[hider=Free Folk of Aseophin] [center][IMG]https://img.fireden.net/tg/image/1448/06/1448066146531.jpg[/IMG] [H2]Free Folk of Aseophin[/H2][/center] [hider=Geography] [center][IMG]https://www.algarvefun.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Benagil_Cave_Algarve.jpg[/IMG][/center] [center][hider=Localized Map][img]https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/392154507741495296/605623598916435990/unknown.png[/img][/hider][/center] [b]Location:[/b] Aseophin lies near the centre of the world at the heart of a mighty bay that has become the centrepiece for their civilization. [hr] [b]Climate:[/b] Most of Aseophin experiences mild winter weather with the temperature rarely dipping below freezing and generous amounts of rain. The summers can be ferociously hot and heavy weather batters the coast throughout the season. [hr] [b]Terrain:[/b] A land of endless sun drenched sea cliffs, small white sand beaches, jagged mountains, deep rivers, bottomless sinkholes, and sparse forests. [hr] [b]Population Distribution:[/b] Aseophins are concentrated entirely around the great harbour that makes up the powerbase of their growing trade empire. [hr] [b]Natural Hazards:[/b] Not everything in Aseophin can kill you. It wants to, but it just cant. The locals have learned how to navigate the natural hazards in land formations and wildlife. There are several volcanos, and many sinkholes lie hidden by the forest, natural pitfalls for the unwary. [hr][/hider] [hider=People and Society] [center] [IMG]http://img.myconfinedspace.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/fish-people-by-Nate-Hallinan-700x516.jpg[/IMG] [/center] [b]Population:[/b] 25,000,000 Aseophin [hr] [b]Nationality:[/b] Aseophin [hr] [b]Racial Demographics:[/b] Aseophin are roughly of human height, standing from 5'5" – 6'1" (1.65 – 1.85 meters) on average, but are lighter, weighing from 130 – 180 lbs. (59 – 82 kg). Even exceptionally strong Aseophin look rather slim compared with other races, looking athletic rather than muscular. Most Aseophin are blue-skinned on their back, moving to a lighter blue or even white on their stomach. Occasionally darker colours or even a almost stripped look with a third colour finds its way into the gene pool. None of the Aseophin have any sort of noticeable body hair. All have varying degree of fins, ridges, or even full on crests - some with small lights that help them see in the darkest waters. Webbed hands and feet are found among all the tribes. [center][url=https://i.pinimg.com/originals/56/46/bb/5646bb893bd31e3ebe046731e554e3e8.jpg] Female Aseophin[/url][/center] Aseophin grow at a decelerating rate throughout their lives. Very young Aseophin mature at a rate comparable with humans but during adolescence slow to a near stop until about 110 years of age, at which point they are considered mature. Aseophin then remain vigorous and active until the middle of their third century. Even so, after this, most Aseophin suffer few of the infirmities of old age that plague other races, remaining full of life until the end. [center][url=https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/karish/images/0/06/8c9a295ea52040921f2fde86cffb57c6--d-artwork-sci-fi-art.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20171108193001] Male Aseophin[/url][/center] The shape of their heads can vary as well, from a triangle shape to fragile beauty coupled with tentacles forming a type of hair. Aseophin eye are most commonly black, with some possessing purple or even gold. They are able to see as well underwater as they are above it. This harkens back to the original tribes that joined together to create the Free Folk who now call themselves the Aseophin. While it is possible for the various tribes to engage in sexual activity with each other, any offspring will be of the same physical appearance as their mother. [hr] [b]Language(s):[/b] Aseophin [hr] [b]Faith:[/b] Aseophin worship [i]Ahti[/i], the Goddess of the Ocean and the Great Deep. Prayers and sacrifies to the Goddess are offered at Temples built into caves and caverns along the cliffs so that the ocean can rush into them during the high tide. When a Aseophin dies, their body is [i]Returned to Ahti[/i], a ritual where the deceased is allowed to be washed out to sea where it is consumed by the ocean. Unlike humans, Aseophin bodies do not bloat after death, rather they sink immediately and are lost to the ocean. float when they die, rather they sink like a stone. [hr] [b]Age Structure:[/b] Aseophin have been known to live nearly five hundred years. [hr] [b]Education:[/b] Education is considered a gift for all Aseophin and none are denied the ability to study to their hearts content. The literacy rate is 100% among the Aseophin and many consider it a great achievement to learn and expand their knowledge beyond the basics expected of them by society. [hr][/hider] [hider=Government] [center][IMG]https://stmed.net/sites/default/files/styles/1024x1024/public/fantasy-temple-wallpapers-28162-1178634.jpg?itok=pjGeEN_9[/IMG][/center] [b]Government Type:[/b] The Aseophin are ruled by the Chosen, three Elders selected by Ahti herself. Each Elder holds their position for thirty years, though one of their number is replaced every ten years, thus ensuring a consistent evolution of leadership. [hr] [b]Capital:[/b] Name: Anahita Detailed Notes: The [url=https://i.pinimg.com/originals/11/57/a1/1157a1c3e4a8a41cb73e704f295860c9.jpg]City of Anahita[/url] was once nothing more than a safe haven for the Aseophin. The first of the tribes found small passageways through which they could swim to enter an awe-inspiring natural opening in the earth, hemmed in on all sides by cliffs, caverns, and waterfalls. The space was large enough to fit every tribe with room to spare, all the while protecting the inhabitants from weather and natural predators. It has since become a become a sprawling city of unrivalled beauty and watery delights. At first glance the City of Anahita is near invisible. A giant band of cliffs march away in either direction broken only by a pair of great carved passageways large enough to accommodate any ship afloat at low tide. Guarded by great ship-breaking chains and a thousand murder holes through which fire can be poured, the entrances themselves are a feat all to their own. Any visitor, once clear of the initial defences, will find themselves in the Grand Harbour - a space made only larger by the addition of fortifications on the clifftops. Here there is enough space for several hundred ships to find anchorage amid a dozen small islands, each of them a small fortress in its own right, all built to protect the shipping within. The Grand Harbour is the largest of nearly a hundred such sinkholes and grottos that the Aseophin have slowly developed and built into a sprawling cavern city. All are connected by passageways, both above and below the water; making of the city is impossible for non-Aseophin to access without help from the locals. [hr] [b]Flag:[/b] [center] [IMG]https://gamepedia.cursecdn.com/witcher_gamepedia/a/a9/Nilfgaard_journal.png[/IMG] [/center] [hr][/hider] [hider=Economy] [center][IMG]https://stuffershack.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Treasure3.png[/IMG][/center] [b]Economy:[/b] Taking and keeping control of long distance trade necessitated new means and measures of checking and controlling. When the Aseophin made the decision to move beyond their new home and into the proverbial sunlight, they began a "commercial revolution" with its new cultural, organizational forms, not to forget with its new ways of living, lead to a never before seen predominance of economy, especially as the economically minded Aseophin families were at the same time incorporated in the vehicles of political power. Economic success attracted - as ever - thousands of folk, amongst them lots of artisans with capabilities of utmost importance. Refining and melioration, this allowing new products to develop. Aseophin has worked to ensure nations concede privileges to the Aseophin traders, when they are in heavy political constraints. Combined with the early reduction of barter and a strong position of money-mediated trade. A long learning-process that lead to a rudimentary economic policy started, including patent protection, promotion of trade, but strategic help for the flux and leave of capital and metals. This provided the backbone of free trade and of the convoys of large ships sent to the markets around the world. In addition it offered lots of opportunities to regulate the local balances of power and secured partly the means of living for Aseophin herself. The city can finance its everyday duties through tariffs, but in difficult times it rigidly makes recourse to the estate and capital of the thousand rich families. Money in its core mostly consists of gold or silver. As a consequence the economy depends heavily on the timely afflux and efflux of these metals. Aseophin has had to develop a highly flexible system of currencies and change rates between coins consisting of silver and gold in order to preserve and enhance its role as platform and turntable of international trading. In addition the change rates between the currencies circulating within Aseophin and outside had to be adjusted adequately. In addition, trading is used as a means of payment, which can help avoid transportation of gold and silver, which are expensive and dangerous. Crediting became a way to bridge the ubiquitous lack of noble metals, and at the same time, to accelerate goods turnover; were it with the help of a simple bank transfer; were it with the aid of a bill of exchange. Also available and helpful were to float loans, used as a kind of traders' money, circulating from hand to hand. Despite the predominance of intermediary trade, ship building is an industry of utmost importance right from the beginning - and it is by far the most important employer. [b]Shipping:[/b] Aseophin vessels can be found in every sea, in every port, and they carry any cargo you can imagine. For hire to complete almost any task, they come with world renowned speed, the protection of the Aseophin fleet, and the knowledge that your goods are in the safest webbed hands they can be. It is not unknown for Aseophin vessels to openly flaunt blockades due to their speed. [hr][/hider] [hider=Military and Security] [center][IMG]https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/c77966ba-3786-4104-9573-a6d17c27c859/d8xarfn-ab4c9677-3bb5-4460-929a-578da83fef93.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7InBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcL2M3Nzk2NmJhLTM3ODYtNDEwNC05NTczLWE2ZDE3YzI3Yzg1OVwvZDh4YXJmbi1hYjRjOTY3Ny0zYmI1LTQ0NjAtOTI5YS01NzhkYTgzZmVmOTMuanBnIn1dXSwiYXVkIjpbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmZpbGUuZG93bmxvYWQiXX0.mOXP877UDwB66GrRYHtzPEHTy33dTztMl7sTFjXJhJU[/IMG][/center] [b]Land Forces:[/b] Aseophin maintains a small professional army that provides more than adequate protection within its own borders. This force is perpetually locked in combat with the savage creatures that live on the fringes, beyond the settled lands, and in the ocean itself. This includes more primitive Merpeople that attempt to feed on anything and everything. There is a focus on heavy infantry and flatbow archers. There are no mounted units as the terrain makes them utterly impractical. Aseophin relies on mercenaries for cavalry, siege equipment, and light troops. These more often than not, ironically, are hired from their primary trading rival, Drakon. [hr] [b]Naval Forces:[/b] Aseophin vessels are often called ships for the ease of use, but nothing could be further from the truth when they are encountered. Using flesh crafting skills and the power of crystal energy, the Aseophin have created flesh-ships from the carcass of a whale and other deep sea creatures. The constructs are then fitted with with bronze emplacements for heavy broadsides of lightening. The lightening weapons, designed to cause damage without the risk of burning their own vessels, had been accomplished using crystals as a catalyst - a mass of energy built within the devices - and released through the bronze emplacements. The effect is a devastating explosion of energy to rival even a Sanghara broadside. Propelled by construct flagella, they are among the fastest vessels on the surface of the ocean. Aseophin has built a considerable fleet despite the nations comparatively small size. Over a thousand ships serve Aseophin at this time, securing trade routes, battling pirates, and defending home waters. The true punch of the Aseophin fleet lies within its boarding forces. The Aseophin are naturally gifted swimmers and can quickly cross large distances with great speed underwater to strike at an enemy vessel. Like humans, the Aseophin are welcome food source for natural predators beneath the waves and must take the same precautions any human diver might to remain uneaten. [hider=Vessel Types] [b]Miruk Flesh-Construct[/b]: Crafted from the remains of mighty deep sea whales, these constructs are far more rare than any other vessel. They are used primarily for the salvage of enemy shipping, but more importantly, they are the main vessels used to reclaim leviathan hulks from the deep. The Aseophin use those same hulks to expand their fleet, or replace agining constructs. [/hider] [hr][/hider] [hider=Foreign Relations] Drakon: While the two merchant states are nominally competitors, they maintain a mutual stranglehold on two key markets, the slave and salt trades. Though they come to blows from time to time, the two economic powerhouses are known to set aside their differences when threats arise to their trade networks. In the immortal words of the Elder Council, "Why have enemies when you can have friends?" [hr][/hider] [hider=History] WIP [hr][/hider] [hider=Rolls] Land Area: 4 (Minus 10) Land Fertility: 9 Development: 20 (Plus six) Land Power: 6 Naval Power: 20 (Swapped with Magic) Economy: 20 (Plus 3) Magical Reserves: 12 (Plus one) Magical Sophistication: 17 (Plus seven) (+4 Traits) [/hider] [hider=Traits] [b]The Light of Aseophin:[/b] An ancient people with deep magical roots, the Aseophin have mastered the creation and weaponization of lightening as a weapon. Using a crystal power source, and the great bronze culverins on-board their vessels, they are able to unleash devastating attacks at range against enemy targets. The impact of such a weapon blasts holes through wood, melt steel, and can serve to electrocute anyone in the water, or touching nearby metal. In some cases the intense heat can cause wood to burst into flames. This has made the Aseophin untouchable in their home waters and one of the deadliest sea going peoples in the known world. [hr] [b]Creatures of the Deep:[/b] (+4 to Magical Sophistication) The very survival of the Aseophin depended on their ability to not only evade, but also to combat the creatures of the deep. There are plenty of savage deep sea denizens that are capable of destroying a full sized warship with ease and, being a sea faring people - and not much interested in heights - the Aseophin have mastered the art of creating flesh-constructs from the carcasses of dead sea beasts. Through powerful manipulation, and some blood, tears, and torn fins, the Aseophin have succeeded in turning them into vessels of war and trade. [hr] [b]Landsick:[/b] The Aseophin are not land dwellers. They survive well enough in their deep caves, caverns, and ocean carved grottos, but on land they are uneasy and tend to fall ill very quickly. No Aseophin likes to go beyond the sight of water, though some have been known to swim far up rivers and into lakes deep in the interior. Even Aseophin taken as slaves are quick to perish it they are not provided access to a natural water source. You will never see an army of Aseophin on land. [hr] [/hider] [hider=Tech Trees (MODIFICATIONS PENDING)] [Hider=Development][img]https://i.imgur.com/ayfx34G.png[/img][/hider] [hider=Economy][img]https://i.imgur.com/9I86AJ1.png[/img][/hider] [hider=Land Power][img]https://i.imgur.com/pnUfnt3.png[/img][/hider] [hider=Magical Sophistication][img]https://i.imgur.com/G6JUMHF.png[/img][/hider] [hider=Naval Power][img]https://i.imgur.com/cgLLu4a.png[/img][/hider] [/hider] [/hider] [hider=Creatures of the Great Ocean] [b]Orkiathan[/b]: A sea going mammal that looks somewhat like a dolphin. The torpedo shape and grey skin, along with a single blow hole, are where the similarities end. The Orkiathan have razor sharp teeth and small spikes all over their heads which they use to injure prey when they ram their prey. Their flesh is poisonous to most land dwelling creatures and causes partially paralysis that can be permanent if untreated. [hr] [b]Toiyr:[/b] A mid-sized leviathan that somewhat resembled a whale. A severely shortened snout, two massive armoured main flippers, some dozen smaller flippers along the sides, and a huge dorsal fin that looked like a sail, made it a relatively gentle but formidable opponent. Not known to hunt anything but small mammals and fish, it eats a tremendous amount and is notably difficult to hunt. [/hider] [hider=NPC Neighbours] [hider=Kingdom of Thordall (NPC)] Land Area: 6 Land Fertility: 12 Development: 9 Land Power: 17 Naval Power: 2 Economy: 4 Magical Reserves: 7 Magical Sophistication: 1 [/hider] [hider=Grand Duchy of Sanskrit (NPC)] Land Area: 7 Land Fertility: 6 Development: 15 Land Power: 13 Naval Power: 3 Economy: 19 Magical Reserves: 5 Magical Sophistication: 1 [/hider] [hider=Empire of Burisa (NPC)] Land Area: 12 Land Fertility: 6 Development: 17 Land Power: 11 Naval Power: 3 Economy: 10 Magical Reserves: 8 Magical Sophistication: 6 [/hider] [/hider]