RE: Spheres of Influence: Alliance
05-29-2019, 05:19 AM
(This post was last modified: 05-29-2019, 05:35 AM by Pharmacy.)
Country Name: Orbona, or Orbonian Coalition of Tribes. Sometimes romantically/euphemistically called “Kingdom of the Innocent” or “Kingdom of the Lost” for sordid reasons.
Country Colour: Brown, like the dirt they live on and eventually return to.
Government: Tribal Kingship. The Orbonian concept of leadership is being the Biggest and the Strongest. The idea of what “Biggest” and “Strongest” generally means “Being Taller Than Everyone Else” and “Being Real Good At Fighting,” but can be loosely interpreted in many directions for shrewd leaders trying to hold onto their job (and their life). Leadership have absolute power and the term lasts until death (by natural causes or more commonly, murder).
Half-Elves who are neither Big or Strong to rule coalesce to loose, self-governing tribes. Tribes are left alone most of the time until the Leader demands something from them, which they must be obliged to do with no regard for their feelings.
Leader: Bigfist Manystabs, the Biggest and the Strongest. She is the descendant of the infamous Bigfist Bonemuncher, but she earned her right to leadership through the time-honored tradition of beating the shit out of her predecessor. Her ancestors would be proud. She is the very model of the ideal Orbonian Half-Elf, aura-wise. Straightforward, impatient, vulgar, and yet oddly charming. Also. Big and uncomfortably buff. All Half-Elves are but she is especially so. Probably has something to do with the primal magic unique to the Orbonian school of thought.
Society: Orbona population consists almost entirely of Half-Elves, humanoid descendants of elf-kind. Also known as “Orbonians,” “Helves,” “Demi-Elves,” or “Cave Elves” to lesser extent, the vast majority of Half-Elves in Orbona are born or descended from human-elf couplings. “Orc-Elves” (Half-elves with an Orc parent or are from Orcish descent) do exist in not-insignificant populations but remain a minority in Orbona.
Orbonian names are surname first, personal name second. Surnames are evocative but simplistic compound words (ex. Moonclaw, Strongleg, et cetera). Personal names are compound words describing the deeds the Half-Elf take pride in (ex. Killwolf, Stealgood, et cetera). Personal names may change over the course of the Half-Elf’s life, especially if they are the ambitious sort. Surnames are inherited from whichever parent wins (or survives) the ritual combat during marriage ceremony. Yes, this makes Half-Elf genealogy an absolute nightmare to study.
Orbonian society is characterized by “might makes right.” That the Biggest and Strongest deserve what they take, as long as they have the Bigness and Strongness to back up their claims. Martial prowess is prized, measured in material by the number, the rarity, and complexity of war trophies a Half-Elf may obtain over the course of their life.
Despite their propensity towards violence, Orbona are very protective of children. Children are communally raised in a “Baby Pit” (note: not a hole, but a creche) by designated caretakers. Parents or parental figures are obliged to visit once in a while, to socialize, to provide one-on-one bonding and fulfill emotional needs. Sex education and reproductive health is surprisingly modern. Contraceptives are effective and normalized. A neglected, unwanted child is the ultimate nightmare for an Orbanian.
Orbona have a piecemeal pantheon. The majority of gods are appropriated from other religions and tend to be gods who are physical powerful or at least powerful enough to make a show of force. One of their few, original figures of worship is “First Child” (also known as “God-King-Child,” “Prince-of-Cities,” “the Biggest and the Strongest”). First Child is a maybe myth, maybe actual historical figure who purportedly taught the Half-Elves the basics of civilization and made the world safer for the Half-Elves to live with his magical power of being the Biggest and the Strongest.
Orbona had not formalized a magic system. However, trained individuals have the supernatural ability to induce themselves to a Bigger and Stronger state of physique. Scholars are baffled (and/or terrified) by this phenomenon. The current theory is their Elven heritage allows them the gift of magic but the gift has warped to a primal, aggressive form by hardship. We Just Don’t Know.
Orbonian justice is brutal, primal, and very “let God decide.” Punishment can be hard labor, gladiatorial combat, exile, et cetera, depending on how severe the crime is. Disputes often default to “trial by combat,” although Half-Elves are getting around the concept of regular (boring) trials. Punishment for unforgivable crimes are spectacular, painful executions – being fed alive to hungry animals, burned to death, et cetera.
Orbona are indifferent towards most outsiders, often viewing their allies through the lens of pragmaticism. They have a pronounced bitterness towards Elves (for abandoning them) and by extension, the Dwarves (for their indirect contribution to their sordid existence). They absolutely loathe Goblins (for understandable reasons).
History:
You think Elves would be content to live their immortal lives after their hollow “victory” in the fifty-year war. However, the war left scars on Elven culture and society and was certainly not helped by the quiet, but universal trauma of the inability to ever produce an Elven child again. Elves, for all their superiority, are prone to human weakness and weakness leads to. Mistakes. Living, helpless mistakes.
No one knows why Elves abandon their half-breed children to die but We Can Take A Guess. The site of abandonment is the St. Orbona Forest, so-named after the human Saint-Protector of Children. Orbona is a temperate forest full of appropriate-biome animals like deer, falcons, wolves, et cetera. Following the major river through the forest reveals a modest-sized valley, pock-marked with limestone caves. This is where the Elves abandoned them. Out of sight from their eyes, and more importantly – out of sight from their enemies, who would surely exploit this to attack the dwindling Elves.
The early days of Orbona was characterized by misery and violence. The Half-Elves were too young to properly fend for themselves and the caves were packed with Goblins, who did not mind the windfall of Half-Elf veal. The mortality rate was miserably high but the Elves kept abandoning their offspring enough that one of the abandoned children was at least old enough to muster desperate bravery against the Goblins. That child was the First Child, Prince-of-Cities, God-King-Child, the Biggest and the Strongest, et al. No one is really sure what exactly happened, but he turned the tide of war with his Bigness and Strongess. The Half-Elves had a chance to survive.
After Goblins became a non-issue, the Half-Elves stabilized, multiplied, and squabbled amongst themselves. Orbanian history was a perpetual cycle of boom and bust as the problem of survival was gradually eclipsed by the problem of politics. A Half-Elf would conquer all the tribes only to perish, throwing the society to disarray until another enterprising Half-Elf gets ambitious again.
This repeated enough that one of the Half-Elves, Bigfist Bonemuncher, managed to succeed where his predecessors failed by Actually Using Diplomacy And Tact in addition to the usual violence. After Bonemuncher established himself as undisputed power, he (slowly) established things the Half-Elf at the time could never think of, such as Talking Instead Of Fighting, Education, and Trade Routes Between Tribes And Also Between (horrified gasp) Outsiders. When asked why he done such unspeakable things, Bonemuncher purportedly explained he was So Fucking Tired Of Having His Naps And Bone-Munching Interrupted, which. Fair enough.
It has been a few generations. What can happen next?
Alliance: Orbona is on the border of the Alliance. Half-Elves did participate in the Bug War, but more out of pragmatic purpose (safety of their country, proving superiority over the Bugs, exotic war trophies, et cetera) than any true sense of camaraderie. However, the Alliance proved themselves to be the Biggest and the Strongest at the end of the war, so the Half-Elves are thinking about joining them. Maybe.
Country Colour: Brown, like the dirt they live on and eventually return to.
Government: Tribal Kingship. The Orbonian concept of leadership is being the Biggest and the Strongest. The idea of what “Biggest” and “Strongest” generally means “Being Taller Than Everyone Else” and “Being Real Good At Fighting,” but can be loosely interpreted in many directions for shrewd leaders trying to hold onto their job (and their life). Leadership have absolute power and the term lasts until death (by natural causes or more commonly, murder).
Half-Elves who are neither Big or Strong to rule coalesce to loose, self-governing tribes. Tribes are left alone most of the time until the Leader demands something from them, which they must be obliged to do with no regard for their feelings.
Leader: Bigfist Manystabs, the Biggest and the Strongest. She is the descendant of the infamous Bigfist Bonemuncher, but she earned her right to leadership through the time-honored tradition of beating the shit out of her predecessor. Her ancestors would be proud. She is the very model of the ideal Orbonian Half-Elf, aura-wise. Straightforward, impatient, vulgar, and yet oddly charming. Also. Big and uncomfortably buff. All Half-Elves are but she is especially so. Probably has something to do with the primal magic unique to the Orbonian school of thought.
Society: Orbona population consists almost entirely of Half-Elves, humanoid descendants of elf-kind. Also known as “Orbonians,” “Helves,” “Demi-Elves,” or “Cave Elves” to lesser extent, the vast majority of Half-Elves in Orbona are born or descended from human-elf couplings. “Orc-Elves” (Half-elves with an Orc parent or are from Orcish descent) do exist in not-insignificant populations but remain a minority in Orbona.
Orbonian names are surname first, personal name second. Surnames are evocative but simplistic compound words (ex. Moonclaw, Strongleg, et cetera). Personal names are compound words describing the deeds the Half-Elf take pride in (ex. Killwolf, Stealgood, et cetera). Personal names may change over the course of the Half-Elf’s life, especially if they are the ambitious sort. Surnames are inherited from whichever parent wins (or survives) the ritual combat during marriage ceremony. Yes, this makes Half-Elf genealogy an absolute nightmare to study.
Orbonian society is characterized by “might makes right.” That the Biggest and Strongest deserve what they take, as long as they have the Bigness and Strongness to back up their claims. Martial prowess is prized, measured in material by the number, the rarity, and complexity of war trophies a Half-Elf may obtain over the course of their life.
Despite their propensity towards violence, Orbona are very protective of children. Children are communally raised in a “Baby Pit” (note: not a hole, but a creche) by designated caretakers. Parents or parental figures are obliged to visit once in a while, to socialize, to provide one-on-one bonding and fulfill emotional needs. Sex education and reproductive health is surprisingly modern. Contraceptives are effective and normalized. A neglected, unwanted child is the ultimate nightmare for an Orbanian.
Orbona have a piecemeal pantheon. The majority of gods are appropriated from other religions and tend to be gods who are physical powerful or at least powerful enough to make a show of force. One of their few, original figures of worship is “First Child” (also known as “God-King-Child,” “Prince-of-Cities,” “the Biggest and the Strongest”). First Child is a maybe myth, maybe actual historical figure who purportedly taught the Half-Elves the basics of civilization and made the world safer for the Half-Elves to live with his magical power of being the Biggest and the Strongest.
Orbona had not formalized a magic system. However, trained individuals have the supernatural ability to induce themselves to a Bigger and Stronger state of physique. Scholars are baffled (and/or terrified) by this phenomenon. The current theory is their Elven heritage allows them the gift of magic but the gift has warped to a primal, aggressive form by hardship. We Just Don’t Know.
Orbonian justice is brutal, primal, and very “let God decide.” Punishment can be hard labor, gladiatorial combat, exile, et cetera, depending on how severe the crime is. Disputes often default to “trial by combat,” although Half-Elves are getting around the concept of regular (boring) trials. Punishment for unforgivable crimes are spectacular, painful executions – being fed alive to hungry animals, burned to death, et cetera.
Orbona are indifferent towards most outsiders, often viewing their allies through the lens of pragmaticism. They have a pronounced bitterness towards Elves (for abandoning them) and by extension, the Dwarves (for their indirect contribution to their sordid existence). They absolutely loathe Goblins (for understandable reasons).
History:
You think Elves would be content to live their immortal lives after their hollow “victory” in the fifty-year war. However, the war left scars on Elven culture and society and was certainly not helped by the quiet, but universal trauma of the inability to ever produce an Elven child again. Elves, for all their superiority, are prone to human weakness and weakness leads to. Mistakes. Living, helpless mistakes.
No one knows why Elves abandon their half-breed children to die but We Can Take A Guess. The site of abandonment is the St. Orbona Forest, so-named after the human Saint-Protector of Children. Orbona is a temperate forest full of appropriate-biome animals like deer, falcons, wolves, et cetera. Following the major river through the forest reveals a modest-sized valley, pock-marked with limestone caves. This is where the Elves abandoned them. Out of sight from their eyes, and more importantly – out of sight from their enemies, who would surely exploit this to attack the dwindling Elves.
The early days of Orbona was characterized by misery and violence. The Half-Elves were too young to properly fend for themselves and the caves were packed with Goblins, who did not mind the windfall of Half-Elf veal. The mortality rate was miserably high but the Elves kept abandoning their offspring enough that one of the abandoned children was at least old enough to muster desperate bravery against the Goblins. That child was the First Child, Prince-of-Cities, God-King-Child, the Biggest and the Strongest, et al. No one is really sure what exactly happened, but he turned the tide of war with his Bigness and Strongess. The Half-Elves had a chance to survive.
After Goblins became a non-issue, the Half-Elves stabilized, multiplied, and squabbled amongst themselves. Orbanian history was a perpetual cycle of boom and bust as the problem of survival was gradually eclipsed by the problem of politics. A Half-Elf would conquer all the tribes only to perish, throwing the society to disarray until another enterprising Half-Elf gets ambitious again.
This repeated enough that one of the Half-Elves, Bigfist Bonemuncher, managed to succeed where his predecessors failed by Actually Using Diplomacy And Tact in addition to the usual violence. After Bonemuncher established himself as undisputed power, he (slowly) established things the Half-Elf at the time could never think of, such as Talking Instead Of Fighting, Education, and Trade Routes Between Tribes And Also Between (horrified gasp) Outsiders. When asked why he done such unspeakable things, Bonemuncher purportedly explained he was So Fucking Tired Of Having His Naps And Bone-Munching Interrupted, which. Fair enough.
It has been a few generations. What can happen next?
Alliance: Orbona is on the border of the Alliance. Half-Elves did participate in the Bug War, but more out of pragmatic purpose (safety of their country, proving superiority over the Bugs, exotic war trophies, et cetera) than any true sense of camaraderie. However, the Alliance proved themselves to be the Biggest and the Strongest at the end of the war, so the Half-Elves are thinking about joining them. Maybe.