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Post by drunkensolamnic on Aug 15, 2015 8:22:23 GMT -5
How long ago was the Book of Lazaar stricken from the Triumverant texts? How hard would finding a copy of it be?
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Post by whyemmdee on Aug 17, 2015 15:26:59 GMT -5
A long time ago, details are muddy. Some claim around the year 500 AE, others even earlier. Impossible through ordinary means.
Yes.
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Post by Kitsunenotsume on Aug 17, 2015 17:58:50 GMT -5
Has there been any constructions analogous to Babbage's Analytical Engine? If so, how commonplace are they, given that the primary concern with the original design was cost and functionality (though the functionality has been proven, for the Difference Engine No. 2's tolerances) Are there other computing mechanisms, given the stated advanced technology level for the time (steam-powered or electrical)?
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Post by Dragonslayer on Aug 18, 2015 8:04:17 GMT -5
A few questions for the elven folk! 1. What would be some defining characteristics of elves living in the Nefarian desert? I've based my character's fictional clan off of the Tuareg people of the Saharan Desert, albeit with some minor changes. Is this accurate? 2. I know there was some mention of aeld elven back on page 1. Would remnants of the language exist in modern elven cultural or religious aspects, sort of the way Latin is used in Catholicism? What would the elven be based off of, in terms of real language (such as modern day Arabic, or perhaps Tolkien based)? 3. Do the tribes (if that's the case) have any unifying features, such as religious holidays or rituals beyond those specific to certain tribes?
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Post by Fuzz on Aug 18, 2015 9:53:32 GMT -5
A lot of the Elven tribes wear masks or cover their faces and wouldn't show them to outsiders, men and women both. Some tribes only cover their eyes with goggles or eye masks, while others only cover their mouths or cover their heads, but generally is a universal thing that some part of your head is always covered, depending on your tribe.
Old Elven wouldn't be spoken at all anymore, but in the same way romance languages stem from Latin, there would be tribal dialects and languages that would be a weird butchering of old Elven. Universally there is no written form of any of these languages, and almost all tribal elves are illiterate because they use oral histories... An outsider would have had to teach a tribal elf to read. That includes the elves from Solateum or Astrum, they would be considered outsiders, too.
In terms of characteristics, they generally cover up most of their body, simply because they live in the desert. They consider their bodies sacred and never have tattoos, and actually facial scars are a great mark of shame for them and a method of making criminals or betrayers (which also ties into the mask thing). They generally don't use guns and are mistrustful of technology. Because of their nomadic desert lifestyle, they almost all exclusively practice air burial or cremation, which is another reason the body must remain pure to be offered up so that you can join the ancestors. The tribes that do air burial are preoccupied with aerial imagery and will paint their masks to resemble birds, or will have names that reference birds.
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Post by Dragonslayer on Aug 18, 2015 10:21:18 GMT -5
Thanks! I'll try to implement some of these with my PC. What kind of language is old elven, though? As in, should an elf's particular dialect be reminiscent of a real world language?
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pochoclo
Gumshoe
Clockwork Detect THIS!
Posts: 74
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Post by pochoclo on Aug 18, 2015 11:41:49 GMT -5
Has there been any constructions analogous to Babbage's Analytical Engine? If so, how commonplace are they, given that the primary concern with the original design was cost and functionality (though the functionality has been proven, for the Difference Engine No. 2's tolerances) Are there other computing mechanisms, given the stated advanced technology level for the time (steam-powered or electrical)? Comparable to early 1800's Earth. Dwarven tech features bleeding-edge differential gearwork, steam furnaces, and limited (not widespread yet) use of electricity, but no transistors, microcomputing or electronics. Gnomes are also quite advanced, trying to insert themselves in the market by undercutting dwarves. The most common application of computing you'll commonly see is perhaps a Pascaline/Arithmometer analogue (expensive though - consider about 99% of people doing computing will have slide rules and calculus tables instead) in the Bank or a wealthy merchant - mechanical calculators and such, gearwork/steam automation, for very specific applications. Again, no general computing yet. The Academy is the faction that would be researching this kind of thing. Also, astronomical gearwork computers are used at sea (astrolabes, etc).
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Post by Fuzz on Aug 18, 2015 12:09:52 GMT -5
The Institute would actually be the one leading the way in crazy oddball tech. If the Academy is Harvard, the Institute is MIT.
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Post by Kitsunenotsume on Aug 19, 2015 22:02:31 GMT -5
Regarding medicine: What is the current level of technology and opinion regarding blood transfusions, antivenin, and other recuperative care?
Reasoning: I know it was discussed somewhere (probably IRC) that genetics and bioscience were more advanced, so blood types and such might be known.
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Post by greypawn on Aug 19, 2015 22:46:38 GMT -5
Regarding medicine: What is the current level of technology and opinion regarding blood transfusions, antivenin, and other recuperative care? Reasoning: I know it was discussed somewhere (probably IRC) that genetics and bioscience were more advanced, so blood types and such might be known. Genetics are known within the intellectual community, though the commoner may be ignorant or completely dismissive to its existence. So, you could bring up solid scientific evidence up in court but if a judge is still living in an old world mindset he may dismiss it as nonsense. Medicine is in a discovery period within our world, which makes it pretty darn neat. Just like the industrial age, huge advancements are being made all the time. With the setting being what it is, the Hippocratic Oath isn't exactly always followed. So, depending on who you are doing the blood transfusion to.... you may be seen as a savior or a morally flexible weirdo. Or both.
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Post by Fuzz on Aug 20, 2015 5:51:28 GMT -5
Just like in real life, there is no Hippocratic Oath that is followed or enforced, as an aside. One of the more common misconceptions in real life.
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Post by Kaybrie on Aug 21, 2015 10:09:25 GMT -5
What's Solatium's military like? I'd imagine it's a lot of light scouts that comb the desert for potential threats... though I'm sorta drawing a blank between the roman legion's and something more ancient arabic.
Or, is the martial strength of the city more in the hands of individual noble houses, ala feudalism, and they'd band together in times of crisis and stuff. (Previous talks with YMD indicated that the noble houses are the prominent powers in Solatium.)
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Post by drunkensolamnic on Aug 21, 2015 16:07:03 GMT -5
Maybe something more Saracen where it'd be rounded shield, scimitar/spear, and light brigadine mail?
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pochoclo
Gumshoe
Clockwork Detect THIS!
Posts: 74
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Post by pochoclo on Aug 21, 2015 16:27:23 GMT -5
Solatium's aesthetics tend more towards real-life Roman-occupied Egypt. Military uses mostly light armor (light mail shirt) and tends towards cavalry (horse) units favoring mobility, using spears, javelins, and long range rifles. This is mostly because of the region's characteristics - the civilized military has very little reason to actually venture into the deep desert, so their activities are mostly confined to the "oasis corridor" that follows the river and its floodplains. This is a long and narrow area, so the military has to move fast and light to respond to threats effectively.
Also, the nomad tribes that wander the desert are terrifyingly effective at fighting in the deep sands, but Solatium's military, not really.
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Post by Fuzz on Aug 21, 2015 17:09:21 GMT -5
The nomad tribes use a lot of natural camouflage and traps, favoring stealthy guerilla tactics with crossbows and lighter weapons. They use special blasting grenades that are basically just shaped concussion grenades that, when thrown on sand, will kick it up in the air and not only provide a smoke-styled cover, but also blind and irritate the eyes of anyone who is not protected. They make heavy use of poisons derived from the many strange creatures of the desert, and they have a particular neurotoxin whose recipe is closely guarded (though most tribes seem to know it, or variations thereof) that will paralyze a humanoid for a particularly long time.
One of the more mythical tribes, the Mortangui, is said to have been a group of cannibals, choosing to eat other humanoids than what the desert provided. They notoriously used this sort of poison to capture victims alive, as a living body lasts a lot longer in the desert. Legends say they were wiped out by a disease carried in the blood of someone they ate. In modern times, no player would ever have been a member of this tribe, and their very existence is more of a desert horror story, meant to scare little children and stop them from venturing off into the desert alone. Still, the stories are popular, and even in Solateum they're often spoken of as desert boogeymen, even though they don't actually exist.
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