In post 49, PenguinPower wrote:As long as you got carried away in the sense that the colony is located in "a land full of dire wombats" and is about as developed as "a colony full of dire wombats" with a relationship with its homeland "similar to that of a startled dire wombat and a human" and Colonial leadership of "a Supreme Dire Wombat Overlord" which was founded to "provide a consistent source of dire wombats" then it's okay because we're on the same page.
No, he was carried away literally when a dire wombat swooped down and picked him up before flying off.
Hi friends, I am not feeling well. Signs point to the common cold rather than something else, but I'm taking the day to relax and practice self-care. I'll be around, though, and will have an update this evening.
Don't push yourself too hard. Your writing is always worth the wait, and you're much more important than that. You good darlin <3 <3 <3
Xalxe: this is xofelf sometimes we call each other names and other times we share emotions
MattyP: Ur an enigma tho when it comes to circadian rhythm and the traditions we hold dear when it comes to the sun and the moon Get to reknow a xofelf here
Discord is faster than PMs or sitechat: xofelf#1697
You just want a tree in spandex. Admit it Jingle, we all know.
Xalxe: this is xofelf sometimes we call each other names and other times we share emotions
MattyP: Ur an enigma tho when it comes to circadian rhythm and the traditions we hold dear when it comes to the sun and the moon Get to reknow a xofelf here
Discord is faster than PMs or sitechat: xofelf#1697
In post 49, PenguinPower wrote:As long as you got carried away in the sense that the colony is located in "a land full of dire wombats" and is about as developed as "a colony full of dire wombats" with a relationship with its homeland "similar to that of a startled dire wombat and a human" and Colonial leadership of "a Supreme Dire Wombat Overlord" which was founded to "provide a consistent source of dire wombats" then it's okay because we're on the same page.
This is exactly the kind of content i came here for.
Okay! We had a number of decisive questions this round, so let's get those out of the way.
-The setting is finalized as having late pre-industrial technology. I have a strong familiarity with this area of history, but if someone is an actual expert, let me know and I'd welcome your advice. Simple gunpowder weapons are common in the form of smoothbore cannon, muskets, blunderbusses, and flintlock pistols. Rifles exist, but are mostly limited to hunters and sharpshooters. Armored cavalry (i.e. cuirassiers and lancers) remain dominant on the battlefield, but some forward-thinking commanders are experimenting with fast, lightly-armored dragoons as well. As we are going to be starting in an archipelago, it is important to note that we are approaching the height of the age of sail - ships of the line are the power in these waters, with faster frigates patrolling for pirates, which
will be a thing
. Overseas, triangular-style trade is commonplace. Plantation-style agriculture is in full swing, but I have no interest in telling a story that involves chattel bondage. The accepted method is large families and communities working their fields together. Cities are somewhat dense and squalid, but the first glimmers of real sanitation are coming into effect. Culturally, an Enlightenment analogue is taking place, but is not yet widespread and has not filtered down to the masses in any way yet. Schools and universities exist, but are likewise limited to the elite. Our protagonist's place in that hierarchy will be determined in the next survey.
-The dominant choice was for an archipelago, but I liked the second-most-popular choice so much that I'm going to incorporate it too. Our archipelago is located off the coast of a friendly foreign nation, some distance from the homeland. Think Caribbean islands off the coast of the Americas relative to Europe, or the Philippines off the coast of Southeast Asia, New Zealand off of Australia, Madagascar/Africa, Maldives/India, you get the picture. There is a sizable distance between the enclave and the nearby "host," but not so close that the "host" is all that bothered to secure it. Trade with the enclave islands is lucrative for all parties.
---Of the write-in selections, I liked several. I actually almost included a desert oasis in the original options, but that isn't the kind of story I want to tell, nor is the alternate dimension angle. The choice I
did
very seriously consider was the underground cavern choice (not shown above, cut off.)
Journey to the Center of the Earth
was one of my favorite books as a kid, and I liked
Land of the Lost
as well. The problem is that I just couldn't justify the science of having a large, well-lit subterranean environment, and darkness is not an obstacle I want to routinely surmount. What I CAN say is that I'm still taken with the idea, and we MIGHT see an underground adventure at some point in our protagonist's journey. Maybe with dire wombats.
-Colony development was pretty clear. A small, established colony, dominated by a single city on the largest island and many outlying plantation communities on outlying islands.
-Leadership of the two territories was also fairly clear. The homeland is ruled with an iron fist by an "enlightened" despot. A few limitations exist for the nobility, similar to the Magna Carta, and an assembly of nobles and wealthy commoners legislates in the monarch's name. The monarch him/herself, however, exercises absolute authority and may alter, overrule, or disband this assembly at will. The colony is likewise ruled by an imperial viceroy, who in practice delegates much of his or her power to an elected colonial leader. Outlying communities mostly govern their own affairs, except for capital offenses.
-The tough one is the relationship between the colony and the homeland. Y'all were all over the map on this one, with a very slight plurality favoring nominal independence. I'm going to call an audible on this one and say that colonial sentiment is heavily mixed. There are plenty of loyalists, some simmering revolutionaries, but the bulk of the population doesn't care. They consider themselves citizens of the colony first, expatriates at best. It would not, however, take a whole lot of iron-fisted interference to tilt that balance, nor would it require much positive press for the empire to secure the colony's loyalty. This may end up being a major plot point, driven by your choices.
-Lastly, I was delighted with the suggestions you offered for why the colony was founded! Here they are:
Spoiler: Suggestions
Only the powerful blessed with strong magic can live a good life full of power and wealth. The strong are perceived as gods and any group/individual who tries to oppose the gods get's exiled. Since the empire has no allies this colony is their last hope.
It's like a mining colony but for magic
Traders who got sick of the monarchist overlords, decided to establish a trading colony untouched by the whims of the Empire leaders. Free to trade.
Widespread belief that the centralization of society has lead to the decline of scientific and magical innovation has led to the funding of small exploratory ventures to establish comparatively small research enclaves in the interest of preserving the forward momentum of discovery.
Because the land it's in has gems that enhance people's magical abilities
It was founded because the colonists are descended from a race of magic users who were oppressed by the King. They banded together and established the colony as far from the King’s reach as possible. Legend has it that a “Mystic Sage” born every hundred years is the key to keeping balance or causing destruction. As a result the villagers hope to keep the centennial child out of the reaches of a corrupt monarchy.
Spoils of war
(insert bad speech that eventually leads to the revelation that the colony was America all along)
As I chose Enclave for the relation to the Empire question, this will assume that answer.
There was a bitter war for freedom from the tyrannical Empire to which the enclave remains a part. The war was fought long and hard and in the end, freedom was won by the subjugated peoples. But a small colony, once rich in precious metals, remained loyal to the state, and in demanded they remain a part of the empire!
They were granted this, and they remain patriotic to this day! But being an enclave in a nation that threw your motherland out has its difficulties. Slowly, resource lines were cut as the risk became too great. Resources ceased to flow in as it became too costly to ship them in. While the officials remain loyal in theory, there has been no oversight by the empire's officials in a very long time and corruption seems likely within the ranks of those in charge here.
Fortunately, the lands remain fertile and the people proud. There has been enough wealth to sustain the colony and trade within the area is far better than one would think, given the political situations internally and externally.
Broken off the empire when an old king had twins, the second one was given this area to rule over, and the people rebelled.
To secure a consistent source of dire wombats.
Chasing after the incredibly versitile resource that is Dire Wombat Pelts, used in extremely powerful spells, more valuable than gold, and only present in the new world.
Though it nominally has some other purpose, the truth is that one empire leader pushed for its creation purely to spite their sibling, and everyone knows it
Jim, the "elected leader" of the nation, asked some bros if they wanted to go grab some brewskis. The brewskis were tough to find, and in a drunken stupor, the bros made it to a foreign state, where they just decided to set up shop rather than coming home.
As a nice place for ducks to sleep
Legendary Explorer James Columbus Colonialus Conquistador Americus set sail to defeat the legendary kraken which for years had halted sea exploration. It was a great long fight and ultimately, they could not kill the kraken but were able to put it into a long sleep using magic. The fleet was too damaged to return home so they went to the nearest island chain they could find. James and his crew lived here for 2 years, unable to repair their damaged fleet but discovering that the archipelago was beautiful and rich in resources. When eventually a rescue team found them, and they returned home with news of the archipelago, it was decided then to make it a colony.
The nation that the colony is in will only have dealings with nations that build colonies/trading ports within their nation. They value diversity and also want to have a good example of the kind of people they're dealing with right there in front of them.
It's a penal colony created by the leader of the church following a Schism that led to the outlawing of the use of magic. As such most of the people there are magic users or criminals.
As a means of protecting magic users from getting exploited/used by the homeland. Those who have disappeared are those who have shown promising sorcerous power.
Now, tossing out those which are silly or in jest (a place for ducks to sleep? Really, worst?), those which don't work given the other decisions (the host country wouldn't be friendly if it were spoils of war), and the overly-complex, I'm left with three broad motifs.
-The colony is a haven, source, or exile for magic-users, leading them to be vastly over represented in the colonial population.
-The colony developed under scientific and mercantile charter, and is dedicated towards research, exploration, and progress.
-Standard imperial colonialism (though I like the story of shipwrecked sailors who liked their new home)
I'll draw up the next survey, which will decide this last question and otherwise focus mostly on our protagonist himself.
Xalxe: this is xofelf sometimes we call each other names and other times we share emotions
MattyP: Ur an enigma tho when it comes to circadian rhythm and the traditions we hold dear when it comes to the sun and the moon Get to reknow a xofelf here
Discord is faster than PMs or sitechat: xofelf#1697
This one took a little extra time because while I'm feeling much better, I'm still a bit under the weather. I also implemented a number of format changes - some questions are now ranked order, and others are checkboxes with "Other" options. If it's a checkmark, feel free to select more than one, though bear in mind that checking everything might as well be checking nothing. I'm doing this to implement some elements of approval voting and find what works for the most number of people. Enjoy!
Rawr!
"Dammit Felissan, making someone lose the game is NOT NICE"- DeathRowKitty 2016
