Eternal Lands Races

[Lyanna]

Link: Roja's initial description of the races

 

Basic Characteristics:

 

Elves focus on Life, observing, protecting and preserving both the physical lives of the races as well as the cultural history of the lands and acting as the conscience of the world. This, however, is balanced by a keen appreciation for the arts of war. Elves are magnificent archers and, when occasion demands, formidable opponents. Their biggest flaw is what many races consider laziness, preferring to lounge about their treetop homes and enjoy a passing sunset rather than inventing, creating, or working. Elves tend to be isolationist as well and most consider them condescending and elitist.

 

Humans focus on Achievement, conceiving, creating, and building ideas and things that are far greater than themselves and last longer than their lifespans. They are quick tempered compared to elves and gnomes but also more swift to forgive than their dwarven counterparts. They are warriors at heart, the arts of peace unwieldy and awkward in their hands though they strive to maintain it. Humanity's greatest vice is vice itself, the species lending itself to depredation and degradation in the same inimitable fashion it does everything else. The other races have been known to comment on humans as "the race of kings and cowards." But never within a human's hearing.

 

Dwarves focus on Perfection, honing their skills to the peak of their performance, creating the most intricate craftwork, sturdy tools, and deadly weapons. The dwarves are stout in battle and stalwart in loyalty. They love nothing more than a good argument, but they are slow to anger as they are slow to forgive. They have sharp wits to match their keen intellects but their passion lies within the very bones of the earth. Most dwarven babies cut their teeth on a rockhammer and are polishing their first gems as toddlers. Dwarves and humans get along well as both have a baudy sense of humor.

 

Orchans focus on Honor, developing their characters and being people of their word. They strive to do the most honourable things, proving themselves worthy. But they are still butchers at heart, unable to totally escape the dark forces which created them, they are the ultimate warrior, their only failing the siren song of the bloodlust in their souls. They have the trappings of civilization though it is still but a thin veneer. Orchan society is a cauldron of intrigue and rigid hierarchies of "honorable" rituals, yet has produced some of the most advanced philosophers of the age.

 

Gnomes focus on Invention, creating various things to improve or manipulate the world around them, solving difficult problems, and in general make life a little easier or more interesting. They are somewhat excitable yet extremely steadfast. They are not suited for the arts of war, but their weapons are inspired and their technolgocal marvels have been instrumental in the victories of several decisive battles where, due to their advances in scientific medicines, they have been able to save more lives than were lost. Gnomes tend to isolationist as well simply for the fact that they despise distraction in the throws of creation. They are slightly absent-minded in day-to-day living but possess a frighteningly keen grasp of the applied sciences.

 

Draegoni focus on Power and the mastery of all forms of magic, wide-ranging applications, and individual development of talent. They love the world around them and still seek out the rarefied heights like their Dragon forebears, but it is the mysteries of the mind, the craft of magic, and knowledge of any and all stripes that truly fascinate the Draegoni. Knowlege is truly power, and their thirst for that knowledge is insatiable. Expert almost from the cradle, Draegoni are highly sought after as court mages, historians, and librarians. They have a deep sense of honor and justice and do not like to fight, almost to the point of complete pacifism. But the Draegoni who are able to fight go on to become some of the most feared mercenaries on the planet. Even the Orchans are wary of them.

 

Magic/Technology affinity:

 

Most magically-inclined <----------> Most technologically-inclined

 

Draegoni -- Elves -- Humans -- Gnomes -- Orchans -- Dwarves

 

 

Lifespans:

 

Humans - about 80 years

Orchans - about 80 years

Gnomes - about 250 years

Dwarves - about 320 years

Elves - about 450 years

Draegoni - about 700 years

 

 

Population Ratios:

 

1 Draegoni : 4 Dwarves : 5 Elves : 5 Gnomes : 20 Humans : 20 Orchans

 

- This basically means that for every 20 Humans, there's 1 Draegoni. It makes Humans and Orchans the most populous of the races, and Draegoni the least. Dwarven numbers are fairly small, due to their reclusiveness. Elven numbers have been decimated by war and their long lifespans coupled with a comparatively low birthrate. Gnomish populations travel a lot, so have trouble settling down sometimes.

Edited April 7, 2005 by Lyanna

[Derin]

Lyanna you are tireless!

 

I really love your descriptions (and the other stuff too, of course). If i may, I have a small suggestion:

 

Maybe you should change the elven focus to preservation instead of life.

 

Elves focus on Life - observing, protecting and preserving it, in all forms, but especially in Nature (animals and plants).

 

Could be changed to:

 

Elves focus on preservation - observing and protecting life and culture in the eternal lands. Elves remembers the past and honor the ancient ways.

 

What I'm driving at is that the elves live long lives and they all tend to think that it was better in the old days, before big cities, before the massive onslaught of monsters etc.

[Lyanna]

Thanks Derin!

 

Hmm... about your suggestion: I think it's good, but we have to be careful about how to word it. I took my cue from Roja's description - she emphasised life a lot in Elven culture. However, I do agree that the Elves should play some sort of preservative role in the Lands, both because of their nature and their lifespans.

 

Wait, I know what to do! *goes to edit previous post*

-Lyn-

 

EDIT: There, is that better?

Edited November 8, 2004 by Lyanna

[Derin]

I like it

[Quinticus]

i'm very confused...Orchan? I always thought it was Orcish, Orcs...i never thought the plural was Orchan...to me it reads Or-Chan. Am i wrong. It just seems very wrong, i've read many sci-fi books/fantasy (what ever the genre is called) and have never come across this spelling. American or English...or, as usual, am i just stupid?

 

Prolly just the last.

[Acelon]

Just a quick spelling error. It is actually spelled Draegoni.

 

 

Quint, Orchan is the race, not the species. Its like humans with orc like qualities. Check the main site under races.

[Quinticus]

OI! i'm so confused...i'll check it out, thanks LV.

[Korgan]

Dwarves focus on Perfection - honing their skills to the very peak of their performance, creating the most intricate craftwork, etc.

Dwarves are perfect already. Also dwarves are probably the most honorable race of them all. Hmm. Lose the "probably". Dwarves are the most honorable race.

 

Dwarven numbers are fairly small, due to their reclusiveness.

Storylines aside, the real reason is teens who think Legolas was soooo cooool. And dwarves are not in recline, most just choose to stay at their ancestral homes instead of joining the less honorable and less hardworking tall folk. However, some choose the life among the humans and elves, if only to show them how hard work is its own reward.

[Hazor]

Magic/Technology affinity:

 

Most magically-inclined <----------> Most technologically-inclined

 

Dreagoni -- Elves -- Humans -- Orchans -- Dwarves -- Gnomes

I always thought of gnomes as..very magically inclined, along with the tech bit.

 

the real reason is teens who think Legolas was soooo cooool.

Pre-teens, seemingly more so, but oh well. ;D Edited November 9, 2004 by Hazor

[Roja]

hmm... gnomes i'd maybe put somewhere in teh middle..because dwarves are the ones who are wary of magic and keep away from it..gnomes don't do that, they are a very curious folk who tend to dabble in it a little(although none would really make a great mage). I'd put gnomes after humans and before orchans.

 

Think of the Orchan like an indian tribe, who has a wise shaman who deals in magic.. mostly all the other orchan don't bother with it-although they do respect it and those who use it.

 

The dwarves we'll keep them how they are described in the books..they hate magic

[Lyanna]

Okay, various things changed. Thanks, LV, for the spelling correction. And I moved Gnomes to the centre. Actually, I was wondering whether to switch the Orchans and Humans in the Magic/Technology affinity role. It would seem that Orchans are more magically-inclined than Humans, if you want to have shamans. (Haha...was confused at first with the "indian" comment, since I live in Asia, but then I realised Roja meant American Indians... )

 

-Lyn-

[Geelef]

I like it. That's about all I've got to say about it.

 

One thing though: I can imagine that every race favours one or two gods to worship, we should pick those carefully.

 

Aluwen goes for the elves of course, since the elves protect life.

Glilin and Dvar for the Dwarves;

Unolas for the Draegoni;

 

Well, the other Gods don't really seem to fit with any race, they're just not completely right, if you catch my drift...

[Quinticus]

One thing i'm not too clear on.

 

Orchans gain leadership roles by combat. It says on the main EL page that most of the time it is in a fight to the death. I'm currious how they can keep a population of the size we're considering while fighting to the death. They crave honour, and to do that they must attain rank. To gain rank or even keep a rank, killing must be done. There's a lot of killing going on, i think that would have a significant impact on the population.

 

So...

Do they just reproduce that fast?

Or

Should we maybe change it to combat without fatalities?

 

Comments? suggestions?

 

I know lyanna stated that she was going into more detail with them later. I just thought that this might be something that should be considered when elaborating on the race.

 

______________________________________________________________

 

BTW thanks for the info, it has helped clear a lot of things up.

[Roja]

lol..just because they have fights to the death doesn't mean they go around killing everybody

read more books

[Quinticus]

I understand they don't go around killing everybody, but...

 

Anytime one of the orchans wants to rise in rank, they have to kill someone already in the position. It may be survival of the fitest...but it's a wasted life every time a strong leader is killed. Perhaps i am wrong, but that would have some affect on the population. Someone who wants to lead the whole group has to fight, and kill, their way up to first place. Seems like there'd be plenty of killing... And i'm sure young orchans believe they are strong enough to beat the leader in position. Yet they lack experience, knowledge, and such to actually do it. EVERY time there is a challenge, there is a death.

 

How would they keep the same population level as the humans, who do not do such a thing?

 

If i had the time of day, i'd do nothing but read books.

 

And play my video games (i'm a nerd!)

[Saii]

To be fair, if the only way I had to move up in the world was a fight to the death with a guy three times my size and who must be a good warrior with it, I wouldn't challenge very often, know what i mean .

 

That sort of 'dead man's boots' ranking was practiced in various pre-feudal tribes and generally led to stability rather than regular killings, as it created a very firm hierarchy of strength. Not very advanced perhaps, but stable. Much of the animal world is still governed by the same principle, although it's not usually to the death, and fighting is rare unless the challenger is VERY sure of themselves.

[Quinticus]

So, then, the orchans are not technologically advanced? More tribal? Running about with clubs and the such?

 

...i'm still kind of confused, and i don't mean to throw a wrench in the gears here.

 

The way i see it, then, the Orchans would be nothing but a heirarchy built on the ladder of strength. In my mind i would see only those who are strong enough could gain power, and anyone of those wanting to express an idea could, in a sense, be seen as a challenger to the authority of those in power.

I could also see this as proliferating into tribal wars and the such, once again vying for power.

 

My over all question is, then, how do they maintain a stable hierarchy on the ladder of strength, while detering challengers and tribal warfare to keep their population rate as high as the humans who do not use fight-to-the-death warfare?

 

Am i being to analitical? or does this all sound like bullsmeg?

 

Perhaps i'm not presenting myself well enough

Edited November 11, 2004 by Quinticus

[Saii]

You can have a relatively high level of technology and still use the fight to the death system (Clingons for example ). just not in human society, largely because the larger a population gets the more subtle your means of control have to be. However, we are not talking about a human mindset here but an orchan one.

 

In a society where honour is held above all else, a leader could easily use the trial by strength rules to keep control in even a high-tech environment, because to disobey him would be dishonourable (being a bit less impressed by worthless conceptions of honouring your master, humans don't tend to keep to such rules).

 

Equally, to behave like a tyrant once in power would also be dishonourable, and a good leader will always listen to their subordinates. The expression of an idea to help your clan under those circumstances would be as much a part of honourable behaviour as anything else.

 

As far as population goes, murder is rarely a deterrence to population growth, or the first and second world wars would have finished us off long ago.

[Quinticus]

I'm still kinda confused ^_^ is there anyone who's written a story about the orchan life? Perhaps that would help shed some insight and satisfy my curiosity.

 

sorry for being a pain!

[StKenjutsushi]

My best advice is to pick up at least one of the Battle Circle books by Piers Anthony... failing that, though, look at animals... like wolf packs. The leader usually becomes the leader by killing the previous leader.

 

Here's another way to look at it. We'll use WarCraft's orcs as our example.

 

Sure, the guy at the top is the strongest. He's also likely the stupidest... the more intelligent members of society know that being in a position that is coveted, and the only way to gain it is to kill the current holder, makes one a giant target. And so they find a level they're comfortable at.

 

There are some Orchan that will obviously never rise above the most basic levels. These are the peons of society, the drols... the ones who are too physically or mentally weak to go anywhere. And in a society like that, you're bound to have a fair number. These "peons" (if I can call them that without being stepped on by copyright ninjas) are looked down upon by the rest of their society, and treated like absolute dirt... but they're completely necessary to the existance of that society.

 

Next up are (please don't kill me for the constant Warcraft references) are the grunts. A step above the peons, the grunts really only exist for one reason - to fight, to support the leader... or to kill him and replace him as soon as he shows weakness. Grunts are the pool that the leaders come from... thus the reason why a highly warlike race doesn't dominate the world almost instantly - there's far too much infighting going on all the time, and their leaders are typically MORONS.

 

The third significant level (besides the leaders) is the shamans. The wise men. The healers. Whatever you want to call them, these are the REAL leaders. They are the smart ones... they may not be big and strong, but they know how to CONTROL the big dumb ones, and they really don't care who the brutes kill, or which one is in charge. Remember, the Orchan respect the gods, and these are the voices of the gods themselves... they will also use basic magic, alchemy, and other tricks to scare the masses. Where the REAL power lies in this society.

At this level will also be the other intelligesia, such as it is, who may not be shamans, but are strictly controlled by them in their profession. (These "professionals" are vital to the society, but they know that if they step out of line, they'll be killed at a moment's notice.)

 

Anyhow, I've hardly gone into full detail, but that's kind of how a system like that works.

 

Any questions? Any gross loopholes I left open? Let me know.

 

Regards,

 

Kenjutsushi Kyuketsuki

The Vampiric Swordsman

 

EDIT

 

Oh, yes, forgot to mention. Those challenges for leadership? They're not to the death the FIRST time, unless it's specifically stated, or the challenger won't give up. First few times it's just a lesson, and a certain time in which you can't rechallenge. After that, if you keep it up when it's obvious you can't win, you are "dishonoured" and are stuck in the peon class for the rest of your life - no exceptions. If you still try something after that, it's death. (Unless, of course, you win. It's important to make that distinction.)

 

Also, full names are not earned until a certain rite of passage of some sort is performed... at that time, the "warrior" chooses his name and earns the RIGHT to challenge. All who fail the test are stuck as peons, unless the shamans find a bright one and whisk them off for their own purposes. (To the grunts, being a shaman is much the same thing as a peon.)

Edited November 26, 2004 by StKenjutsushi