Shoggothought

Civilization Roleplay: Rise of Races (The Tribes of Nova Mondial Want You!)

The Society, Population 317, Era of Oxameter the Walker.
Technological Developments:
Writing 6/8
Architecture 4/5
Organized Religion 6/8
@Raindeer
Eastern Woodlands:
"How odd!" The Ferream observed after the wolf drew the helmet.
"Perhaps, it is curious of the Illis?" The philosopher spoke in response.
"Let us teach them than!" Marsh boomed impatiently.
He than grabbed a stick and drew a picture of a rock being hollowed out by a sharper stone and being placed on an Illis's head.

Civilization Roleplay: Rise of Races (The Tribes of Nova Mondial Want You!)

The Society, Population 317, Era of Oxameter the Walker.
Technological Developments:
Writing 5/8
Architecture 3/5
Organized Religion 5/8
@Raindeer
Eastern Woodlands:
"The wolves! They hath arrived!" The Ferream joyfully screamed grabbing Marsh's immediate attention.
They all looked down at the creatures watching them from a short distance.
"Indeed, O children of Khorne and Tzeentch! Never have I seen such a sight! Quick! Bring the sacrifices."
The Ferream choirmen brought out two Illis and laid them on their knees.
Mr. Marsh than signaled for his companions to bow down and they did so.
"From Tzeentch came Oxameter" They prayed while Marsh led. "And with him came time. From Tzeentch came Khorne, and with him came death to Oxameter."
After this, three Ferream marched by behind the Illis after removing their masks and held a sharp stone to their throats.
"Strike at a whim my friends, and reveal their blood!" Marsh spoke with joy.
The Ferream pressed the stones against the Illis's throats and swiftly pulled to the left quickly spilling blood across the grass.
"Glory! Glory to us and the gods! A gift bestowed to an Ashen Wolf!"

Civilization Roleplay: Rise of Races (The Tribes of Nova Mondial Want You!)

Society Religion, unlike other religions, denies any type of moral code or truths as stated in the "Hymn of the Fool" which contains the quote
"O triumphant soul of Oxameter, you march a million miles into the bleakness of time, and with it comes reality. But not all are convinced, O tyrant of the skies, and to them you grant a sun. One that sits above their mind and soul and melds that of falsehood to the sciences. Great children of Tzeentch, watch for the souls who bear the name of good and evil, for truth sits not with them. Remember, truth sits not with kings or queens of their right, nor with what your desires dictate. Truth sits where truth pleases, and thus all is right."
Also unique to Society religion is the perception of the gods. The three gods of the Society are not viewed as mere deities, but as concepts. Tzeentch is chaos, infinity, and everything while Oxameter is will, power, and strength and Khorne is death, wisdom, and enlightenment.

Civilization Roleplay: Rise of Races (The Tribes of Nova Mondial Want You!)

The Society, Population 312, Era of Oxameter the Walker.
Technological Developments:
Writing 4/8
Architecture 2/5
Organized Religion 4/8
@Raindeer
Eastern Woodlands:
"Around here somewhere, my lord, if my sight proved reliable." The Ferream said whilst wandering the eastern forest.
Mr. Marsh nodded in his extravagant robes and sat back down on a wooden throne carried by four Illis.
"I thank thee for thy direction, and thy philosopher comrade."
They continued searching the region until the Philosopher came across the carving of the wolf he had seen previously.
"The carving! We are in the right place, my holiest and most blessed lord! Here lies the home of an Ashen wolf."
Marsh stepped down from his throne and observed the carving.
"And you have witnessed these creatures?" He spoke.
"Yes, my lord."
"Than we shall wait for them."

Civilization Roleplay: Rise of Races (The Tribes of Nova Mondial Want You!)

The Society, Population 312, Era of Oxameter the Walker.
Technological Developments:
Writing 3/8
Architecture 1/5
Organized Religion 3/8

Eastern Woodlands:

"The Wolf! By all the gods!" The Ferream screamed as the creatures brought them the carving.
"Hmm...It is as we thought. Descendants of an Ashen King." The Philosopher observed.
"Marsh! Marsh! We must bring him! He must see this!" The Choirman screamed with excitement.
"And sacrifices! We shan't forget the sacrifices! Two Illis!"
The polyposide stared down and spoke "Of course, sacrifices, there always are."
The happy Ferream continued his joyous bantering and responded to his comrade's with a cynical glare.
"Quickly, my brother, we must go forth and return to our homelands! Our most blessed and holy Marsh must know of this!"
"Well, let us go than. Such news should seldom be kept internal for long."
The Ferream quickly drew a arrow pointing west and a picture of a Polyposide sitting on tall pedestal near five other slightly shorter pedestals and quickly ran off with his companion.

The Settlement:
The day was loud with laughter and chaos that rang about across the rolling dunes and the ministers sat in their tents idly preparing their speeches for the daily feast. Suddenly, two frantic Ferream ran quickly into the tents and demanded to speak with Mr. Marsh.
After a short while of guards hassling them, the panicked Ferream managed to get into the tent. The tent was large and dark, so much so that they could barely find their way around the tent. Their wandering was than interrupted by the voice of Marsh calling out from his podium in the dark.
"What is your business here, my inferiors?"
They bowed and spoke.
"Glory to thee, O frontiersman of the Void, Ode to the Nightwalkers."
"What of them?" He responded, surprised of the subject matter.
"We were dropping off the souls of the Illis, and there I had witnessed with my brother a power struggle between them."
"A power struggle?" Marsh asked with intrigue.
"Indeed so. They sat around in a circle as two fiercely argued. After a while, they began fighting physically. O what a dramatic scene! One eventually slew the other after a rather long fight and it seemed if though he was now regarded as the leader!"
"After this..." Marsh uttered with excitement.
They continued. "After this he stood up and announced his victory. But this was short-lived. The crowd quickly noticed us and this sparked a riot. We were stuck in the middle of a crowd of these strange beings, half of whom seemed like they were trying to attack us, the other trying to protect us."
"To the point, my child." Marsh said eagerly.
"Well, in short, one of them, seemingly an heir of some sort, had regained control of the disorderly mob and asserted his authority. He than used the method of pictography to communicate with us. We told them of our glorious city and they responded. The creatures are sending men to see our city."
"Glorious!" Marsh screamed.
"We must give our warmest welcome, for they are men of the gods! The gods are with us, my friend! Tzeentch, to Oxameter, to Khorne! But remember, we must keep them from the merchants. If former reports are correct, they are the souls of the Illis, and thus may hold bitterness to their former masters."
The two Ferream bowed and spoke quietly. "Great My lord, I-
He was interrupted by a Polyposide running into the tent with a Choirman.
The Polyposide fell down panting and uttered out
"East forest.....Carvings....Ashen Wolves."
"What is the meaning of this? You interrupted a meeting!" Marsh spoke angrily.
The Choirman helped his friend to his knees and responded
"My lord, we have come across a settlement of Wolves! Ones of the Ashen King!"
"By the gods!" Marsh spoke to himself.
"Quick, you must bring me to theses wolves. I shall gather the sacrifices. Take me to them. I must see them with my own eyes...and make it quick. We are expecting visitors..."

@Father Dagon
@Raindeer

Civilization Roleplay: Rise of Races (The Tribes of Nova Mondial Want You!)

<Snipped quote by Shoggothought>
I see. If it's not too personal, what inspired this?

@Aweirdgamer

Well, a few things. I took inspiration from the novel A Clockwork Orange (for the whole ultra-violence aspect), Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep (for the lack of empathy), and just random things that came to my head whilst writing it.

Civilization Roleplay: Rise of Races (The Tribes of Nova Mondial Want You!)

@Mihndar Rajah returns!

For those not familiar, Rajah was a (the?) infamous leader of Mihndar's race in the older Civ RP. It might not come out to be the same here, but the name has a significant history.

@Shoggothought Interesting emotion system, and idea comparing it to a mental illness. Is it at all like Borderline Personality Disorder? It hinted to me something like it, although it might just be because it is on my mind a lot from other things. Wikipedia page if needed: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borderline_personality_disorder

@Aweirdgamer

Well, I didn't really do this with any particular illness in mind, however, if I were to specify the illness, I think it would be somewhere between Borderline personality disorder, Anti-social personality disorder, and Schizophrenia.

Civilization Roleplay: Rise of Races (The Tribes of Nova Mondial Want You!)

(After looking at my old character post, I realized that I did a rather poor job at describing the psychology Ferream psychology and physiology so I decided to make a more detailed post to help further describe the strange creatures. I'll probably post something on the Polyposides, depending on whether I get to it or not.)
Notable Physical traits of the Ferream:
1. The Ferream are required to always wear black cloaks, as is Society tradition.

2. The Ferream are unable to move any facial features except their beak, however, it is often considered impolite for them to do so, so it is very seldom in which one does it in public.

3. The Ferream are able to speak with their mouth closed due to their vocal chords having a "Internal mouth" in the upper stomach.

4. The Ferream have very poor eyesight.

The Ferream:

Ferream neurology and psychology is incredibly complex and thus often requires very significant observation in order to get an idea of how they function.
However, let us start with the basics.
The Ferream brain is very similar to the human one, with the ability to think and feel, however the differences lie in how each part is used, and when a mental stimuli occurs.
These strange creatures display something of a species wide mental illness relating to their processing of emotions and the release of chemicals in their brain. This can cause a Ferream to underreact (as is the case for most malfunctions) or overreact. Let us go through the different aspects of Ferream that could be defined as a mental/neurological fault.

1. The Ferream, as is well known, cannot feel any form of pity, empathy, or anything relating to that. It’s simply not a part of their psychology.

2. One may observe when communicating with one that they lack any type of worldly connection and thus are very prone to slipping into psychosis.

3. The Ferream have childlike impulse control, and thus often abuse their responsibilities and sometimes lack foresight on possible consequences of their actions. This, however, is not seen in all of the species yet merely a majority of it.

4. In direct relation to their imaginative and artistic blessing, the Ferream display something of “Malevolent Creativity” which is often expressed in the status of the emotion “Congeria” (as described later.)

5. The previously mentioned disconnection between reality Ferream have also can manifest itself on a personal level, meaning that a Ferream can very easily be convinced to kill itself or pretend it is something that it isn’t. For example, if a Ferream were to take part in a play, they could replicate the part almost perfectly. This also means a Ferream is mentally incapable of narcissism or pride, as they lack the ability to connect with themselves or anything for that matter.

Ferream Emotions:

Distant honor, wasted grace
Twisted pawn a face replaced
Phantom filter mask of dread
Damn the guilt my past is dead
- Ferream poem describing Congeria.

One may think when encountering a Ferream that they do not feel emotions to a very strong degree. This is incorrect, as Ferream do feel emotions and they can be indeed extreme, however they lack an ability to express them via body motion or facial expression. This is why many Ferream turn to art as a means of expressing themselves in a way they cannot do physically. This is also adds to the many things that make a Ferream violent. Ferream emotions are rather unstable, with sometimes major things barely causing any distress and minor things causing significant distress. This is due to a Ferream’s natural chemical imbalance in their brain. But before we go too much further into that, let us give a rundown of Ferream emotions and their differences with those of humans.

1.Joy- Joy , for the most part, functions normally as one would expect. However, certain emotions that are derived from joy do not.

2.Sadness- Ferream are capable of very slight amounts of sadness, however their lack of personal association to anything makes them incapable of any chronic or severe forms of sadness.

3.Anger- Anger can be manifested in a frustration or annoyance form, however not in any type of personal antagonism, once more due to their lack of personalization.

4.Humor- A Ferream, similar to man, uses humor as a way of making enjoyment from the retched or upsetting. This can manifest in a sadistic way from time to time however generally pretty straight forward.

5.Creative, or Inspired- In this state, a Ferream displays their most artistic and creative aspects. This can express itself in a religious, violent, or just plain artistic and expressive way.

6.Congeria (Ultra-violent)- The Ferream, as previously mentioned, are unable to feel a sense of extreme anger, however this does not mean they are free from aggression. Congeria, or Ultra-violence in Choir Speak, is a Ferream specific emotion that replaces anger as a defense mechanism. It is slightly difficult to explain this strange emotion, however it probably can be best defined as “Joyous Aggression.” In this state, a Ferream displays euphoric violence, similar to that seen in psychopaths, who act in violent ways to express their own happiness. When meeting with a Ferream in this state, one should take care in not further agitating it. Serious concern usually is not required, as this state is quite like anger in the sense that the majority of the time it is harmless.

Civilization Roleplay: Rise of Races (The Tribes of Nova Mondial Want You!)

@Raindeer
The Society, Population 315, Era of Oxameter the Walker.
Technological Developments:
Writing 2/8
Organized Religion 2/8
"Tis odd." Spoke the philosopher after the philosopher observed the wolf attempting to eat his fellow comrade.
"What a strange reaction! Does it thinks us daft?"
The Choirman stared down in silent prayer and spoke
"No, tis not. For it appears that a wolf hath forgotten the hymns. They understand us naught. And thus we must remind them!"
He went forth and drew pictures using the blood and attempted to draw out the story of The Ashen King.
Western Woodlands:
The patrol, after wandering for a while, got caught in the foreboding night of the forests. They marched for miles until they heard some strange noises emerging from the trees.
@Father Dagon

Civilization Roleplay: Rise of Races (The Tribes of Nova Mondial Want You!)

The Society, Population 315, Era of Oxameter the Walker.
Technological Developments:
Writing 2/8
Organized Religion 2/8

The troubled philosopher stared at the drawing in disbelief.
"It's... the Ashen Wolf!" He spoke with astonishment.
"Indeed, it must be, for what else could bear such features?" His comrade responded.
"What in all th-"
The philosophers words were interrupted by the sudden appearance of two wolves who approached them cautiously.
"The Wolves! Ode to Tzeentch!" The Polyposide screamed.
"Quiet!" His comrade responded!
"They are creatures of the gods and must be treated with respect."
They bowed in a triangle around the confused wolves and recited the Choir's hymn of The Wolves.
"From across the black seas of infinity, we shall invoke the fool who hath built ill the foundation of what should not have ever been built. Thy soul is stone and thy flesh is same. And stone and wood penetrate naught. Tzeentch sings of tunes abhorrent. Bring thee thy sorrows; thy ambition. And may it bend and twist to a tune unimaginable. Sing the song of Tzeentch and never shall thy perish unsung. Past, Present, Future, all are the same in Tzeentch."
One of the Choirmen looked up from prayer and spoke to his fellow.
"Now, you know what you must do."
The other Ferream nodded and he fell flat onto the ground. His comrade than stood up and pulled out a stone and drove it into his fellow's skull and the Polyposide continued the prayers, as is the tradition. He continued by drawing out the sacred tale of the Ashen Wolf in the blood of his sacrificed comrade.
"Ode to the time before Oxameter, before time, before reality. Existence was at its holiest, as everything was infinite, as everything was Tzeentch. (According to Society myth, the beginning of time and reality happened as a result of Oxameter's birth, and this is the time before that when everything was meaningless and constantly contrary due to it being completely being in the domain of the Chaos god Tzeentch.) From the bowls of Chaos emerged something new, a color not black nor white, yet somewhere in between. And it bore the name grey. With the grey came an ambitious daemon lord who bore the title, The Ashen King. He invented the concept of order. A world of stone without flesh or fire. A section of the Chaos became his, and upon it he built a city of order. With his ambition he decided that an infinity of order was only possible with the death of Tzeentch,lord of chaos. With his most valiant of warriors, the King charged into the chambers of Chaos and slew its guardians. With that the king took to the room which contained infinity itself, Tzeentch. He entered the room and stared into the infinite void. The blackness that the king observed invoked images of the future, the past, and what time cannot express. Screams cast over by the sounds of vile instruments rang out violently. Stars trembled, the skies burned and mountains rose and collapsed, observed in but a moment. Dumbstruck, the king was consumed by the Chaos and no longer did he utter the name of order. The King was distorted and mutated, changed beyond recognition. With a great roar, he became the Ashen wolf.
Western Woodlands:
"Well, damned. I think we're lost." Spoke the polyposide as they dragged Illis corpses through the forests.
They wandered across the eastern side of the forests.
(Will add to this tomorrow)