I've taken the name for Weyveren from the root of indecision. My concept for Weyveren is of one who was not quite the brightest deity. Uncertain as to what to do or how to act, Creation was well underway before he had a chance to form an opinion of what he actually wanted. As such, he was extremely frustrated and angry at his fellow deities. And although Malithia had used him as an example in her arguments to Fyrste to attempt to undo his first act of Creation, Weyveren didn't feel the same compulsion to be as merciful of Malithia's acts in return.
Effectively, I do kind of see Weyveren as the individual who is a petulant child that wants to pack up their marbles and go home. Except that they're kind of stuck dealing with everyone else. Thus, when Malithia stepped forward to create creatures that would work towards the destruction of Creation, Weyveren followed suit, but made certain to create other creatures that preyed upon even those first creatures. He did manage some creativity with the concepts of parasites and diseases.
However, Weyveren's distaste for Creation is complete. Rather than having mere philosophical differences between the way that he believes it should have been done and what was actually done, and believing in the idea of scrapping it and starting fresh, Weyveren is more like a suicidal depressive cursed with immortality. He feels threatened and embittered towards his fellow deities, who he believes are condescending and sniping, and in turn he wins no awards for maintaining relationships with any of his fellow beings.
Weyveren is a joyless deity who takes delight in absolutely nothing. He is so immersed in his own insecurities that he can see no good or beauty in anyone or anything else, leastwise in the acts of Creation.
At the same time, Weyveren is so afraid of being "left out" that he still impacts himself upon Creation, rather than leaving well enough alone. Thus, while the rest of the deities began to create their mortal races, Weyveren openly stated that it was clearly another failure of an idea, he still took part in the creation of his own.
The word "Algein" translates literally to "to feel pain." And this is truly the result of Weyveren's creation. While Malithia created a race designed to destroy and found within it a thing to love within Creation, Weyveren still took no pleasure in the Creation of his race. In fact, the race itself bears the brunt of Weyveren's disdain for it in its inception.
The Algein are aberrations, one and all. They take a variety of shapes and sizes, reproduce in various ways, and there is very little continuity in their existences. While all are sentient creatures, their intelligences are varied, as well. The only things that are common to all Algein are suffering and hunger. For to be an Algein at all means that one is in constant agony, just in their very existences. Some Algein lack certain bone or muscular structures that cause their bodies to be unable to properly support themselves. Some have extraneous bones that extrude from their flesh and constantly tear at it as they move. Still others are host to a horde of smaller creatures residing within them, threatening to eat away at them from the inside.
Whatever the cause or means may be, Weyveren's utter hatred for his own Creation is apparent within their being. These creatures, though sentient, are full of rage, hunger, and resentment. It is only in the process of feeding that they feel any sort of relief from their pain, and thus do many Algein attempt to feed constantly. Thus is it that the Algein also then act as the means towards Weyveren's plans for the destruction of Creation.
What Weyveren did not account for, and yet actually acts as his own proof that Creation never does what the Creators have expected them to, is that some particularly strong-willed, intelligent, or otherwise persistent Algein have actually found some beauty or pleasure in their own existences. Some of the most philosophical of these creatures feel as if finding a way to find meaning within their pain and backwards purpose gives them a greater sense of their own destinies. Weyveren, in the meanwhile, blames such propensity on Eleuth for touching his creations with his penchance for logical puzzles or other such weirdness.
For the Algein, magic does not come frequently, but it is a blessing for some few of them. The magic of the Algein comes directly from raw emotion. Most prominently amongst these are rage, hatred, and misery, but rarely do some of those particularly philosophical Algein find a means to magical power based upon pity or remorse. Always, however, these magics are impulsive, difficult to control, and are never delicate or subtle. Those Algein who are able to wield magics always bear the potential for a great deal of destruction, but they rarely if ever form into any sort of community with others, for if they did, their emotional states would likely tear their fellows apart, thus renewing their isolation again.
Then again, that sort of continually-renewing isolation is just the sort of ongoing misery that Weyveren designed for his Creation. And if he hadn't long ago cast aside the hope or belief that he could find joy in anything, would have been quite the type of thing that he would relish.
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Writing Journal: Deities and Races, Volume IV; Malithia and the Hive
When Fyrste first created the world, Malithia was incensed. She had been entirely in agreement with Fyrste in their initial bearings on the existence of a first Creator and a definitive plan. Then, when his first act of Creation was so at odds with what she had envisioned, and knowing that he had done so without seeking consensus from the rest of Fyrste's peers, she could not fathom what to do.
While it was Koshiri who first attempted to undo the first act of Creation by Fyrste, and therefore discovered that, once something has been done, it could not therefore be undone, Malithia did not believe it until she tried it herself. Of course, the same was true of Weyveren, as well. In fact, Malithia considered that perhaps it had to be the one who had performed the Doing who could be the only one to Undo it, and tried to convince Fyrste to unmake his Creation.
When Fyrste himself stated that he could not, Malithia had to test this out for herself. She had therefore become the first of the deities who were revolted by the very act of Creation itself to take a hand in the making of it at all.
By the time she had the ability to act, Nasci and Scieppend had already taken their own hands to developing Creation. While Malithia hadn't really taken much notice to what was done, since she was so incensed and focused upon the initial act and what seemed to be so wrong with it, she simply looked to destroy it all. When she contemplated a thing to Create, she thought she would gain some satisfaction by creating something that would work towards the destruction of the previous acts of Creation themselves.
Malithia therefore created creatures in a multitude of shapes and sizes. From small to large, they trampled grasses, knocked over trees, consumed the very plant life that Scieppend had created, used claws to mar the ground and burrow holes through it, who drank of and also polluted the waters of the world. Her Creation was terrible to behold for both Fyrste and Scieppend, who were incensed by the audacity of Malithia to act in such a manner to affront what they had put so much work and effort into. Scieppend felt alienated from her own Creation, and pondered the implications of the imperfection of it. Fyrste, in the meantime, vowed to take a hand against Malithia and her Creations.
Malithia took great pleasure in this response, for she cared not for the creatures themselves, despite having delighted in their ability to have such a destructive impact upon the world around them, and to create such a sense of horror in her two fellow deity-beings, thinking that perhaps now they understood how she and the others had felt at witnessing Fyrste's first act, which had taken place without a proper set of consensus amongst the group. She then agreed to undo the Creation of the beasts, and found that Fyrste had not been lying. She could not undo that which she had done.
This was the moment of positive recognition for all of the deities that there was a limit to their own abilities, and that was the fact that whatever choices they might make, there was no way to undo them. This became something that disturbed many of the deities, though others, such as Eleuth, were delighted by the possibility inherent in such a premise.
At this point, argument raged even further amongst the deities regarding the nature of such a limitation, and whether such a fact was proof or disproof of the existence of a First Creator. Those who believed such a higher being might exist, such as Malithia herself, asserted that such a definitive rule could not exist if it were not made as a definite limitation upon their being. Others, however, were not necessarily convinced. Eleuth, particularly, waxed philosophical about it, and stated that were their acts able to be undone, so would their memories, which would mean that they would fall into infinite loops of doing and undoing the same things, since their undoing would therefore cause them to forget having done the doing in the first place.
Such talk only made the rest of the deities angry and dismissive of Eleuth. It seemed too abstract a concept, and too complex for some of them to understand entirely. While Nasci seemed to be the only one moved by the passion with which he spoke, Eleuth became a bit of a pariah amongst the rest of the deities.
Weyveren and Koshiri had taken their own hands in Creation by this point, as well, figuring that they would take their own parts in attempting to destroy that which was Created through their own interventions. Weyveren went a step farther by creating predators, diseases, and parasites, while Koshiri created creatures that took to the air and ruled over all with dominion.
Creation took hold, with Nasci taking on the adoption of life and nature, and the other gods warring with one another, taking their hands affecting bits and pieces of Creation itself. Nasci created harmony amongst the various types of life, while Koshiri cursed all life with inevitable mortality. Heah finally stepped into the process by constructing laws and rules by which all existence would interact over time, creating life cycles, and laws relating to matter and energy. Eleuth in the meantime touched all of Creation with variation and diversity, such that no two entities would ever be exactly the same.
Finally, when Apothos, who had stood apart from most of the debate and the acts of Creation, stepped forward to create Dragons, the bid for the mortal races of Creation began.
It was already stated that Fyrste was again the first to create his own mortal race in the Bergan. But Malithia was the second. She saw the untapped potential that existed within these mortal, sentient beings who could think and act for themselves, utilize tools and manufacture and construct mundane creations of their own, and knew that she could continue to serve her purpose of destroying all Creation with something of her own. And thus, Malithia crafted The Hive, otherwise known as the Heuvians.
Heuvians resemble various insectoid creatures in humanoid form. They are able to manipulate tools and bore sentience of their own. However, their sentience was not solitary like the Bergan or the dragons' were. Instead, each colony of Heuvians shares a singular shared consciousness. Each individual Heuvian lives for the sake of the rest of their colony, with the prime importance of the Queen being the most important.
The reproduction of the Heuvians requires living victims, as Malithia borrowed her brother Weyveren's concept of the parasite in contemplating the development of the Heuvian race. Thus do the Heuvians constantly seek out new victims and new conquests in order to maintain their own existences. And similarly are the Heuvians offended by the concept of individual thought and consciousness. The first blow to Malithia's pride came from the lack of unified purpose in Fyrste's initial act of Creation, and so she imparted her own bruised ego into her mortal race's consciousness.
The irony herein, is that Malithia, in developing a race bent upon the destruction of Creation, actually constructed something that she loved that exists within the realm of Creation. While it is not something that she relishes the thought of, for to realize her eventual plan, she would then have to witness the end of the race whose Creation she has come to love, she frequently does intervene in the interests of her peoples.
The magics of the Heuvians are based upon concentrated action. It usually takes several Heuvians to act in concert to enact any magic, and even then, the results are often not particularly dramatic. The basis of this magic is the identical "chattering" of several Heuvians at once. The first effect of this, is that the ritualistic chanting therefore has a mesmerizing effect upon those who hear it. The magical effects are often things that deal with the mind, and are focused upon enslaving, dominating, and subverting the thoughts of others. The power of such magics are also relative to the number of Heuvians acting in concert to perform these ritualistic chants.
The Hives of the Heuvians bore deeply into some of the largest trees, hills, and often deep into the earth. While they require water, the hives themselves are often dry. The fact that each colony of Heuvians share a hive-mind, it is nearly impossible to surprise them or catch them unawares, and they are frequently willing to sacrifice a few of their members for the larger goal before them. As such, they were created as a definite foil to the Bergan, whose military organization pales by comparison to the complete tuned-in sharing of thoughts that The Hive possess. Usually, Bergan victories over The Hive have been the results of superior numbers, or of devastating strategies by particularly gifted Bergan generals. Otherwise, the Hive are a constantly fearsome threat for the civilized peoples of the world.
It is the Changelings that often provide the greatest threats to the seditious interests of The Hive, for their individualism and disorganization provides little for the Hive to strike out at, while the power and effectiveness of even a singular Changeling can take down Heuvians in far greater numbers, a sacrifice that many Hives are unable or unwilling to make.
While it was Koshiri who first attempted to undo the first act of Creation by Fyrste, and therefore discovered that, once something has been done, it could not therefore be undone, Malithia did not believe it until she tried it herself. Of course, the same was true of Weyveren, as well. In fact, Malithia considered that perhaps it had to be the one who had performed the Doing who could be the only one to Undo it, and tried to convince Fyrste to unmake his Creation.
When Fyrste himself stated that he could not, Malithia had to test this out for herself. She had therefore become the first of the deities who were revolted by the very act of Creation itself to take a hand in the making of it at all.
By the time she had the ability to act, Nasci and Scieppend had already taken their own hands to developing Creation. While Malithia hadn't really taken much notice to what was done, since she was so incensed and focused upon the initial act and what seemed to be so wrong with it, she simply looked to destroy it all. When she contemplated a thing to Create, she thought she would gain some satisfaction by creating something that would work towards the destruction of the previous acts of Creation themselves.
Malithia therefore created creatures in a multitude of shapes and sizes. From small to large, they trampled grasses, knocked over trees, consumed the very plant life that Scieppend had created, used claws to mar the ground and burrow holes through it, who drank of and also polluted the waters of the world. Her Creation was terrible to behold for both Fyrste and Scieppend, who were incensed by the audacity of Malithia to act in such a manner to affront what they had put so much work and effort into. Scieppend felt alienated from her own Creation, and pondered the implications of the imperfection of it. Fyrste, in the meantime, vowed to take a hand against Malithia and her Creations.
Malithia took great pleasure in this response, for she cared not for the creatures themselves, despite having delighted in their ability to have such a destructive impact upon the world around them, and to create such a sense of horror in her two fellow deity-beings, thinking that perhaps now they understood how she and the others had felt at witnessing Fyrste's first act, which had taken place without a proper set of consensus amongst the group. She then agreed to undo the Creation of the beasts, and found that Fyrste had not been lying. She could not undo that which she had done.
This was the moment of positive recognition for all of the deities that there was a limit to their own abilities, and that was the fact that whatever choices they might make, there was no way to undo them. This became something that disturbed many of the deities, though others, such as Eleuth, were delighted by the possibility inherent in such a premise.
At this point, argument raged even further amongst the deities regarding the nature of such a limitation, and whether such a fact was proof or disproof of the existence of a First Creator. Those who believed such a higher being might exist, such as Malithia herself, asserted that such a definitive rule could not exist if it were not made as a definite limitation upon their being. Others, however, were not necessarily convinced. Eleuth, particularly, waxed philosophical about it, and stated that were their acts able to be undone, so would their memories, which would mean that they would fall into infinite loops of doing and undoing the same things, since their undoing would therefore cause them to forget having done the doing in the first place.
Such talk only made the rest of the deities angry and dismissive of Eleuth. It seemed too abstract a concept, and too complex for some of them to understand entirely. While Nasci seemed to be the only one moved by the passion with which he spoke, Eleuth became a bit of a pariah amongst the rest of the deities.
Weyveren and Koshiri had taken their own hands in Creation by this point, as well, figuring that they would take their own parts in attempting to destroy that which was Created through their own interventions. Weyveren went a step farther by creating predators, diseases, and parasites, while Koshiri created creatures that took to the air and ruled over all with dominion.
Creation took hold, with Nasci taking on the adoption of life and nature, and the other gods warring with one another, taking their hands affecting bits and pieces of Creation itself. Nasci created harmony amongst the various types of life, while Koshiri cursed all life with inevitable mortality. Heah finally stepped into the process by constructing laws and rules by which all existence would interact over time, creating life cycles, and laws relating to matter and energy. Eleuth in the meantime touched all of Creation with variation and diversity, such that no two entities would ever be exactly the same.
Finally, when Apothos, who had stood apart from most of the debate and the acts of Creation, stepped forward to create Dragons, the bid for the mortal races of Creation began.
It was already stated that Fyrste was again the first to create his own mortal race in the Bergan. But Malithia was the second. She saw the untapped potential that existed within these mortal, sentient beings who could think and act for themselves, utilize tools and manufacture and construct mundane creations of their own, and knew that she could continue to serve her purpose of destroying all Creation with something of her own. And thus, Malithia crafted The Hive, otherwise known as the Heuvians.
Heuvians resemble various insectoid creatures in humanoid form. They are able to manipulate tools and bore sentience of their own. However, their sentience was not solitary like the Bergan or the dragons' were. Instead, each colony of Heuvians shares a singular shared consciousness. Each individual Heuvian lives for the sake of the rest of their colony, with the prime importance of the Queen being the most important.
The reproduction of the Heuvians requires living victims, as Malithia borrowed her brother Weyveren's concept of the parasite in contemplating the development of the Heuvian race. Thus do the Heuvians constantly seek out new victims and new conquests in order to maintain their own existences. And similarly are the Heuvians offended by the concept of individual thought and consciousness. The first blow to Malithia's pride came from the lack of unified purpose in Fyrste's initial act of Creation, and so she imparted her own bruised ego into her mortal race's consciousness.
The irony herein, is that Malithia, in developing a race bent upon the destruction of Creation, actually constructed something that she loved that exists within the realm of Creation. While it is not something that she relishes the thought of, for to realize her eventual plan, she would then have to witness the end of the race whose Creation she has come to love, she frequently does intervene in the interests of her peoples.
The magics of the Heuvians are based upon concentrated action. It usually takes several Heuvians to act in concert to enact any magic, and even then, the results are often not particularly dramatic. The basis of this magic is the identical "chattering" of several Heuvians at once. The first effect of this, is that the ritualistic chanting therefore has a mesmerizing effect upon those who hear it. The magical effects are often things that deal with the mind, and are focused upon enslaving, dominating, and subverting the thoughts of others. The power of such magics are also relative to the number of Heuvians acting in concert to perform these ritualistic chants.
The Hives of the Heuvians bore deeply into some of the largest trees, hills, and often deep into the earth. While they require water, the hives themselves are often dry. The fact that each colony of Heuvians share a hive-mind, it is nearly impossible to surprise them or catch them unawares, and they are frequently willing to sacrifice a few of their members for the larger goal before them. As such, they were created as a definite foil to the Bergan, whose military organization pales by comparison to the complete tuned-in sharing of thoughts that The Hive possess. Usually, Bergan victories over The Hive have been the results of superior numbers, or of devastating strategies by particularly gifted Bergan generals. Otherwise, the Hive are a constantly fearsome threat for the civilized peoples of the world.
It is the Changelings that often provide the greatest threats to the seditious interests of The Hive, for their individualism and disorganization provides little for the Hive to strike out at, while the power and effectiveness of even a singular Changeling can take down Heuvians in far greater numbers, a sacrifice that many Hives are unable or unwilling to make.
Monday, March 29, 2010
Writing Journal: Deities and Races, Volume III; Scieppend and the Artere
Just as Fyrste began the act of Creation, and Nasci continued it, Scieppend had been the third to act. I've already stated that Scieppend was relatively unimpressed with the initial act of Creation performed by Fyrste. However, somehow Nasci's impact upon that act was what gave Scieppend her own inspiration for the creation of life itself.
Also already discussed was how several of the various gods acted out in Creation to try to destroy it, which caused Nasci to become the adopted mother of the creatures of the natural world. However, what has NOT yet been discussed, is why Nasci should be considered to be an adoptive mother over even the plants within the world, when Scieppend was clearly not intending their existence to be any sort of attack upon what had already been created.
After all, the beasts were never intended to have any beauty or good associated with them, so for Nasci to find beauty and harmony in their existence and take them unto her own seems reasonable. But surely, Scieppend, who is the third and final god of the prime Creators, would have maintained domain over her own initial creations, wouldn't she?
This was not actually the case. Like a great many of the gods, Scieppend became disillusioned with her own Creation shortly after it was made. This is, in fact, part of the entirety of what the conflict between good and evil has been made about, after all. The gods of evil believe that Creation was an utter failure, and should be scrapped in favor of the option of trying to start over again, this time getting the job done better. The gods of good, in the meantime, defend Creation as a benefit and a boon in some way.
While Nasci clearly bore the gift of seeing beauty and harmony in everything that she saw was Created by others, Scieppend's visions have always been more fleeting. For Scieppend, the initial act of Creation was a bore. It was formless and monotonous. The second act, however, brought interest and possibility to Creation. And while life itself was a complex and wondrous thing, Scieppend felt that the Creation of the evil gods following her own Creation was thus simultaneously proven to be uninspired and fallible. She therefore lost interest in them almost right away.
The gifts and continuous interventions of Nasci later provided little comfort for Scieppend, for she believed that her interventions were making imperfect things better, but yet still imperfect. And yet, Scieppend shared a bit of the sense of Malitia that it all could have been done better, and more perfectly.
What beliefs about Creation that Scieppend maintains apart from Malitia is a sense that, however flawed Creation itself may be, it still maintains a certain right to its own imperfection. And that the dissonance and imperfections inherent within Creation are in their own way somewhat beautiful.
What therefore began to draw Scieppend's attention, and that which continues to keep Scieppend continuously drawn into investment within Creation, were art and culture. Once sentient life began to move upon the world, its culture and its artistic perspective on the world instantly intrigued Scieppend. And thus was she inspired to create her own mortal race, the Artere.
The Artere are a race of beauty. They are a race of boundless creativity, culture, ingenuity, and invention. Some Artere are jacks of all trades in manners of expounding upon their creative endeavors. Others focus upon a singular form of artistic expression, and pursue it to utter perfection. The magic of the Artere is found within inspiration. Verse, prose, sculpture, and movement. These are the invocations to unlock the infinite mysteries of magical power for the Artere.
The Artere are the creators of the most wondrous and beautiful cities that the world has ever seen. The Artere, however, have also seen more of these cities laid to ruin and waste due to a lack of drive to defend and protect their own creations. Just like art and inspiration themselves are fleeting, with only hints and remnants of the initial inspiration echoing through time following their creation, thus are many of the histories of the Artere's most wondrous cultural creations.
It is just as Scieppend revels in each individual act of inspiration and creation, but then as quickly becomes bored of it and finds interest in another, fresher scene of inspiration that the Artere seem to be lost within their own boundless, and yet seemingly pointless, acts of creation.
While the Bergan are militant defenders of Creation against those forces that would threaten it, and the Changelings are fierce defenders of Nature, the Artere, being so bound to only follow the most fleeting glimpses of inspiration, do little to follow up to preserve and protect their own creations, or even themselves. Certainly, there are some Artere who follow the art of War, or who take up the sport of fencing, or the art of the melee, and these individual Artere are as much a terror to their foes as they are a wonder to witness on the battlefield, they are but that. Individuals. Artists. They lack the organization of the Bergan to maintain discipline and structure within military endeavors. And they also lack the force of individual conviction that the Changelings maintain to be able to ensure that their acts in lesser numbers matter for nearly enough.
Thus has Scieppend become the goddess of art, culture, and inspiration. She is a goddess of whimsy and beauty, but lacking in motivation or conviction. Her people are responsible for the most wondrous creations in existence, and yet they find themselves and their creations continually falling short on expectation, and declining into ruin. Often, quite literally. One frustrated Bergan scholar once noted, "The Artere are the makers of the finest ruins in all of Creation." Thus seems to be their lot. And yet, their magics are powerful, and they never seem to run out of their boundless quest for more and greater creations and innovations throughout the world.
Also already discussed was how several of the various gods acted out in Creation to try to destroy it, which caused Nasci to become the adopted mother of the creatures of the natural world. However, what has NOT yet been discussed, is why Nasci should be considered to be an adoptive mother over even the plants within the world, when Scieppend was clearly not intending their existence to be any sort of attack upon what had already been created.
After all, the beasts were never intended to have any beauty or good associated with them, so for Nasci to find beauty and harmony in their existence and take them unto her own seems reasonable. But surely, Scieppend, who is the third and final god of the prime Creators, would have maintained domain over her own initial creations, wouldn't she?
This was not actually the case. Like a great many of the gods, Scieppend became disillusioned with her own Creation shortly after it was made. This is, in fact, part of the entirety of what the conflict between good and evil has been made about, after all. The gods of evil believe that Creation was an utter failure, and should be scrapped in favor of the option of trying to start over again, this time getting the job done better. The gods of good, in the meantime, defend Creation as a benefit and a boon in some way.
While Nasci clearly bore the gift of seeing beauty and harmony in everything that she saw was Created by others, Scieppend's visions have always been more fleeting. For Scieppend, the initial act of Creation was a bore. It was formless and monotonous. The second act, however, brought interest and possibility to Creation. And while life itself was a complex and wondrous thing, Scieppend felt that the Creation of the evil gods following her own Creation was thus simultaneously proven to be uninspired and fallible. She therefore lost interest in them almost right away.
The gifts and continuous interventions of Nasci later provided little comfort for Scieppend, for she believed that her interventions were making imperfect things better, but yet still imperfect. And yet, Scieppend shared a bit of the sense of Malitia that it all could have been done better, and more perfectly.
What beliefs about Creation that Scieppend maintains apart from Malitia is a sense that, however flawed Creation itself may be, it still maintains a certain right to its own imperfection. And that the dissonance and imperfections inherent within Creation are in their own way somewhat beautiful.
What therefore began to draw Scieppend's attention, and that which continues to keep Scieppend continuously drawn into investment within Creation, were art and culture. Once sentient life began to move upon the world, its culture and its artistic perspective on the world instantly intrigued Scieppend. And thus was she inspired to create her own mortal race, the Artere.
The Artere are a race of beauty. They are a race of boundless creativity, culture, ingenuity, and invention. Some Artere are jacks of all trades in manners of expounding upon their creative endeavors. Others focus upon a singular form of artistic expression, and pursue it to utter perfection. The magic of the Artere is found within inspiration. Verse, prose, sculpture, and movement. These are the invocations to unlock the infinite mysteries of magical power for the Artere.
The Artere are the creators of the most wondrous and beautiful cities that the world has ever seen. The Artere, however, have also seen more of these cities laid to ruin and waste due to a lack of drive to defend and protect their own creations. Just like art and inspiration themselves are fleeting, with only hints and remnants of the initial inspiration echoing through time following their creation, thus are many of the histories of the Artere's most wondrous cultural creations.
It is just as Scieppend revels in each individual act of inspiration and creation, but then as quickly becomes bored of it and finds interest in another, fresher scene of inspiration that the Artere seem to be lost within their own boundless, and yet seemingly pointless, acts of creation.
While the Bergan are militant defenders of Creation against those forces that would threaten it, and the Changelings are fierce defenders of Nature, the Artere, being so bound to only follow the most fleeting glimpses of inspiration, do little to follow up to preserve and protect their own creations, or even themselves. Certainly, there are some Artere who follow the art of War, or who take up the sport of fencing, or the art of the melee, and these individual Artere are as much a terror to their foes as they are a wonder to witness on the battlefield, they are but that. Individuals. Artists. They lack the organization of the Bergan to maintain discipline and structure within military endeavors. And they also lack the force of individual conviction that the Changelings maintain to be able to ensure that their acts in lesser numbers matter for nearly enough.
Thus has Scieppend become the goddess of art, culture, and inspiration. She is a goddess of whimsy and beauty, but lacking in motivation or conviction. Her people are responsible for the most wondrous creations in existence, and yet they find themselves and their creations continually falling short on expectation, and declining into ruin. Often, quite literally. One frustrated Bergan scholar once noted, "The Artere are the makers of the finest ruins in all of Creation." Thus seems to be their lot. And yet, their magics are powerful, and they never seem to run out of their boundless quest for more and greater creations and innovations throughout the world.
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Writing Journal: Deities and Races, Volume II; Nasci and the Changelings
Since I dedicated the first volume towards the first of the deities to act in the process of Creation, it seems that I should follow up with the second of the deities to act next. Nasci is an enigma in many ways. She is a fierce contender that there is no such thing as an Over-god, and yet also is one of the fiercest defenders of Creation in existence. She maintains a certain demeanor of alliance with Fyrste, as both take great stride towards defending and maintaining Creation. And yet amongst the deities themselves, Eleuth holds Nasci and her followers under great respect. In fact, amongst all of the workings and machinations of the Luthans to play at pranks and tear down the highest ideals of many great civilizations, the Luthans for the most part do not meddle in the affairs of the Changelings or their societies... where they have developed them, that is.
While Nasci is most associated with nature and the natural world, she was not actually the original creator of the plants, nor of the creatures that walk, swim, or burrow across the world. However, she has taken all of those creations into her heart, and defends their existence and Creation as if they were her own. To that degree, there is a great deal of contention regarding the creative energies of Nasci in the first place. She is set apart from her fellow deities in the sense that none of her acts upon Creation were themselves a new and unique creation in themselves. Instead, her acts were all modifications, separations, and the instillment of harmony upon those things that others had created themselves. In many cases, scholars contend that Nasci is therefore the least creative of the deities. Others, in the meantime, contend that Nasci bears the greatest creativity, for she was able to take even the most horrid examples of Creation, and find some form of beauty within them, and draw out that beauty in the world.
Thus was the case with Nasci's first act upon Creation. While Fyrst's act provoked shock, amazement, and anger from the rest of the deities, Nasci was unphased. She saw what was done, and saw something for her part to add to it. Thus did the formless, shapeless mass of the earth become separated into land, sea, air and fire. The four forces were relatively inert still, but they shifted and had interplay between them. It was a constant motion, and yet there was a harmony within that motion.
Up until that point, Scieppend had taken in with the rest of the deities who either didn't know what to think of this new Creation, or that it was an erronious failure. It was within the moment of Nasci's separation of the earth into the four elemental forces, and the harmony of their interplay was witnessed, that Scieppend saw beauty and possibility in the world. And thus, life and the natural world was borne out of Scieppend's contribution to it. And thus has Scieppend's name been generated from "creator" for although she had not been one of the first to act, she had been the first to generate life.
Again, though, I am drifting off-track. For this journal is about Nasci, and not Scieppend. One would wonder, however, why Nasci, who had not been a part of creating life or the plants of the world, nor was she the creator of the animals or other creatures of the world, that she would be born of the name originating from "nature." The reason is because she had taken the first hand in claiming all that there was of it. For when Malitia acted next, spitefully attempting to prove how disastrous this Creation was by creating creatures that burrowed into the ground to dig grooves within it, creatures that fed upon the plants and the mushrooms that grew upon it, and others that consumed the plants and growth within the seas, it was Nasci who saw beauty within them, and blessed them again with harmony. Whatever was consumed, found its way back into the land to feed the plants again.
And again, when Weyveren created diseases, parasites, and still more creatures that fed upon the other creatures that walked upon the land, Nasci was the one who again intervened and found beauty and harmony within their creations. The same was true when Koshiri created the creatures of the sky, who ruled over all from the high places, dropping down to strike terror in those who dwelt below them. Thus a wonderful chain of a natural cycle was formed between the bare nutrients of the earth, the plants and fungus that fed upon them, the creatures who fed upon those plants and fungus, and even those creatures who preyed upon the rest. All of it was made beautiful and harmonious by the intervention of Nasci. And thus do some contend that Nasci's powers have been borne of the greatest creativity, for even in the acts of attempted destruction at the hands of Malithia, Koshiri, and Weyveren, Nasci found beauty and harmony, transforming their terribleness into something that was instead awe-inspiring.
When the mortal races were being born, it is difficult to say when Nasci had acted. While the Bergan were borne to defend Creation against that which would threaten and overthrow it, the Changelings became defenders of a different sort altogether. Changelings' forms all vary, and as their name implies, many of them have developed means to change their forms at a whim, as well. All of them, however, bear striking connections to the natural world around them. Many have wings like the birds in the sky, others have claws, fangs, or talons. Most of their forms combine a sense of the bestial with that which is humanoid. Thus do each have a constant reminder of the beauty that is within the natural world, for they share that same beauty within their own forms.
The magic of the Changelings is drawn directly from the natural world itself. They utilize the power of the four elemental forces that Nasci had initially separated the world between. But beyond that, they also bear a strong bond with the living creatures that are bound to the world itself. Thus do their magics affect plants, and take form around the beasts and birds.
Changelings have little use or utilization of civilization and the wonders contained therein. Scieppend was the patron of those things, and even the Bergan maintain hierarchical order within their communities. Changelings are more disorganized, some of them working alone, others taking either pack or tribal structures, but rarely are there Changeling communities that develop any larger than a singular village. There is great oral history and storytelling amongst the Changelings, with those in full capability of their form-changing powers providing the most amazement in their stories. Art and history amongst the Changelings are lessons in beauty, harmony, and above all else, survival.
Changelings revere life. They celebrate it regularly. And they defend it fiercely. While they do not organize into massive military campaigns such as the Bergan do, small packs of Changelings have been known to harass even armies with tactics that have made many a military force pack up and move away from a heavily forested area, or another resource revered for its ecological wonders. Thus do the Changelings serve their patron goddess. With reverence, love, and fierce loyalty as the adopted mother of all of the natural world.
While Nasci is most associated with nature and the natural world, she was not actually the original creator of the plants, nor of the creatures that walk, swim, or burrow across the world. However, she has taken all of those creations into her heart, and defends their existence and Creation as if they were her own. To that degree, there is a great deal of contention regarding the creative energies of Nasci in the first place. She is set apart from her fellow deities in the sense that none of her acts upon Creation were themselves a new and unique creation in themselves. Instead, her acts were all modifications, separations, and the instillment of harmony upon those things that others had created themselves. In many cases, scholars contend that Nasci is therefore the least creative of the deities. Others, in the meantime, contend that Nasci bears the greatest creativity, for she was able to take even the most horrid examples of Creation, and find some form of beauty within them, and draw out that beauty in the world.
Thus was the case with Nasci's first act upon Creation. While Fyrst's act provoked shock, amazement, and anger from the rest of the deities, Nasci was unphased. She saw what was done, and saw something for her part to add to it. Thus did the formless, shapeless mass of the earth become separated into land, sea, air and fire. The four forces were relatively inert still, but they shifted and had interplay between them. It was a constant motion, and yet there was a harmony within that motion.
Up until that point, Scieppend had taken in with the rest of the deities who either didn't know what to think of this new Creation, or that it was an erronious failure. It was within the moment of Nasci's separation of the earth into the four elemental forces, and the harmony of their interplay was witnessed, that Scieppend saw beauty and possibility in the world. And thus, life and the natural world was borne out of Scieppend's contribution to it. And thus has Scieppend's name been generated from "creator" for although she had not been one of the first to act, she had been the first to generate life.
Again, though, I am drifting off-track. For this journal is about Nasci, and not Scieppend. One would wonder, however, why Nasci, who had not been a part of creating life or the plants of the world, nor was she the creator of the animals or other creatures of the world, that she would be born of the name originating from "nature." The reason is because she had taken the first hand in claiming all that there was of it. For when Malitia acted next, spitefully attempting to prove how disastrous this Creation was by creating creatures that burrowed into the ground to dig grooves within it, creatures that fed upon the plants and the mushrooms that grew upon it, and others that consumed the plants and growth within the seas, it was Nasci who saw beauty within them, and blessed them again with harmony. Whatever was consumed, found its way back into the land to feed the plants again.
And again, when Weyveren created diseases, parasites, and still more creatures that fed upon the other creatures that walked upon the land, Nasci was the one who again intervened and found beauty and harmony within their creations. The same was true when Koshiri created the creatures of the sky, who ruled over all from the high places, dropping down to strike terror in those who dwelt below them. Thus a wonderful chain of a natural cycle was formed between the bare nutrients of the earth, the plants and fungus that fed upon them, the creatures who fed upon those plants and fungus, and even those creatures who preyed upon the rest. All of it was made beautiful and harmonious by the intervention of Nasci. And thus do some contend that Nasci's powers have been borne of the greatest creativity, for even in the acts of attempted destruction at the hands of Malithia, Koshiri, and Weyveren, Nasci found beauty and harmony, transforming their terribleness into something that was instead awe-inspiring.
When the mortal races were being born, it is difficult to say when Nasci had acted. While the Bergan were borne to defend Creation against that which would threaten and overthrow it, the Changelings became defenders of a different sort altogether. Changelings' forms all vary, and as their name implies, many of them have developed means to change their forms at a whim, as well. All of them, however, bear striking connections to the natural world around them. Many have wings like the birds in the sky, others have claws, fangs, or talons. Most of their forms combine a sense of the bestial with that which is humanoid. Thus do each have a constant reminder of the beauty that is within the natural world, for they share that same beauty within their own forms.
The magic of the Changelings is drawn directly from the natural world itself. They utilize the power of the four elemental forces that Nasci had initially separated the world between. But beyond that, they also bear a strong bond with the living creatures that are bound to the world itself. Thus do their magics affect plants, and take form around the beasts and birds.
Changelings have little use or utilization of civilization and the wonders contained therein. Scieppend was the patron of those things, and even the Bergan maintain hierarchical order within their communities. Changelings are more disorganized, some of them working alone, others taking either pack or tribal structures, but rarely are there Changeling communities that develop any larger than a singular village. There is great oral history and storytelling amongst the Changelings, with those in full capability of their form-changing powers providing the most amazement in their stories. Art and history amongst the Changelings are lessons in beauty, harmony, and above all else, survival.
Changelings revere life. They celebrate it regularly. And they defend it fiercely. While they do not organize into massive military campaigns such as the Bergan do, small packs of Changelings have been known to harass even armies with tactics that have made many a military force pack up and move away from a heavily forested area, or another resource revered for its ecological wonders. Thus do the Changelings serve their patron goddess. With reverence, love, and fierce loyalty as the adopted mother of all of the natural world.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Writing Journal: Deities and Races, Volume I; Fyrste and the Bergan
I was initially thinking that I would start with one of the evil races to detail out in my journal. However, in constructing names for both the races and the deities, and some of the history that I plan on developing within that sequence, it became clear that it would be most appropriate to first reveal the first-acting deity within the hand of creation, whose name I have identified with the very root of the word "First."
When the deities all came into being, they already had disagreements as to whence they came and what their purpose for existence might be. But they existed in a realm that was full of endless possibility. It then was the first act of one who believed that there was a prior Creator who had a plan for the universe and for the deity-beings themselves, who had the sureness that his own compunctions were part of a larger purpose, to be the first to act.
And thus, it was Fyrste who created the world itself. It was a vast expansive mass, but at that time it had little in the way of shape or differentiation. Some contend that the initial creation was a singular landmass, from whence Nasci had created the oceans. While others argue that because the world is so vastly composed of water, that Nasci's contribution was to raise the land out of the oceans. There is some evidence that the initial structure of the world was a fiery core, from whence the rest sprang forth. These arguments are semantic at best amongst those who argue, for the two main points are that Fyrste was the first to play his hand upon creation. And it was Nasci who divided out what have been known as the elemental forces in land, sea, air, and fire.
The contributions of Nasci will be discussed in another journal, however. For it was the initial contribution of Fyrste that will spell out what happened after that. Some of the other deities delighted in the initial act of creation made by Fyrste. Nasci, in particular, as being the next to act, may have believed that the self-assured belief that Fyrste acted according to the will of another nameless being was suspect, but delighted in the possibilities that could be made from such an act of creation, and played her own hand within it. The same was true of Scieppend, who took the next play of hand in the act.
By that time, Creation itself was fully underway. But those who were last to act, either because of slowness or a sense of uncertainty, or because they disagreed with the means of even Fyrste's initial creation of the world itself, felt a combination of jealousy, hurt, and had a sense of discontinuity of purpose. Fyrste had not consulted his fellow beings before he made his first act, but did so. And somehow, each knew that they could not undo what had been done.
Malithia, whose name I derived from the root of the word Spite, or Malice, in particular wanted to bring down the Creation that Fyrste had initiated. Malithia agreed with Fyrste on his conception of a grand deity, but believed that Fyrste's initial act had fallen short somehow, and thought it should have been done better, with proper planning having gone into it. And so, with the acts of Malithia, and her brooding brother Weyveren acting in ways that threatened the destruction of Creation, Fyrste and the other gods themselves became hurt. They had placed such value in their own acts, that the workings of Malithia and Weyveren seemed personal attacks against the value of their actions.
It was actually the final act by Apathos, who seemed to waver constantly, and seemed almost entirely disinterested, that had driven Fyrste's final rage which sprung the first humanoids into existence. Apathos, who hadn't seemed to have any interest in the acts of Creation at all, simply uttered the words "I wonder..." and dragons had sprung into being within the world. Dragons had taken the beautiful equilibrium of the world, and had thrown it off course. They ruled over the lands within which they dwelled, and they were sentient in ways that the beasts and creatures of the land could not achieve. Dragons were great and terrible, and wise, seemingly all at once. In many ways, Apathos's creation was greater than any of the rest, and yet it was also the most terrible.
Fyrste took the act as a further attempt at the destruction of the world, and yet he saw the beauty that came with the first sentient creatures. And thus, the Bergan were born. The Bergan are long-lived, sturdy, and highly militaristic. Their society is hierarchical, with very strict laws. Those who disobey are punished readily and harshly, though there never seems to be ill will against those who bear such punishments. It is simply the way toward the greater good.
There are some magics that are performed amongst the Bergan, and those magics are the result of precise, deliberate actions, enacted through exacting rituals, and within which all elements are controlled. There is no such thing as dabbling in magic amongst the Bergan, for it is a power that is to be respected, and thus practitioners of the Science are to be dedicated and specialized in what they do.
The Bergan, whose name originates from the roots of Protection, maintain some of the greatest marshal forces in the world. Their duty is to protect the world and all Creation from the forces that would see it thrown to waste. The Bergan recognize Fyrste as the original creator of the world, and they revere him. They also believe that the universe is heading toward an inevitable final confrontation, in which the forces of evil and destruction will finally be overthrown, and the course of Creation will take a final step toward perfection.
In the meantime, the Bergan believe themselves to be the stewards and protectors of Creation until that time at the end of days. They are stern and harsh in their manner, though one would not necessarily consider them joyless. Theirs is a philosophy of pragmatism. What serves the ultimate goal of preserving Creation and allowing the world to see the end of days must reside primarily within the thoughts and hearts of its people. Other things are distractions. The Bergan have a number of holidays and celebrations. All of which center around reminders of the beauty of that which has been Created, and therefore the reminders of why they live and die to protect such beauty and wonder. And thus do they stand in opposition to those forces that would seek to destroy the world or bring harm to any other portion of Creation.
I hope everyone is enjoying this exercise, and I certainly welcome feedback regarding the process or the writing itself. Please feel free to post comments, questions, or criticisms. I would appreciate hearing what people think.
When the deities all came into being, they already had disagreements as to whence they came and what their purpose for existence might be. But they existed in a realm that was full of endless possibility. It then was the first act of one who believed that there was a prior Creator who had a plan for the universe and for the deity-beings themselves, who had the sureness that his own compunctions were part of a larger purpose, to be the first to act.
And thus, it was Fyrste who created the world itself. It was a vast expansive mass, but at that time it had little in the way of shape or differentiation. Some contend that the initial creation was a singular landmass, from whence Nasci had created the oceans. While others argue that because the world is so vastly composed of water, that Nasci's contribution was to raise the land out of the oceans. There is some evidence that the initial structure of the world was a fiery core, from whence the rest sprang forth. These arguments are semantic at best amongst those who argue, for the two main points are that Fyrste was the first to play his hand upon creation. And it was Nasci who divided out what have been known as the elemental forces in land, sea, air, and fire.
The contributions of Nasci will be discussed in another journal, however. For it was the initial contribution of Fyrste that will spell out what happened after that. Some of the other deities delighted in the initial act of creation made by Fyrste. Nasci, in particular, as being the next to act, may have believed that the self-assured belief that Fyrste acted according to the will of another nameless being was suspect, but delighted in the possibilities that could be made from such an act of creation, and played her own hand within it. The same was true of Scieppend, who took the next play of hand in the act.
By that time, Creation itself was fully underway. But those who were last to act, either because of slowness or a sense of uncertainty, or because they disagreed with the means of even Fyrste's initial creation of the world itself, felt a combination of jealousy, hurt, and had a sense of discontinuity of purpose. Fyrste had not consulted his fellow beings before he made his first act, but did so. And somehow, each knew that they could not undo what had been done.
Malithia, whose name I derived from the root of the word Spite, or Malice, in particular wanted to bring down the Creation that Fyrste had initiated. Malithia agreed with Fyrste on his conception of a grand deity, but believed that Fyrste's initial act had fallen short somehow, and thought it should have been done better, with proper planning having gone into it. And so, with the acts of Malithia, and her brooding brother Weyveren acting in ways that threatened the destruction of Creation, Fyrste and the other gods themselves became hurt. They had placed such value in their own acts, that the workings of Malithia and Weyveren seemed personal attacks against the value of their actions.
It was actually the final act by Apathos, who seemed to waver constantly, and seemed almost entirely disinterested, that had driven Fyrste's final rage which sprung the first humanoids into existence. Apathos, who hadn't seemed to have any interest in the acts of Creation at all, simply uttered the words "I wonder..." and dragons had sprung into being within the world. Dragons had taken the beautiful equilibrium of the world, and had thrown it off course. They ruled over the lands within which they dwelled, and they were sentient in ways that the beasts and creatures of the land could not achieve. Dragons were great and terrible, and wise, seemingly all at once. In many ways, Apathos's creation was greater than any of the rest, and yet it was also the most terrible.
Fyrste took the act as a further attempt at the destruction of the world, and yet he saw the beauty that came with the first sentient creatures. And thus, the Bergan were born. The Bergan are long-lived, sturdy, and highly militaristic. Their society is hierarchical, with very strict laws. Those who disobey are punished readily and harshly, though there never seems to be ill will against those who bear such punishments. It is simply the way toward the greater good.
There are some magics that are performed amongst the Bergan, and those magics are the result of precise, deliberate actions, enacted through exacting rituals, and within which all elements are controlled. There is no such thing as dabbling in magic amongst the Bergan, for it is a power that is to be respected, and thus practitioners of the Science are to be dedicated and specialized in what they do.
The Bergan, whose name originates from the roots of Protection, maintain some of the greatest marshal forces in the world. Their duty is to protect the world and all Creation from the forces that would see it thrown to waste. The Bergan recognize Fyrste as the original creator of the world, and they revere him. They also believe that the universe is heading toward an inevitable final confrontation, in which the forces of evil and destruction will finally be overthrown, and the course of Creation will take a final step toward perfection.
In the meantime, the Bergan believe themselves to be the stewards and protectors of Creation until that time at the end of days. They are stern and harsh in their manner, though one would not necessarily consider them joyless. Theirs is a philosophy of pragmatism. What serves the ultimate goal of preserving Creation and allowing the world to see the end of days must reside primarily within the thoughts and hearts of its people. Other things are distractions. The Bergan have a number of holidays and celebrations. All of which center around reminders of the beauty of that which has been Created, and therefore the reminders of why they live and die to protect such beauty and wonder. And thus do they stand in opposition to those forces that would seek to destroy the world or bring harm to any other portion of Creation.
I hope everyone is enjoying this exercise, and I certainly welcome feedback regarding the process or the writing itself. Please feel free to post comments, questions, or criticisms. I would appreciate hearing what people think.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
The Project
Ok, so my blog has been stagnant for a while, but I've also not begun any of my writing project for years. So I think I'm going to do at least a temporary transformation of my blog into a journal of the progress as I'm going for my writing project.
The project is going to be in the realm of high fantasy. The initial concept that I had come up with, and this was years ago, was of a cosmos where a group of deity-like beings come into existence. Think of a polytheistic religion and the deities of that religion. Except they seem to just pop into existence out of nothing, and they themselves don't know of their origin. Many cosmologies that have been made before have a sort of Over-god, or singular initial creator. This one specifically may or may not. And part of what sparks the conflict within creation is the disagreement between these deity-beings regarding what the nature of their own existence and creation itself actually means.
There are other cosmologies within which either the Void or Chaos is the primordial reality, and then reality springs forth from it. It's basically the concept that in a non-existent universe, where everything is possible, reality springs forth as an actualized possibility. Again, I wanted to steer away from this directly, as well, and have the deities not really know.
Within a lot of fantasy, then, there is a deviation of moral standards based upon alignment-based tenets. Specifically, there are two axes upon which everyone functions primarily. Law vs Chaos, and Good vs Evil. But what is it that makes something Lawful versus Chaotic if everyone has various principles that they adhere to, to some degree? And what makes something Good versus Evil if there are no fundamentally-defined rules for existence?
The way I divided it up was that the axis for Law versus Chaos is entirely surrounded by the philosophy of the deities on whether or not there is the existence of an Over-god, or some sort of over-arching plan for the universe. Those who are Lawful, believe that there IS, in fact, a greater plan that either has been or must be set into motion. Those who are Chaotic, in the meantime, assert that there is no such Over-god or definitive plan, and creation is simply the result of the choices and actions of those who exist.
In the meantime, how I divided up Good versus Evil is an attitude towards Creation. It was the deity-beings who began the act of Creation, and they honestly didn't really know much of what they were doing until they already started doing it. And since one of the other major philosophical tenets that I'm going for with this universe, is the fact that no act that is done can ever be undone. The deities could not UN-create that which they have created. Destroying it is certainly an option, of course, which is where Evil comes into being, but even Destruction cannot cause something or someone to never have been in the first place. Those who are Good assert that Creation is good. And even if there may have been some experiments that didn't turn out as planned or intended, they are ultimately good and that they need to be preserved, protected and celebrated. Whereas Evil determines that a mistake must be erased and eliminated, Creation was a mistake, and therefore we need to do away with all of it in order to start fresh and get it right the next time around.
These are all the concepts that I've had floating around in my head for years now. What I began today is actually taking the time and fleshing all of this out. If there is one race that is going to be embodied by their particular deity's philosophy, and each philosophy is governed by a single deity, what will each of those deities' races look like?
I had the option to take the easy route and utilize pre-governed races that are commonly known throughout the realms of fantasy. Elves would be the prototypical Chaotic Good, while Dwarves fundamentally embody that which is Lawful Good. Orcs have always been the Chaotic Good, and you can readily call upon the existence of devils as a Lawful Evil force. But that would be using concepts that are already created and there. It wouldn't be creative enough, and furthermore, it would be a less perfect representation. All of those races have been built upon different rules from what I would conceive as the purpose for them. And so I've decided to pave my own way, and construct eight distinct races embodying each of the extremes of philosophy.
If you're as much of a dork as me, you probably asked yourself "Eight? But that diagram should have NINE. Geez, you're fucking it all up already." Well, like any good fantasy series, you always have to factor in humanity. Humanity is always the wild card, the keeper of destiny. It is always a human that unlocks the mysteries of the universe. Who has the potential to change the world. Humans are the key. And so Humanity takes the place of Whoopi Goldberg. Humans are the center square. Ok, sorry, I had to do it. :p
Thus far, I've got general ideas out for each of the nine races, and what exactly the governing of those races might be. For now, I am going to cut this blog short and let it be the overall scheme. The next eight or nine blogs, however, will be about each of the races individually. Stay tuned.
The project is going to be in the realm of high fantasy. The initial concept that I had come up with, and this was years ago, was of a cosmos where a group of deity-like beings come into existence. Think of a polytheistic religion and the deities of that religion. Except they seem to just pop into existence out of nothing, and they themselves don't know of their origin. Many cosmologies that have been made before have a sort of Over-god, or singular initial creator. This one specifically may or may not. And part of what sparks the conflict within creation is the disagreement between these deity-beings regarding what the nature of their own existence and creation itself actually means.
There are other cosmologies within which either the Void or Chaos is the primordial reality, and then reality springs forth from it. It's basically the concept that in a non-existent universe, where everything is possible, reality springs forth as an actualized possibility. Again, I wanted to steer away from this directly, as well, and have the deities not really know.
Within a lot of fantasy, then, there is a deviation of moral standards based upon alignment-based tenets. Specifically, there are two axes upon which everyone functions primarily. Law vs Chaos, and Good vs Evil. But what is it that makes something Lawful versus Chaotic if everyone has various principles that they adhere to, to some degree? And what makes something Good versus Evil if there are no fundamentally-defined rules for existence?
The way I divided it up was that the axis for Law versus Chaos is entirely surrounded by the philosophy of the deities on whether or not there is the existence of an Over-god, or some sort of over-arching plan for the universe. Those who are Lawful, believe that there IS, in fact, a greater plan that either has been or must be set into motion. Those who are Chaotic, in the meantime, assert that there is no such Over-god or definitive plan, and creation is simply the result of the choices and actions of those who exist.
In the meantime, how I divided up Good versus Evil is an attitude towards Creation. It was the deity-beings who began the act of Creation, and they honestly didn't really know much of what they were doing until they already started doing it. And since one of the other major philosophical tenets that I'm going for with this universe, is the fact that no act that is done can ever be undone. The deities could not UN-create that which they have created. Destroying it is certainly an option, of course, which is where Evil comes into being, but even Destruction cannot cause something or someone to never have been in the first place. Those who are Good assert that Creation is good. And even if there may have been some experiments that didn't turn out as planned or intended, they are ultimately good and that they need to be preserved, protected and celebrated. Whereas Evil determines that a mistake must be erased and eliminated, Creation was a mistake, and therefore we need to do away with all of it in order to start fresh and get it right the next time around.
These are all the concepts that I've had floating around in my head for years now. What I began today is actually taking the time and fleshing all of this out. If there is one race that is going to be embodied by their particular deity's philosophy, and each philosophy is governed by a single deity, what will each of those deities' races look like?
I had the option to take the easy route and utilize pre-governed races that are commonly known throughout the realms of fantasy. Elves would be the prototypical Chaotic Good, while Dwarves fundamentally embody that which is Lawful Good. Orcs have always been the Chaotic Good, and you can readily call upon the existence of devils as a Lawful Evil force. But that would be using concepts that are already created and there. It wouldn't be creative enough, and furthermore, it would be a less perfect representation. All of those races have been built upon different rules from what I would conceive as the purpose for them. And so I've decided to pave my own way, and construct eight distinct races embodying each of the extremes of philosophy.
If you're as much of a dork as me, you probably asked yourself "Eight? But that diagram should have NINE. Geez, you're fucking it all up already." Well, like any good fantasy series, you always have to factor in humanity. Humanity is always the wild card, the keeper of destiny. It is always a human that unlocks the mysteries of the universe. Who has the potential to change the world. Humans are the key. And so Humanity takes the place of Whoopi Goldberg. Humans are the center square. Ok, sorry, I had to do it. :p
Thus far, I've got general ideas out for each of the nine races, and what exactly the governing of those races might be. For now, I am going to cut this blog short and let it be the overall scheme. The next eight or nine blogs, however, will be about each of the races individually. Stay tuned.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Reminder
This is a quick reminder to myself that, yes, I still have a blog, and that yes, I REALLY need to update it again...
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