who work in a variety of occupations. Abuse of slaves is usually punished with one-tenth of the slave's abuse enacted upon the perpetrator. If a slave is murdered, the perpetrator is given up to fifty lashes. The people of Dhar value diligence and family life, and are expert engineers who enjoy participating and watching sporting events and plays (comedies and tragedies both). Dhar has client cities all along the coast of the Sea of Storms, including Jyllyn, the old capitol of the Jyllyn Empire, which fell a millennium ago to civil strife.
The third most powerful city-state in Ictoria is Seagrape City. Seagrape City is the most cosmopolitan of the powerful city-states, as they grew their power from their merchants and traders. Unlike Dhar or Wean, other faiths are given equal status within Seagrape. Seagrape City has few tributary cities, though their influence is felt throughout via economics. There is no king or queen in Seagrape City. The city is ruled by a council of powerful traders, merchants, soldiers, and priests. Women are equal to men, though more for cultural reasons than doctrinal. Order is maintained through a somewhat liberal application of the death penalty by skull-hammer. Seagrape City maintains good relations with Dhar, and marginally unfriendly relations with Wean.
These three city-states, as well as a large number of smaller cities, are situated adjacent to the Mounds. The Mounds provide a natural defensive barrier, so any city founded next to a Mound has a nigh-impregnable wall already available to protect half the city's flanks. The Mounds stretch across all the face of the land, circumscribing the interior forests and separating them from the outer grasslands. Careful measurements taken by the scribes indicate that they all reach to the exact same altitude, and all show signs of water erosion, even when the closest body of water is days away. The scholars of Ictoria believe the Mounds to be natural, and have no reason to suspect the pre-historic civilizations built these as sea walls to protect their own cities from rising sea levels.
The oldest of the powerful city-states, Wean, is named for the goddess of weavers. The people of Wean take their faith very seriously and believe in its literal truth. The Devil's Prison, just a half-day's ride north of Wean, is literally the Devil's prison, for example, and denying this truth may get you ten lashes in the public square. The people and priests of Wean have a religious devotion to the equality of the sexes, which they take just as seriously as any other doctrine. Indeed, Wean is currently ruled by a benevolent queen and a council of noble men and women. Polygamy and sex slavery are forbidden, though debt slavery is permitted. Wean is not known to raid other city-states, and only fights to defend various sites which they consider holy. The people of Wean value charity and humility, and are well regarded for their art, music, and mathematics. The concept of rigorously investigating the natural world (also known as "science") is currently being rediscovered here. Wean is the second most powerful of the city-states, with most of the cities, towns, and villages on the shores of the Sunrise Sea paying tribute to Wean in exchange for defense against other city-states, barbarians, and highwaymen.
Today, Dhar is the most powerful of all the city-states of Ictoria. Dhar is named for the firstborn son of Vurden and Jatal, god of craftsmen. The people of Dhar are far more relaxed about their faith than the people of Wean. Other faiths are tolerated, if only barely. Polygamy is permitted but rare, with one in twenty men having multiple wives and one in fifty women having multiple husbands. Dhar leads the known world in steel smithing, architecture, and animal husbandry. There is no more ferocious beast in all the land than a white talon trained as a mount for a Dharian officer. The feather beasts are used for more than just war, however. King Kenegren paid, from his own treasury, for each farmer in and around Dhar to have his own juvenile plate dragon to help with plowing the fields. King Kenegren is well liked by his people. His rule is absolute, though he delegates much to his subordinate lords. While the king's father raided cities and towns all up and down the Ictorian coast, King Kenegren only sends his soldiers, sailors, and white talons to raid the cities of Najes Island (Cuba) and the Sandy Isles (Bahamas). The raiders bring back valuable loot and beautiful women, much to the delight of the men of Dhar. These raids also result in captured slaves who work in a variety of occupations. Abuse of slaves is usually punished with one-tenth of the slave's abuse enacted upon the perpetrator. If a slave is murdered, the perpetrator is given up to fifty lashes. The people of Dhar value diligence and family life, and are expert engineers who enjoy participating and watching sporting events and plays (comedies and tragedies both). Dhar has client cities all along the coast of the Sea of Storms, including Jyllyn, the old capitol of the Jyllyn Empire, which fell a millennium ago to civil strife.
The third most powerful city-state in Ictoria is Seagrape City. Seagrape City is the most cosmopolitan of the powerful city-states, as they grew their power from their merchants and traders. Unlike Dhar or Wean, other faiths are given equal status within Seagrape. Seagrape City has few tributary cities, though their influence is felt throughout via economics. There is no king or queen in Seagrape City. The city is ruled by a council of powerful traders, merchants, soldiers, and priests. Women are equal to men, though more for cultural reasons than doctrinal. Order is maintained through a somewhat liberal application of the death penalty by skull-hammer. Seagrape City maintains good relations with Dhar, and marginally unfriendly relations with Wean.
These three city-states, as well as a large number of smaller cities, are situated adjacent to the Mounds. The Mounds provide a natural defensive barrier, so any city founded next to a Mound has a nigh-impregnable wall already available to protect half the city's flanks. The Mounds stretch across all the face of the land, circumscribing the interior forests and separating them from the outer grasslands. Careful measurements taken by the scribes indicate that they all reach to the exact same altitude, and all show signs of water erosion, even when the closest body of water is days away. The scholars of Ictoria believe the Mounds to be natural, and have no reason to suspect the pre-historic civilizations built these as sea walls to protect their own cities from rising sea levels.
The majority of the people in and around Ictoria, with some exceptions, believe in the Vurden (or Vurtal) Pantheon. The father and mother deities, Vurden and Jatal, are believed to have killed the evil Lone God of Jyllyn, who in turn killed the Old Gods of the North. Vurden and Jatal then bore children (or, depending on the priest, the children participated in the great battle against the Lone God) and the current Pantheon rose to prominence.
The people of Wean generally use the word Vurtal, being a portmanteau of Vurden and Jatal, due to their insistence of the equality of the sexes.
According to legend, Vurden and Jatal had ten children, five boys and five girls. Each god or goddess is associated with a type of place, an occupation, something "natural" (though what is considered natural may seem odd), and an animal.
Vurden. Father god. God of forests, hunters, soil, and owls. The central forest of Ictoria is named for him. When a young man makes his first kill while hunting, he will save a small vial of soil from the hunting grounds and carry it with him as a good luck charm to gain favor with Vurden.
Jatal. Mother goddess. Goddess of lakes, fishermen, inspiration, and dogs. The largest lake in Ictoria is named for her. The banks of that lake which border on the Vurden Forest host a temple run by the priests of Wean. This is considered one of the holiest sites in Ictoria for the Vurdenic faith.
Dhar. Firstborn son. God of grasslands, craftsmen, lightning, and the panther. The city which bears his name does so honorably, exemplifying the industriousness and honor of their patron. Dhar is the "manly man" of the pantheon. It is said that thunder is the sound of Dhar's hammer in his workshop.
Saborea. Firstborn daughter. Goddess of farms, farmers, rain, and three-horned feather beasts. Three-horns are widely used as beasts of burden among the farmers of the Sabourous Plains. Rain is taken as a good omen, especially sunshowers.
Lagi. Second son. God of beaches, teenagers, unexpected events, and kitchi. Lagi takes the role of the trickster god and has a love/hate relationship with most of the pantheon. Lagi uses the unexpected to keep things in balance, just as beaches balance the land and the water. This makes Lagi the favored god of mathematicians.
Wean. Second daughter. Goddess of cities, weavers, the law, and songbeasts (Parasaurolophus). The people of the city bearing her name honor her with their displays of charity and humility, though even Wean herself might say they are taking it a bit too seriously with the rituals.
Magal. Third son. God of rivers, soldiers, marriage, and white talons. Takes the role of the god of war. The connection to marriage is interesting; scholars throughout Ictoria connect the two with the ancient aphorism "all is fair in love and war." On the other hand, the priests of Dhar claim Magal is the god of war and marriage because most any soldier will marry the first prostitute who smiles in his general direction.
Kitra. Third daughter. Goddess of the ruined cities of prehistory, midwives, death, and the alligator. Often considered the most caring and loving of the gods, as she is there to usher people into eternal peace at the conclusion of their lives.
Svet. Fourth son. God of mines and quarries, slaves, metal, and fire ants. Slaves often allowed themselves to be stung by fire ants in an effort to gain favor with Svet and request kinder masters. Many slaves died of the ant bites, and the practice is discouraged (for religious and practical reasons).
Tinem. Fourth daughter. Goddess of roads, merchants, time, and cats. Understandably popular in Seagrape city. Travelers invoke her as a defense against highwaymen by always bringing a cat on a long overland journey.
Aten. Fifth son. God of the daytime sky, scholars, citrus, and bees. Some people eat oranges with honey in an effort to increase their intelligence, even though priests across Ictoria insist that honey and oranges are gross together and Aten does not bless fools.
Neta. Fifth daughter. Goddess of the night sky, sailors, lust, and octopi. Twin sister of Aten. Octopi have always fascinated the people of Ictoria, though they may never fully understand that Prehistoric humans had genetically engineered octopi to be far more intelligent than before (using the same techniques they used to resurrect dinosaurs). The connection between sailors and lust is left as an exercise for the reader.
Weekly, the Vurdenic faithful gather together at the homes of neighbors and family members. Priests (most of whom hold other jobs, given that the priesthood is not a full-time activity) officiate these meetings. The priest tell stories of the pantheon, then the faithful express gratitude for their blessings. This is intermixed with the singing of hymns. The priest then performs a ritual sacrifice, either immolating a food item (bread or fruit) or killing a small animal (a chicken, raccoon, or possum). The faithful then share a meal together.
On the first of each month and on certain holy days, the faithful gather in the city's central square and have a similar meeting, albeit on a larger scale. The priests in charge of these meetings are full-time positions and are supported by taxes collected by each city. Sacrifices here are always living animals. A large, devout, prosperous city on a high holy day might sacrifice a mature plate dragon or even multiple panthers.
Priests can be men or women. Most priests in Dhar are men, and in Wean almost exactly half of priests are women. Sacrifices do not strictly require priests, as individual families often perform sacrifices to give thanks to a god or request a blessing.
Upon death, all people are greeted by Kitra, goddess of Death. She will lead them to one of thirteen afterlives. The gods of the pantheon argue and barter over each soul, trying to acquire the souls that best match their own personality. These souls will join that god in their Heavenly Court. Inquisitive learners are sent to Aten's Court, while loyal fishers go to Jatal's Court, and notorious pranksters join Lagi's Court. The Thirteenth Afterlife is for those souls rejected by all the gods. It is an empty, barren place with no joy nor comfort. Only those without redeeming qualities are sent there.
The problem with this arrangement comes when one realizes that families must be split up upon death. Only rarely (perhaps a bit more often that one time in twelve) do a husband and wife end up in the same Heavenly Court. This was an oft-considered tragedy of death until approximately five hundred years ago. At that time, a play was written by the (in)famous Igfilite playwright Eactenon Dar'Samac. He wrote "The Lover's Last Adventure", the most famous play in Ictoria to this day. In the play, a husband and wife die and find themselves in different Heavenly Courts (the husband in Dhar's, the wife in Neta's). Their desire to be together is so overwhelming that the gods make an exception for them, but only if they can each perform three tasks for their heavenly liege. Upon completion of these tasks, they are allowed to have a home in both courts, switching court every season.
This play was so well-received that it inspired a whole new genre of fiction. Soon, at least half of all plays were some variant of dead lovers, families, or friends trying to accomplish the tasks set before them by the gods in order to be together once again. These stories became so popular and ever-present that the idea of being able to perform post-mortal tasks for gods to be reunited with loved ones became accepted doctrine by the Vurdenic Priesthood.
In one recent comedic iteration of this kind of story, two friends must perform tasks for Lagi (god of mischief) in order for their girlfriends to visit them in Lagi's Court. Lagi gives the friends some fairly standard and simple tasks to perform. Instead of accomplishing these tasks, the lazy friends decide to trick Lagi into believing the tasks have already been done. This involves pick-pocketing Lagi, some cross-dressing, and other blasphemously madcap capers. Eventually, the friends succeed in fooling Lagi into believing the tasks are complete, and the friends get their girlfriends. The play was originally declared to be blasphemous even by the priests of Dhar, but they conditionally relented and allowed one showing of the play in Southport, with no audience allowed to be present. If Lagi thought the play was blasphemous, he could make his displeasure known to the performers. Legend has it that, at the moment the play concluded, a kitchi (Lagi's animal symbol) knocked over a lantern in an empty playhouse across town, causing its fiery destruction. This was taken as a sign of favor by Lagi (known for his sense of humor) and the play has since done quite well in performances across Ictoria.
The people of Wean generally use the word Vurtal, being a portmanteau of Vurden and Jatal, due to their insistence of the equality of the sexes.
According to legend, Vurden and Jatal had ten children, five boys and five girls. Each god or goddess is associated with a type of place, an occupation, something "natural" (though what is considered natural may seem odd), and an animal.
Vurden. Father god. God of forests, hunters, soil, and owls. The central forest of Ictoria is named for him. When a young man makes his first kill while hunting, he will save a small vial of soil from the hunting grounds and carry it with him as a good luck charm to gain favor with Vurden.
Jatal. Mother goddess. Goddess of lakes, fishermen, inspiration, and dogs. The largest lake in Ictoria is named for her. The banks of that lake which border on the Vurden Forest host a temple run by the priests of Wean. This is considered one of the holiest sites in Ictoria for the Vurdenic faith.
Dhar. Firstborn son. God of grasslands, craftsmen, lightning, and the panther. The city which bears his name does so honorably, exemplifying the industriousness and honor of their patron. Dhar is the "manly man" of the pantheon. It is said that thunder is the sound of Dhar's hammer in his workshop.
Saborea. Firstborn daughter. Goddess of farms, farmers, rain, and three-horned feather beasts. Three-horns are widely used as beasts of burden among the farmers of the Sabourous Plains. Rain is taken as a good omen, especially sunshowers.
Lagi. Second son. God of beaches, teenagers, unexpected events, and kitchi. Lagi takes the role of the trickster god and has a love/hate relationship with most of the pantheon. Lagi uses the unexpected to keep things in balance, just as beaches balance the land and the water. This makes Lagi the favored god of mathematicians.
Wean. Second daughter. Goddess of cities, weavers, the law, and songbeasts (Parasaurolophus). The people of the city bearing her name honor her with their displays of charity and humility, though even Wean herself might say they are taking it a bit too seriously with the rituals.
Magal. Third son. God of rivers, soldiers, marriage, and white talons. Takes the role of the god of war. The connection to marriage is interesting; scholars throughout Ictoria connect the two with the ancient aphorism "all is fair in love and war." On the other hand, the priests of Dhar claim Magal is the god of war and marriage because most any soldier will marry the first prostitute who smiles in his general direction.
Kitra. Third daughter. Goddess of the ruined cities of prehistory, midwives, death, and the alligator. Often considered the most caring and loving of the gods, as she is there to usher people into eternal peace at the conclusion of their lives.
Svet. Fourth son. God of mines and quarries, slaves, metal, and fire ants. Slaves often allowed themselves to be stung by fire ants in an effort to gain favor with Svet and request kinder masters. Many slaves died of the ant bites, and the practice is discouraged (for religious and practical reasons).
Tinem. Fourth daughter. Goddess of roads, merchants, time, and cats. Understandably popular in Seagrape city. Travelers invoke her as a defense against highwaymen by always bringing a cat on a long overland journey.
Aten. Fifth son. God of the daytime sky, scholars, citrus, and bees. Some people eat oranges with honey in an effort to increase their intelligence, even though priests across Ictoria insist that honey and oranges are gross together and Aten does not bless fools.
Neta. Fifth daughter. Goddess of the night sky, sailors, lust, and octopi. Twin sister of Aten. Octopi have always fascinated the people of Ictoria, though they may never fully understand that Prehistoric humans had genetically engineered octopi to be far more intelligent than before (using the same techniques they used to resurrect dinosaurs). The connection between sailors and lust is left as an exercise for the reader.
Weekly, the Vurdenic faithful gather together at the homes of neighbors and family members. Priests (most of whom hold other jobs, given that the priesthood is not a full-time activity) officiate these meetings. The priest tell stories of the pantheon, then the faithful express gratitude for their blessings. This is intermixed with the singing of hymns. The priest then performs a ritual sacrifice, either immolating a food item (bread or fruit) or killing a small animal (a chicken, raccoon, or possum). The faithful then share a meal together.
On the first of each month and on certain holy days, the faithful gather in the city's central square and have a similar meeting, albeit on a larger scale. The priests in charge of these meetings are full-time positions and are supported by taxes collected by each city. Sacrifices here are always living animals. A large, devout, prosperous city on a high holy day might sacrifice a mature plate dragon or even multiple panthers.
Priests can be men or women. Most priests in Dhar are men, and in Wean almost exactly half of priests are women. Sacrifices do not strictly require priests, as individual families often perform sacrifices to give thanks to a god or request a blessing.
Upon death, all people are greeted by Kitra, goddess of Death. She will lead them to one of thirteen afterlives. The gods of the pantheon argue and barter over each soul, trying to acquire the souls that best match their own personality. These souls will join that god in their Heavenly Court. Inquisitive learners are sent to Aten's Court, while loyal fishers go to Jatal's Court, and notorious pranksters join Lagi's Court. The Thirteenth Afterlife is for those souls rejected by all the gods. It is an empty, barren place with no joy nor comfort. Only those without redeeming qualities are sent there.
The problem with this arrangement comes when one realizes that families must be split up upon death. Only rarely (perhaps a bit more often that one time in twelve) do a husband and wife end up in the same Heavenly Court. This was an oft-considered tragedy of death until approximately five hundred years ago. At that time, a play was written by the (in)famous Igfilite playwright Eactenon Dar'Samac. He wrote "The Lover's Last Adventure", the most famous play in Ictoria to this day. In the play, a husband and wife die and find themselves in different Heavenly Courts (the husband in Dhar's, the wife in Neta's). Their desire to be together is so overwhelming that the gods make an exception for them, but only if they can each perform three tasks for their heavenly liege. Upon completion of these tasks, they are allowed to have a home in both courts, switching court every season.
This play was so well-received that it inspired a whole new genre of fiction. Soon, at least half of all plays were some variant of dead lovers, families, or friends trying to accomplish the tasks set before them by the gods in order to be together once again. These stories became so popular and ever-present that the idea of being able to perform post-mortal tasks for gods to be reunited with loved ones became accepted doctrine by the Vurdenic Priesthood.
In one recent comedic iteration of this kind of story, two friends must perform tasks for Lagi (god of mischief) in order for their girlfriends to visit them in Lagi's Court. Lagi gives the friends some fairly standard and simple tasks to perform. Instead of accomplishing these tasks, the lazy friends decide to trick Lagi into believing the tasks have already been done. This involves pick-pocketing Lagi, some cross-dressing, and other blasphemously madcap capers. Eventually, the friends succeed in fooling Lagi into believing the tasks are complete, and the friends get their girlfriends. The play was originally declared to be blasphemous even by the priests of Dhar, but they conditionally relented and allowed one showing of the play in Southport, with no audience allowed to be present. If Lagi thought the play was blasphemous, he could make his displeasure known to the performers. Legend has it that, at the moment the play concluded, a kitchi (Lagi's animal symbol) knocked over a lantern in an empty playhouse across town, causing its fiery destruction. This was taken as a sign of favor by Lagi (known for his sense of humor) and the play has since done quite well in performances across Ictoria.
Ictorian timekeeping is based off the cycles of the moon and the equinoxes.
A week has seven days, and a month is one full cycle of the moon AND is also supposed to be four weeks. This presents a problem, as four weeks make 28 days, while a lunar cycle is 29.5 days long. Vurdenic priests make up for this by keeping careful observations of the moon and adding days between weeks to make up for the shifting calendar. Thus, once or twice per lunar month, an extra day will be added between weeks. These days are automatically holy days (in Wean) and festival days (in Dhar).
Days are named for celestial objects - Sunday, Moonday, Yellowday (for Venus), Quickday (for Mercury), Red-eye-day (for Mars), Archangelday (for Jupiter), and Slowpokeday (for Saturn).
Months operate in a similar fashion. Twelve lunar months, averaging 29.5 days each, add up to 354 days per year. Every three years, the calendar would be short by a month. Vurdenic priests will add an occasional month as necessary to keep the beginning of their year in line with the spring equinox.
Ictorian climate is dominated by the warmer Rainy Season and the cooler Dry Season. The Rainy Equinox is taken as the beginning of a new year, officially starting on the first day of the first full month after the Rainy Equinox. The months are named for the gods. The month of Jatal (mother of the pantheon) always begins each year, followed by months named for each of her daughters in turn. Then, the cool and dry season begins, and the months are named for Vurden and his sons.
The naming of the extra month which occurs every three years is always a sensitive matter for the Priests. Generally, the name of the month is chosen in order to give thanks to a particular god or goddess (for example, an extra month of Jatal to give thanks for good rains) or to collectively ask for a great blessing (an extra month of Magal to request aid against the warriors of the northern tribes).
A week has seven days, and a month is one full cycle of the moon AND is also supposed to be four weeks. This presents a problem, as four weeks make 28 days, while a lunar cycle is 29.5 days long. Vurdenic priests make up for this by keeping careful observations of the moon and adding days between weeks to make up for the shifting calendar. Thus, once or twice per lunar month, an extra day will be added between weeks. These days are automatically holy days (in Wean) and festival days (in Dhar).
Days are named for celestial objects - Sunday, Moonday, Yellowday (for Venus), Quickday (for Mercury), Red-eye-day (for Mars), Archangelday (for Jupiter), and Slowpokeday (for Saturn).
Months operate in a similar fashion. Twelve lunar months, averaging 29.5 days each, add up to 354 days per year. Every three years, the calendar would be short by a month. Vurdenic priests will add an occasional month as necessary to keep the beginning of their year in line with the spring equinox.
Ictorian climate is dominated by the warmer Rainy Season and the cooler Dry Season. The Rainy Equinox is taken as the beginning of a new year, officially starting on the first day of the first full month after the Rainy Equinox. The months are named for the gods. The month of Jatal (mother of the pantheon) always begins each year, followed by months named for each of her daughters in turn. Then, the cool and dry season begins, and the months are named for Vurden and his sons.
The naming of the extra month which occurs every three years is always a sensitive matter for the Priests. Generally, the name of the month is chosen in order to give thanks to a particular god or goddess (for example, an extra month of Jatal to give thanks for good rains) or to collectively ask for a great blessing (an extra month of Magal to request aid against the warriors of the northern tribes).
For the vast majority of Ictorians, the ruins of Prehistory are of no great concern. The great rubble piles have been mostly picked clean by looters over the last 4400 years. The languages of Prehistory are not spoken nor written, nor can anyone discern what any of their symbols mean. Despite the uncaring attitude many have for the ruins, the civilizations of Prehistory continue to have a great effect on modern-day Ictorians.
The vast majority of all gold in circulation in Ictoria was mined and refined by Prehistoric civilizations. Within the first millennium after the collapse of the Prehistoric civilizations, almost all the buried gold in Ictoria was recovered. Gold is relatively plentiful in Ictoria, and while still used as currency, it is not as valuable as it was in Prehistory due to its large supply.
Ictorians see Prehistroic roads everywhere, and even recognize them as such. However, given the four millennia of decay, these roads are nothing more than rough patches of broken chunks of rock and bitumen. They are more a nuisance than anything, and only lead from one heap of rubble to another.
The great cities of Prehistory have never since been equaled, though they stand as dull monuments to failure now. Large sections of land are nigh-unfarmable due to the prevalence of hard debris in the soil. Shards of glass, chunks of rock and metal, and other impediments litter what would otherwise be good soil for farming. Very little of Prehistory has remained. Anything made from multiple components is unrecognizable. Plastic has decayed. Prehistoric paper is gone, and even the sturdiest buildings are but scattered chunks of concrete.
Ictorians sometimes collect some of the more intact relics of Prehistory. An almost perfectly preserved automobile engine was discovered a century earlier near Rocky Water. Scholars believe it to be some sort of calendar or calculating device used by Prehistoric monks.
Prehistoric landfills are far more useful to modern Ictorians. Many noblemen hire peasants and buy slaves to mine the ancient landfills for various profitable materials. Prehistoric metals have been preserved in the anoxic environments of landfills. Many are of alloys which cannot be recreated by Ictorian metallurgists. Sterling silver and stainless steel cutlery is so commonly found in landfills that even poor families can afford a collection of Prehistoric flatware.
While most Prehistoric ruins fall somewhere between unimportant and inconvenient to modern Ictorians, there are some significant exceptions.
The Silver Virility is a long, phallic shaped construct of Prehistory, found a half-day's ride from Dhar, half-buried in the grassland near a river. It is made from an unknown and incredibly tough metal (nicknamed "titanstone" by Ictorians). There are some holes and fissures through which people can enter the Silver Virility. Inside, there are many decayed artifacts of Prehistory, all of unknown purpose. Clearly, however, it was designed such that people could move about inside the Silver Virility. Altogether, the Silver Virility is over 200 paces long and 20 paces wide. Followers of the old Lone God religion in Jyllyn believed it to be the severed phallus of some impostor god, or possibly the devil. To this day, it is taken to be a sign of fertility. Couples seeking children will sometimes visit the Silver Virility, walk around it (the inside is pitch-dark and difficult to enter), and spend the night in one of the many inns in the vicinity.
The Obelisk of Light is a large stone monument fifteen times the height of a man, about a day's ride west of Wean. Ruins surround the area, indicating a significant presence of Prehistoric activity. The Obelisk is carved with many symbols, presumed to be Prehistoric writing and thus unintelligible. The Obelisk appears to be carved from a single giant stone. None of this is that rare, though. Many Prehistoric monuments (perhaps not many this large) have been found, but the Obelisk of Light is famous for the way it catches the light. The Obelisk appears to sparkle constantly, and scatters sunshine in unexpected ways as pilgrims walk around it. Some priests hypothesize that it is a gift from Verdun, but that is not widely accepted doctrine.
The Tower of Arrogance is a skeletal structure lying on its side two days ride southwest of Fortress Eacon, near the Sea of Storms. Some parts of the Tower show signs of rust, indicating it may have once been submerged in water. The structure is thought to be a tower which was knocked over by some vengeful god in Prehistoric times. The tower itself is actually made from four smaller towers and support bracings between them. The tower is over four hundred paces long and made from what appears to be an advanced steel-like alloy. The surrounding area is poor for farming due to the constant leakage of dark oils and pitch from underground to the surface.
The Devil's Prison is a half-day's ride north of Wean. The Prison is two great stone slabs, each a thousand paces long (exactly north-south) and two hundred paces wide. The two slabs are 4,000 paces apart, very near high Mounds. The slabs are incredibly thick, ten heights of a man. Great notches go through their centers, making vast horizontal caverns. They are each littered with jagged pieces of metal, making it difficult and dangerous to explore. There is almost no Prehistoric writing anywhere nearby, giving the area a quiet, desolate feel. Prehistoric roads both encircle and point to each slab. The Priests of Wean believe some sort of demon (or demons) is trapped underneath the slabs, imprisoned there in some Prehistoric battle. The entire site is guarded by soldiers of Wean to ensure no one tries to break through the stone door to the prison. To even attempt such would be a titanic industrial operation, so the utility of the guards is questionable at best.
The Tomb of the Three Tyrants is difficult to explore, being in the hilly countryside inhabited by the uncivilized and sometimes violent northern tribes. Several expeditions have been made, however. The Tomb is not surrounded by many Prehistoric artifacts, though one Prehistoric road leads up to it. It is composed of a large circular stone slab, 100 paces in diameter. There are three stone slabs upon the base slab which, when viewed from above, would look like three triangles emanating from a central point. It is believed that these three slabs cover the enormous tombs of the three tyrants, buried here in a place of dishonor. The stones all bear inscriptions, still visible even millennia later. Many of these inscriptions are in various Prehistoric scripts, and are thus unreadable. However, many more inscriptions are pictographic. These diagrams show simple human shapes in a variety of positions. The diagrams seem to tell a story. In many, there is the symbol of the three tyrants (three triangles emanating from a central point with a circle around them). In diagrams with those symbols, people are always shown dying. This is believed to show that the three tyrants killed their subjects mercilessly, though the method of execution is never shown except for dots seeming to enter the bodies of the tyrants' victims. Other diagrams show anatomical representations of the insides of people, some without damage, and others with damage when shown with the symbol of the three tyrants. The origin of the damage is still unknown, unfortunately, but these three tyrants must have killed their victims in some horrifying way, according to modern scholars. Expeditions have been sent to try to dig into the tomb to uncover any wealth buried within, but between the thickness of the stone and the attacks by northern tribesmen, not much success has been had.
The vast majority of all gold in circulation in Ictoria was mined and refined by Prehistoric civilizations. Within the first millennium after the collapse of the Prehistoric civilizations, almost all the buried gold in Ictoria was recovered. Gold is relatively plentiful in Ictoria, and while still used as currency, it is not as valuable as it was in Prehistory due to its large supply.
Ictorians see Prehistroic roads everywhere, and even recognize them as such. However, given the four millennia of decay, these roads are nothing more than rough patches of broken chunks of rock and bitumen. They are more a nuisance than anything, and only lead from one heap of rubble to another.
The great cities of Prehistory have never since been equaled, though they stand as dull monuments to failure now. Large sections of land are nigh-unfarmable due to the prevalence of hard debris in the soil. Shards of glass, chunks of rock and metal, and other impediments litter what would otherwise be good soil for farming. Very little of Prehistory has remained. Anything made from multiple components is unrecognizable. Plastic has decayed. Prehistoric paper is gone, and even the sturdiest buildings are but scattered chunks of concrete.
Ictorians sometimes collect some of the more intact relics of Prehistory. An almost perfectly preserved automobile engine was discovered a century earlier near Rocky Water. Scholars believe it to be some sort of calendar or calculating device used by Prehistoric monks.
Prehistoric landfills are far more useful to modern Ictorians. Many noblemen hire peasants and buy slaves to mine the ancient landfills for various profitable materials. Prehistoric metals have been preserved in the anoxic environments of landfills. Many are of alloys which cannot be recreated by Ictorian metallurgists. Sterling silver and stainless steel cutlery is so commonly found in landfills that even poor families can afford a collection of Prehistoric flatware.
While most Prehistoric ruins fall somewhere between unimportant and inconvenient to modern Ictorians, there are some significant exceptions.
The Silver Virility is a long, phallic shaped construct of Prehistory, found a half-day's ride from Dhar, half-buried in the grassland near a river. It is made from an unknown and incredibly tough metal (nicknamed "titanstone" by Ictorians). There are some holes and fissures through which people can enter the Silver Virility. Inside, there are many decayed artifacts of Prehistory, all of unknown purpose. Clearly, however, it was designed such that people could move about inside the Silver Virility. Altogether, the Silver Virility is over 200 paces long and 20 paces wide. Followers of the old Lone God religion in Jyllyn believed it to be the severed phallus of some impostor god, or possibly the devil. To this day, it is taken to be a sign of fertility. Couples seeking children will sometimes visit the Silver Virility, walk around it (the inside is pitch-dark and difficult to enter), and spend the night in one of the many inns in the vicinity.
The Obelisk of Light is a large stone monument fifteen times the height of a man, about a day's ride west of Wean. Ruins surround the area, indicating a significant presence of Prehistoric activity. The Obelisk is carved with many symbols, presumed to be Prehistoric writing and thus unintelligible. The Obelisk appears to be carved from a single giant stone. None of this is that rare, though. Many Prehistoric monuments (perhaps not many this large) have been found, but the Obelisk of Light is famous for the way it catches the light. The Obelisk appears to sparkle constantly, and scatters sunshine in unexpected ways as pilgrims walk around it. Some priests hypothesize that it is a gift from Verdun, but that is not widely accepted doctrine.
The Tower of Arrogance is a skeletal structure lying on its side two days ride southwest of Fortress Eacon, near the Sea of Storms. Some parts of the Tower show signs of rust, indicating it may have once been submerged in water. The structure is thought to be a tower which was knocked over by some vengeful god in Prehistoric times. The tower itself is actually made from four smaller towers and support bracings between them. The tower is over four hundred paces long and made from what appears to be an advanced steel-like alloy. The surrounding area is poor for farming due to the constant leakage of dark oils and pitch from underground to the surface.
The Devil's Prison is a half-day's ride north of Wean. The Prison is two great stone slabs, each a thousand paces long (exactly north-south) and two hundred paces wide. The two slabs are 4,000 paces apart, very near high Mounds. The slabs are incredibly thick, ten heights of a man. Great notches go through their centers, making vast horizontal caverns. They are each littered with jagged pieces of metal, making it difficult and dangerous to explore. There is almost no Prehistoric writing anywhere nearby, giving the area a quiet, desolate feel. Prehistoric roads both encircle and point to each slab. The Priests of Wean believe some sort of demon (or demons) is trapped underneath the slabs, imprisoned there in some Prehistoric battle. The entire site is guarded by soldiers of Wean to ensure no one tries to break through the stone door to the prison. To even attempt such would be a titanic industrial operation, so the utility of the guards is questionable at best.
The Tomb of the Three Tyrants is difficult to explore, being in the hilly countryside inhabited by the uncivilized and sometimes violent northern tribes. Several expeditions have been made, however. The Tomb is not surrounded by many Prehistoric artifacts, though one Prehistoric road leads up to it. It is composed of a large circular stone slab, 100 paces in diameter. There are three stone slabs upon the base slab which, when viewed from above, would look like three triangles emanating from a central point. It is believed that these three slabs cover the enormous tombs of the three tyrants, buried here in a place of dishonor. The stones all bear inscriptions, still visible even millennia later. Many of these inscriptions are in various Prehistoric scripts, and are thus unreadable. However, many more inscriptions are pictographic. These diagrams show simple human shapes in a variety of positions. The diagrams seem to tell a story. In many, there is the symbol of the three tyrants (three triangles emanating from a central point with a circle around them). In diagrams with those symbols, people are always shown dying. This is believed to show that the three tyrants killed their subjects mercilessly, though the method of execution is never shown except for dots seeming to enter the bodies of the tyrants' victims. Other diagrams show anatomical representations of the insides of people, some without damage, and others with damage when shown with the symbol of the three tyrants. The origin of the damage is still unknown, unfortunately, but these three tyrants must have killed their victims in some horrifying way, according to modern scholars. Expeditions have been sent to try to dig into the tomb to uncover any wealth buried within, but between the thickness of the stone and the attacks by northern tribesmen, not much success has been had.
For as long as anyone has been keeping track, people far and wide have seen repeating and periodic flashes on the big moon. As the moon goes through its phases, bright lights will shine at certain places on the terminator (the line between light and dark) on the moon. Each "flash" lasts several hours, and can be seen by the naked eye by those with good vision. These flashes reoccur the exact same way each month, with exact regularity. Some priests even use these flashes to assist with precise timekeeping.
Taken together, these flashes make a very regular grid across the face of the big moon. The grid is four high and eight wide. Not every point on the grid flashes, however. These bright flashes and dark spots seem to create patterns. Patterns unchanged since be dawn of history.
In Ictoria and the far western lands beyond the Sea of Storms, scholars have long since recorded these patterns. Here, the pattern on the 4x8 grid is:
x o x o x o x o
o x x o o x x o
o o o x x x x o
o o o o o o o x
where "x" represents a flash and an "o" represents the lack of a flash in the grid.
Fifteen years ago, before King Kenegren began sending raiding parties to Najes Island, scholars from that island visited Dhar and reported an entirely different pattern visible there! They claimed that the lands east and west of Najes also saw the patterns they claimed to see:
o x x o x x o x
o o o x x o o o
o o o o o x o x
o o o o o o x x
After much fighting and a physical altercation between scholars, an expedition was sent north beyond Fortress Eacon to see if the pattern changed at a higher latitude. It did!
x o o o o x x x
x x o o o x x o
x o x o o o o o
x x x x o o o x
Whatever is creating the flashing patterns on the moon can send different patterns to different latitudes on Earth. Presumably, yet more patterns on the moon would be discovered with more distant expeditions north and south, but that would require venturing into unexplored waters. An adventure for a later time.
In any case, it was clear that someone or something had left a message, writ large on the surface of the big moon, for all the world to see. Interestingly, no flashes have ever been seen on the little moon or the red moon.
Last year, a scholar in Dhar made an accidental but wondrous discovery. In an effort to see the flashes better with his aging eyes, he repurposed and enlarged an army commander's spyglass with which to look at the moons and the stars. The large and well-crafted lenses were expensive but worth it. When aimed at the big moon, this scholar quickly saw more numerous but fainter flashes between the familiar bright flashes! This pattern was far too dim to be seen by the naked eye, but over the course of the next month this scholar discovered that it had many more flashes than the original. This new pattern of dimmer lights made a 16x32 grid, giving it sixteen times the number of grid spaces! He showed this to his young daughter who, with the strong and clear eyes of a youth, saw even smaller dimmer lights between the lights of this small grid through the spyglass! This grid was 64x128, with 8192 different possible grid points.
If, as with the naked-eye pattern, the message changes with latitude, this could represent tens of thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands of individual on-or-off flashes. What sort of message could it spell, and for what purpose? Was it left by gods or men? Or devils? Only a vast expedition of scholars, mathematicians, and priests could be able to solve this enigma.
Taken together, these flashes make a very regular grid across the face of the big moon. The grid is four high and eight wide. Not every point on the grid flashes, however. These bright flashes and dark spots seem to create patterns. Patterns unchanged since be dawn of history.
In Ictoria and the far western lands beyond the Sea of Storms, scholars have long since recorded these patterns. Here, the pattern on the 4x8 grid is:
x o x o x o x o
o x x o o x x o
o o o x x x x o
o o o o o o o x
where "x" represents a flash and an "o" represents the lack of a flash in the grid.
Fifteen years ago, before King Kenegren began sending raiding parties to Najes Island, scholars from that island visited Dhar and reported an entirely different pattern visible there! They claimed that the lands east and west of Najes also saw the patterns they claimed to see:
o x x o x x o x
o o o x x o o o
o o o o o x o x
o o o o o o x x
After much fighting and a physical altercation between scholars, an expedition was sent north beyond Fortress Eacon to see if the pattern changed at a higher latitude. It did!
x o o o o x x x
x x o o o x x o
x o x o o o o o
x x x x o o o x
Whatever is creating the flashing patterns on the moon can send different patterns to different latitudes on Earth. Presumably, yet more patterns on the moon would be discovered with more distant expeditions north and south, but that would require venturing into unexplored waters. An adventure for a later time.
In any case, it was clear that someone or something had left a message, writ large on the surface of the big moon, for all the world to see. Interestingly, no flashes have ever been seen on the little moon or the red moon.
Last year, a scholar in Dhar made an accidental but wondrous discovery. In an effort to see the flashes better with his aging eyes, he repurposed and enlarged an army commander's spyglass with which to look at the moons and the stars. The large and well-crafted lenses were expensive but worth it. When aimed at the big moon, this scholar quickly saw more numerous but fainter flashes between the familiar bright flashes! This pattern was far too dim to be seen by the naked eye, but over the course of the next month this scholar discovered that it had many more flashes than the original. This new pattern of dimmer lights made a 16x32 grid, giving it sixteen times the number of grid spaces! He showed this to his young daughter who, with the strong and clear eyes of a youth, saw even smaller dimmer lights between the lights of this small grid through the spyglass! This grid was 64x128, with 8192 different possible grid points.
If, as with the naked-eye pattern, the message changes with latitude, this could represent tens of thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands of individual on-or-off flashes. What sort of message could it spell, and for what purpose? Was it left by gods or men? Or devils? Only a vast expedition of scholars, mathematicians, and priests could be able to solve this enigma.
Comments coming soon!
