Differences

This shows you the differences between two versions of the page.

--- nayabaru:subcultures [2020-01-08 20:54] – Reeva Peninsula and Asheenagiji Desert subcultures cleaned up pinkgothic
+++ nayabaru:subcultures [2024-06-28 20:25] (current) – pinkgothic
@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-<fc #ff0000>**WARNING**</fc>: The following material has not yet had a chance to become canonical.
+<color #ff0000>**WARNING**</color>: The following material has not yet had a chance to become canonical.
 Nayabaru are largely blind to the differences in their subcultures when they encounter them, as they tend to manifest on axes they are less interested in - this means there are no formal names for these subcultures, and this page will simply try to give them geographic names.
@@ Line 15: / Line 15: @@
 This subculture uses the tattoo alphabet with the visual design it was originally designed with, without adding inherent bells and whistles:
-{{:nayabaru:society:tattoo-region-asheenagiji.png?nolink&200|}}
+{{ :nayabaru:society:tattoo-region-asheenagiji.png?nolink&200 |}}
-That said, the arrangement of the glyphs is still typically done with aesthetic intent. An example rendition of the title //Hesh//:
+That said, the arrangement of the glyphs is still typically done with aesthetic intent. An example rendition of the title //[[:Nayabaru:society:titles|Hesh]]//:
-{{:nayabaru:society:tattoo-hesh-rendition-1.png?nolink|}}
+{{ :nayabaru:society:tattoo-hesh-rendition-1.png?nolink |}}
 The //Tain-Katal Coastal// Nayabaru prefer to have the relevant words in large glyphs on their body, not repeated more than necessary, meaning that their tattoos tend to be up to several centimetres thick in stroke.
@@ Line 45: / Line 45: @@
 In Reeva itself and select stretches of the landscape all the way up to Vortok, the tattoo system tends to keep the outline of the original glyph designs, but will occasionally fill them in with baubles rather than a solid colour:
-{{:nayabaru:society:tattoo-region-asheenagiji-reeva.png?nolink&200|}}
+{{ :nayabaru:society:tattoo-region-asheenagiji-reeva.png?nolink&200 |}}
 ==== Asheenagiji Desert subculture ====
-{{:nayabaru:society:tattoo-region-unassigned.png?nolink&200|}}
 The main body of the Asheenagiji continent is an arid expanse, home to vast stretches of desert. The Nayabaru scattered throughout this geographic region as well as the 'northern' coastal stretch loosely share a subculture. They are less likely to reject outcasts from other areas, granting them a richer but more dangerous cultural landscape. It has the highest murder rate, largely because it has the highest number of psychotic individuals (some of which are even [[:Nayabaru:society:sexuality|selected to breed]]).
@@ Line 61: / Line 59: @@
 The //Asheenagiji Desert// subculture itself has no general stance on the kavkema, given there aren't many kavkema amongst the wastelands. They are often driven back into the coastal areas if they are found, but they might just as well be captured and tortured purely for sport by the less savoury Nayabaru that have found refuge in this culture.
-Note that not all Nayabaru outcasts that live in the area //were// necessarily accepted into any kind of community. Sometimes, all the //Asheenagiji Desert// subculture will do when faced with outcasts is to ignore them, as is true for any Nayabaru culture - though they may ignore them more gently than others and not send them away if they are unarmed and come to trade.
+It's worth noting that not all Nayabaru outcasts that live in the area //were// necessarily accepted into any kind of community. Sometimes, all the //Asheenagiji Desert// subculture will do when faced with outcasts is to ignore them, as is true for any Nayabaru culture - though they may ignore them more gently than others and not send them away if they are unarmed and come to trade.
+//Asheenagiji Desert// tattoo ornamentation is one of the only known to break up the outlines of the classic glyphs, instead winding wire patterns along the inside of the glyph's invisible confines. The exact ornamentation tends to vary strongly from region to region, taking on various details, such as occasional labyrinthine detail work. An example of the simplest form the ink wire might chart can be seen here:
+{{ :nayabaru:society:tattoo-region-unassigned.png?nolink&200 |}}
 ===== Cetaros =====
-{{:nayabaru:society:tattoo-region-cetaros.png?nolink&200|}}
+The two island-continents the Nayabaru call //Cetaros// share certain cultural similarities that aren't observed anywhere else, although there is also a distinction between the islands. Together they are home to the second most populous Nayabaru subculture after the //Tain-Katal Coastal// subculture, although if one were to regard them separately, the //Vatenas-Petraal// subculture would outrank them both.
-==== Valesh Island subculture ====
+What the islands have in common is something humans might call 'a sense of pride' at their cultural achievements. They celebrate Nayabaru achievements, occasionally with simple rituals of everyday life. Their tattoos are the most strikingly ornamental on the entire planet, each glyph further //containing// or even accented by intricate tribal patterns:
-{{:nayabaru:society:tattoo-region-cetaros-hesh-example.png?nolink&200|}}
+{{ :nayabaru:society:tattoo-region-cetaros.png?nolink&200 |}}
-The area around Valesh, scattered pockets in mainland Cetaros, as well as some of the islands south of Cetaros (but not all of them) is home to a Nayabaru subculture that has elevated their xenophobia of the kavkema to an art form that has pushed it back out the other end to give them a certain respect for them.
+An example rendition of the title //Hesh//:
-Perhaps ironically, they view the kavkema entirely as animals (though they grant them basic sapient 'protection' by their ethical system, i.e. consider their deaths something to prevent). Nonetheless, they are considerably more interested in the kavkemic culture than the rest of the Nayabaru culture would claim and there are informal areas that the kavkema are left alone (though it's not allowed to be made explicit, since then they need to do something about it) so that they won't die out. The subculture is too interested in keeping enough of the kavkema around specifically so they might continue hunting them - which occasionally involves catching them and releasing them again later simply to hunt them again. It's something of a sport for them.
+{{ :nayabaru:society:tattoo-region-cetaros-hesh-example.png?nolink&200 |}}
-===== Tabraan =====
+Both Cetaros islands lean heavily toward the opinion that kavkema are //animals// (though they both grant them basic sapient 'protection' by their ethical system, i.e. consider their deaths something to prevent). Both have turned the art of hunting kavkema into a kind of sport - specifically, a test of skill and strategy with only minimal actual risk - although they draw different conclusions as to how to make this pleasure sustainable. This practise is one of the many manifestations of the 'celebration' idea; in this case, celebrating the supremacy of the Nayabaru over the kavkema.
-==== Cetaros-Tabraan subculture ====
+Despite this practise, it's worth noting that they are not inherently crueller to captive kavkema than any other culture.
-{{:nayabaru:society:tattoo-region-tabraan.png?nolink&200|}}
+==== Valesh Island subculture ====
-The Cetaros-Tabraan subculture is another 'pure' streak of Nayabaru culture, much like Tain-Katal, though they are stricter about their treatment of outlawed inflicted death. They also do not engage in defensive measures against the kavkema more than necessary - one might consider them a bit lazy about it, and very confident in their ability to take on kavkema if personally confronted with them.
+The area around Valesh, scattered pockets in mainland Cetaros, as well as some of the islands south of Cetaros (but not all of them) are home to a Nayabaru subculture that has a certain respect for kavkema, like one would of any formidable opponent or dangerous animal.
-Much like the Valesh Island subculture, they view the kavkema primarily as animals (but also grant them sapient 'protection' by their ethical system, i.e. consider their deaths something to prevent). Whereas other cultures will happily abuse the kavkema as labrats or otherwise 'dehumanise' them, the Cetaros-Tabraan subculture shows no inherent interest in this, but this is largely attributed to their disinterest in kavkema, not to kindness.
+Despite the 'animal' designation, the Nayabaru of the //Valesh Island// subculture are considerably more interested in the kavkem culture than the rest of the Nayabaru culture would claim. There are informal areas that the kavkema are left alone (though no explicit mention of these may be made, lest the Nayabaru might have to do something about these areas) so that they won't die out, leaving enough available for the occasional hunt.
-===== Vatenas =====
+Occasionally their hunting practises involve catching kavkema //and releasing them again later//, simply to hunt them again.
-{{:nayabaru:society:tattoo-region-vatenas.png?nolink&200|}}
+==== Cetaros Main subculture ====
+The rest of Cetaros leans more toward a mixture of the Valesh subculture and the Asheenagiji subculture. They do not //fully// share the Valesh subculture's habit of viewing kavkema as animals, inherently attributing some sapience to them, enough to consider them weakly accountable for their actions.
+Rather than keep areas free of tampering as that they might always have kavkema to hunt, Cetaros Main follows a strict policy of trying to capture any wild kavkema, much like one would expect in Asheenagiji. However, they will occasionally release tagged kavkema (often ones bred in captivity, but occasionally previous captures deemed harmless enough) into the wild to facilitate a ceremonial hunt.
+===== Vatenas =====
 ==== Vatenas-Petraal subculture ====
-{{:nayabaru:society:tattoo-region-vatenas-hesh-example.png?nolink|}}
+Nayabaru populations on Vatenas itself, as well as the city //Petraal// on the coast of Sefusa, form the //Vatenas-Petraal// subculture. This subculture comes as close to a true scientific mindset as a culture nonetheless steeped in tradition and community likely can be, taking special pride in the achievements of its //[[:Nayabaru:society:titles|Darhala]]//.
-The Vatenas-Petraal subculture considers the kavkema entirely sapient and fully accountable for their actions. Accordingly, they are a very nasty place for kavkema to live, even if they will not engage in some actions such as using them as labrats.
+They're a fairly purist subculture that does not tolerate much mixing with other subcultures (Petraal on Sefusa notwithstanding). Vatenas as a whole keeps itself neatly isolated from the other subcultures by nature of being an island. They keep communicative contact with the rest of the Nayabaru primarily so they can learn of new technologies.
-They're a fairly purist subculture that does not tolerate much mixing with other subcultures (Petraal on Sefusa notwithstanding). Vatenas as a whole keeps itself neatly isolated from the other subcultures by nature of being an island. They are very interested in scientific progress (even if they are not very good at it, as they still suffer all the same failings of the base culture) and keep communicative contact with the rest of the Nayabaru primarily so they can learn of new technologies.
+The Vatenas-Petraal subculture considers the kavkema to be entirely sapient and fully accountable for their actions. While this greatly reduces the degree to which anyone in Vatenas might even //consider// using kavkema as lab rats, it's still an unforgiving place - every creature once killed by a captive kavkem will be held against the captive and the Nayabaru of course know that kavkema are preferentially carnivorous. The focus on kavkem incarceration is very much on containment and punishment.
-They're entirely willing to use kavkema as slaves (other cultures might call the same setup "pets"). They're actually the most likely to treat kavkem pets/slaves kindly, but it's something that takes time, the right personalities, and has to be earned.
+On the other hand, occasionally, kavkema might redeem themselves - much like a human who was sentenced to a certain number of years of imprisonment to then walk free. Of course, containment is still a paramount, so freedom is not an option. However, the subculture is entirely willing to use kavkema as slaves (other cultures might call the same setup "pets"). Note that this arrangement is actually the most likely to treat kavkema //kindly// and a constellation bordering on friendship may form between a 'reformed' kavkem and its Nayabaru 'owner'. That said, these 'friendships' take time, the right personalities, and from a Nayabaru perspective it's clear that it must be earned with hard work and loyalty.
+Vatenas tattoos tend to be minimalist, with thin strokes and accented joints that only hint at the original glyph joint design. Nonetheless, they are quite recognisable as [[:Nayabaru:society:tattoo|tsha͡um or fega͡uri]]:
+{{ :nayabaru:society:tattoo-region-vatenas.png?nolink&200 |}}
+The //Vatenas-Petraal// subculture is known to prefer having what they consider to be strictly legible tattoos, using them more like they might regular writing, and repeat the tattoos as necessary to fill the necessary areas. An example rendition of the title //Hesh//, still heavily stylised by //Vatenas-Petraal// measures (the curves may end up straightened out arbitrarily, and the rotation of the glyphs is often adjusted so they 'share' a rotation, much as when they are taught):
+{{ :nayabaru:society:tattoo-region-vatenas-hesh-example.png?nolink&200 |}}
+This sequence of curves would be repeated several times on the back of the //Hesh// in question - once in very large lettering, then in smaller patterns visually grouping with the large tattoo (a bit like a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tag_cloud&oldid=931060916|tag cloud]]).
+===== Tabraan =====
+Tabraan is a very large, mountainous island. At one point in its past, this detail of its landscape allowed kavkema to thrive.
+The //Tabraan// subculture Nayabaru are the only Nayabaru on Nekenalos known to be somewhat superstitious, ascribing near-metaphysical qualities to their nemesis. However, with these meta-physical qualities came a certain codex of behaviour, and the Tabraan Nayabaru were known to leave larger kavkem territories well alone, breaching them only when they themselves required the territory to establish a new community, or when the specific kavkema roaming the area had been rumoured to attack Nayabaru or their livestock.
+As such, defensive measures tend to be fairly minimalist, and offensive measures very sweeping when applied.
+Exceptions are generally made when kavkema are needed to study them, to find more effective means to combat them; the //Tabraan// subculture would not usually breed kavkema in captivity, unless they had reason to believe that it would be difficult to find another example of a genetic subtype in the wild (such as populations from the islands between Tabraan and Vatenas).
+Unfortunately, the repeated application of sweeping offensives had left Tabraan almost barren of kavkema before the Tabraan pushback.
+Tabraan tattoo glyphs are often only an outline, as though they were hollow:
+{{ :nayabaru:society:tattoo-region-tabraan.png?nolink&200 |}}
 ===== Sefusa =====
-{{:nayabaru:society:tattoo-region-sefusa.png?nolink&200|}}
+Sefusa is a large stretch of land whose mountain ranges have been claimed by the Nayabaru more than on any other continent. The kavkema that live here tend not to be mountainous, instead hiding in the jungle that the Nayabaru have rejected as a habitat, but as it is not an environment they were made to thrive in and evolution has not quite pushed them far enough to fix this problem, there are not many kavkema on Sefusa at all.
+Accordingly, kavkema are almost invisible to Sefusa. Indeed, some //Sefusa// subculture Nayabaru may live their entire life without encountering a kavkem or as much of a story of one, believing them to merely be monsters of old. Correspondingly, the Sefusa subculture is notable in that it does not engage in defensive measures against the kavkema more than would be necessary to keep out any other predator straying too close to their settlements.
+Even in areas on Sefusa that are still convinced kavkema exist, such as the areas immediately around [[:planet:Nekenalos:Sefusa:Petraal]] or [[:planet:Nekenalos:Sefusa:Farden]], where Pens are still common, the Sefusa subculture shows no inherent interest in abusing the kavkema as labrats or otherwise 'dehumanising' them. However, this should be attributed to disinterest, not to kindness.
-==== Sefusa subculture ====
+The tattoos of the //Sefusa// subculture are usually rendered in an 'open' fashion, missing part of the glyph outline, but make up for this by emphasising the flow of the segments with additional strokes, most of which run aesthetically parallel to the remaining outline(s), such as here:
-//(I would expect this to be a mix of Vatenas-Petraal and Tain-Katal, but I don't seem to have a feel for this.)//
+{{ :nayabaru:society:tattoo-region-sefusa.png?nolink&200 |}}