Bright_Ops

Rats in the Mall

Clan-Pack Ook Stor is ready to be looked at and judged.

Rats in the Mall

Clan-Pack Ook Stor

When one better understands the Creators Creators, you stop stop seeing them as something greater greater and start seeing them as equals equals.

Clan-Pack Ook Stor

History

While other Clan-Packs trace their lineages back to mighty warlords, generals or heroes of old, Clan-Pack Rattus's origins were much more humble. It started with a simple meal in the City of Glass before the Great Pack of old collapsed.

Several priests and scholars of the Creators had gathered together to enjoy an evening meal together in celebration of a holiday in the Creators name that time has forgotten the details of. Well fed and in good humor, an after dinner conversation about the nature of the Creators was started. While some common core elements were easily agreed on by all gathered, what started as a casual conversation quickly turned into a heated debate as details were explored. The debate turned into an almost frenzied argument and it was only because a scholar by the name of Sakata slammed his paws against the table like thunder in order to quite down the din was bloodshed avoided.

"Brothers Brothers and Sisters Sisters, fighting among ourselves will not not allow us to understand the Creators. We We must go out and learn learn what we can of the Creators and their works for ourselves before before we can even think think of understanding their nature."

Tempers cooled, the priests and scholars quickly found themselves somewhat excited about the prospect of finding more information on the Creators themselves. Within days of the meal, they had gone out and gathered several expeditions of rats and mice together with supplies for the sole purpose of heading out into the world in order to try and uncover and answer some of the great mysteries of the Creators and their works.

During the chaos of the fall of the Great Pack, the creation of the Field of Bones and the murderous tides of beasts and monsters that filled the world, the fates of many of these expeditions are unknown. What is known is that one of the expeditions was lead by Sakata himself upwards, making the long and harrowing journey up to the land between (the second floor) in order to seek knowledge there.

What they found was a treasure trove of knowledge gathered together in one place that was far beyond their wildest dreams. They found a 'Ook Stor', a place that clearly must have been of some great value to the Creators due to the massive amount of tomes of all shapes and sizes that had been gathered and stored there. So many in fact that even if a mouse or rat could read the writings of the Creators, no single being would be able to read through them all in a single lifetime. The daunting nature of the task didn't stop them through; Sakata's expedition planted itself and began a task that would require countless generations to achieve.

In time, Sakata passed and his expedition took on the title of the 'Ook Stor' Clan-Pack, each generation dedicated to plumbing the depths of the tomes of the Creators to try and gain greater insight into their true nature. That is... until a certain tome was opened up. Inside were pictures of -thousands- of different creatures and beasts that had never been seen by the eyes of rat or mouse, but clearly must exist in some far off, exotic land beyond the roof. Not all the creatures were strangers through...

Among the strange and exotic creatures that Creators either made or encountered (The very idea that the Creators hadn't created all life was mind boggling) were the pictures of a humble rat and a small, given the name of 'Rattus' and 'Mus'. The discovery of the original names the Creators had given them sent a shockwave through the Clan-Pack, both words quickly gaining holy importance while also giving researchers a clear indication that the history of Rats and Smalls went back so far that even the oldest tales from Beyond Time were relatively recent by comparison.

When the civil war between the Faith in the Creators and the Faith of Fire began, Clan-Pack Ook Stor quickly threw in its lot with the Faith in the Creators. While there were some... ideological differences that caused tension between the Clan and the City of Glass, both could easily agree on the fact that the Faith of Fire needed to be smothered before it could consume them all. Clan-Pack Ook Stor's role in the war was largely that of inventors and creators for the forces of the Creators; Their armor and creations became vital tools for faithful forces, through the most well known and legendary item that they created was the legendary Forgebreaker. According to Clan-Pack legend, Forgebreaker earned its name on the day that it was completed. As it was carried out of the forge it had been created in, the flame in the forge went out before it broke apart with a mighty crack.

In the current generation the Clan-Pack is slowly rebuilding its numbers after losses during the war with the Faith of Fire while attempting to maintain at least an acceptable relationship with the City of Glass despite recent tensions.

Leadership

Clan-Pack Ook Stor has a somewhat... flexible leadership structure in that the exact number of leaders changes with time. The Clan-Pack favors the leadership of a council made up of the oldest and wisest members of the Clan-Pack, a position on the council normally being offered to those who have lived long enough to start showing signs of their advanced age. Because there is no maximum size to the council, this results in the size shifting over time as members join or pass away. The only position on the Council that outlives the current occupant is that of the leader of the Warrior-Monks, who is assured a position and often in charge of military matters.

Unlike with other rat packs, Smalls that met the requirements are also free to join the Council and are generally treated with the same respect of their rat peers. After all, Wisdom is Wisdom regardless of the source.

The Council of Ook Stor do tend to be made up of Scholars, through like the position reserved for the Leader of the Warrior-Monk order members of other professions can rise into a leadership position.

Territory and Resources

Clan-Pack Ook Stor makes its home in an old abandoned book store on the second floor, but they have also laid claim to the empty store next door. Using knowledge gleamed from the tomes of the Creators and trading knowledge and well made equipment with other clan-packs, the Ook Stor rats have largely converted the empty space into a series of different farms with the import of dirt, seeds and a somewhat primitive understanding of what the Creators called 'Farming'.

Culture and Faith

From the onset of Sakata's expedition in order to uncover a greater understanding of the Creators, the Rats and Smalls that followed him all possessed a love and desire to learn and understand their gods better in order to live up to their ideals. While over the generations the relationship between the Rats and Smalls of Clan-Pack Ook Stor and the Creators may have changed, they still hold the Creators in high regard while highly valuing knowledge and technology even in the modern day.

The shared passion for knowledge shared by the rats and smalls of the Clan-Pack has resulted in the two intermingling to the point where both species are considered more or less equal over the Generations. While some jobs clearly favor the traits that either a small or a rat are born with, it isn't strange to see a Small Warrior-Monk training alongside their larger rat brothers and sisters in arms. Provided that one puts the time and effort into it to be at least on par (if not better) then their peers in the field, one can follow any path in life that they desire.

While the Clan-Pack is clearly a follower of the Faith of the Creators, it has a somewhat different relationship with their gods then other Clan-Packs that follow the faith... to the point where some of the more zealous of Creator worshiping Clan-Packs would consider them heretics.

Researching the technologies, stories, history and to the surprise of many the differing faiths of the Creators over the Generations, the Ook Stor Clan-Pack view their gods less like divine beings completely beyond understanding and more like mortals that developed a greater understanding of the world around them to the point where they could reshape it to suit their needs and desires. God-like, worthy of respect and being an example to try and live up to, but not divine in nature.

Army and Warriors

The Warrior-Monks of Clan Ook Stor have long been the militant branch of the Clan-Pack as a whole. Originally they were the warriors and protectors of Sakata's expedition, but as the Generations passed and more information from the Creators was translated the Warrior-Monk order was formed around a Creator tome literally titled 'The Art of War'.

While the Warrior Monks might not be the greatest militant force in the mall, they are well known for their good equipment, tactics and discipline... even more surprising due to the clan-pack being somewhat more pacifist in nature then other clan-packs. Clan Ook Stor might not start fights, but it's more then prepared to finish them.

Stats

Richness: 4
Military: 4
Population: 4
Knowledge: 5+1
Ferocity: 1

Weaknesses:
Extrraticated by Fire-
Just because a peace treaty was signed between the Faiths of the Creators and the Faiths of Fire, doesn't mean that an Ook Stor rat would live in they walked boldly into territory held by a Faith of Fire clan. After all, it was an Ook Stor weapon that felled the Burning Prophet.

A Rat or just a Mice

Civilization - A New End (2.5)

The Orc-Grave Swamp Enclave

"Meeb!... Meeb!... Meeb!"

While it wasn't the most dignified of things to say, it was all Gredy could bring himself to say with his finger in his ear, turning it as he waited for wall of white noise that had consumed his hearing to fade away. His only solace was that those around him seemed to have been stuck doing similar things, so it wasn't like he was going to take a hit to his pride or anything.

However, this still brooded the question "What the absolute hell was that?!"

No answers were worth coming... even if the rain itself started to pour down. Those living in the mountain took to shoring up the entrances in order to ensure that none of the water poured down into the tunnels and risked flooding while those caught outside in the swamp sort shelter up high, favoring high ground if not actually climbing up into the trees.

The idea of making a connecting path was a good one; however, as the sudden storm quickly proved, flooding in swamps was just a way of life that needed to be planned around. There was also the question of housing in the swamp itself... which after some thought Gredy gave an idea to. The path itself could instead be a walkway of sorts, set up in the treeline and suspended from the branches so that it wasn't on the ground and would (hopefully) be safer to travel on then going by foot, since there was less risk of predators or bumping into the poisonous and dangerous plants.

As for housing... boats. House boats; Building a solid boat that was big and stable enough to support a hut or house like structure on it. Poles would have to be set up so that they could be tied to in order to keep them from floating away, but in the event of flooding they would just float. It also provided an alternative way of moving around the swamp; boats and rafts.

..............................

As Gredy looked at the various gifts that he had been offered, he couldn't help but frown a little to himself in thought. He... wasn't used to all the attention. Not that he didn't mind it; Far from it in fact, but a part of him felt... conflicted. Not for the moral implications of having multiple partners at once (Slavery didn't exactly encourage the idea of being committed to one person forever after all because things could change in a hurry), but the more practical side of things. Could he reasonably take several partners at once and not only provide them with the time and affection they each required, but also continue to run the Enclave effectively?

It was a tough question to be sure.

For now through, he accepted the gifts and compliments humbly while giving polite compliments back, but for the time being was keeping his options open.

Summery

Gredy keeps an open mind about relationships, but is giving it plenty of thought and not jumping in stupidly or worse... attempting to abuse his position of power for personal gain.

Several ideas about how to connect up locations in the swamp/ travel the swamp are raised and are tested out to see how viable they are in practice.

Civilization - A New End (2.5)

The Orc-Grave Swamp Enclave

Like a proud parent holding a newborn, Gredy took a moment to admire the weapon in his hands with great care as he lifted it up in order to take aim at a random tree; Clearly the crossbow wasn't loaded, but he wanted to get a feel for the weight and to see how the sights lined up. A satisfied grin rose from the depths as he lowered the weapon down a little... before a wicked looking grin appeared on his face.

"Geist, I want you to get the word out. Once we've gotten enough of our people trained in how to use these things properly... we're going hunting. It's time we not only claimed more control of the swamp, but it'll help take care of our food issues as well!"

.......................................

At the outpost, Mint sat alone on the roots of her family tree with her eyes closed, trying to clear her mind and meditate in order to listen to the world around her with great care. She had been tending to the tree yesterday, clearing away some of the weeds that had tried to spring up at the roots of the tree where her father was buried when she could have sworn she had heard a voice... that wasn't a voice. She hadn't heard what it said and what little she caught sounded... strange. Like something that wouldn't come out of the mouth of a living thing, but was filled with life none the less; More life then any mere creature would possess.

So she had returned, trying to see if she could hear it again.

Actions

X) Other: Train military
A) Improve food

The plan is simple; After making sure that the guards/hunters have at least some basic training with their new crossbows, the goblins are going to go hunting in the swamp for animals. Dangerous ones. This will not only be a good training exercise for the military, but in theory it'll help secure their positions in the swamp by removing dangerous animals while also providing a new source of food.

If possible, eggs and young animals will be captured to be farmed.

National Ground

So is this no longer happening?

Civilization - A New End (2.5)

The Orc-Grave Swamp Enclave

Considering that the creation of a solid military grade weapon would not only go far in securing the defense of their new lands, but also go a long way to securing a food supply via the method of both dealing with the predators that lurked in the swamp and thus securing areas where farming efforts could be properly established, Gredy gave the team working on the creation of their crossbows what they needed to get results. In fact, whenever he wasn't doing the whole leader thing of 'putting out fires' around camp, he worked on the project with them himself.

Civilization - A New End (2.5)

The Orc-Grave Swamp Enclave

"And everything was going so well..." Gredy mumbled quietly to himself as his hand rested against his forehead, rubbing his temples to try and work through the headache that was quickly forming. Life was hard at the Enclave and food was an ever present issue, but with the assistance of their black skinned kin mining had gotten underway and proper homes were slowly but surely being built in the mountains. A troll settlement was one of the last things that they needed to have to worry about right now...

After about an hour of considering possibilities to himself on his own, an idea had arisen from Gredy's mind that showed promise. He tried examining it from several different angles with no real downside showing itself. Content that it was the right way to go, he quickly decided to track down several other goblins who he needed to discuss the matter with in order to get it underway.

............................................

"I think I know what your talking about... I remember a few of the orcs had things like that. They were called crossbows I think." Roxy said as she thought aloud, her ear twitching as Gredy waited for her to say something more. "Might need to talk to a few others, maybe make a few prototypes to work on the designs... How soon do you need these and how many do you want?"

"Soon as you can and as many as you can give me." Gredy answered back quickly. "Way I see it, if we start training and equipping the hunters with crossbows, not only will they have an easier time getting food but we'll be in a stronger position to defend ourselves. Don't need to be as strong as an orc to use a crossbow properly."

Summery

In an attempt to strengthen their position against possible attacks (as well as increase their food supply via hunting), the goblins of the Orc-Grave Swamp Enclave are going to work on improving their military technology by trying to create crossbows.

Civilization - A New End (2.5)

The Orc Grave Swamp Enclave

Nation/Clan/Kingdom/Tribe Name: Orc Grave Swamp Enclave
Represented Color: Dark Green
Race: Goblins
Features:
High Cunning, Strong Poison Resistant, Physically weak and frail, Good technology, High Reproduction Rate.

Capital: The Enclave
Ruler: Gredy Silvertongue, first and currently only leader of the Orc Grave Swamp Enclave

Type of Government: In theory, any goblin can be in charge of the Enclave. In practice, the position tends to go to the wisest and most cunning goblin in order to try and lead it to the best of their abilities.

Religion:
The Orc Grave Swamp Enclave worships a variety of minor local spirits and deities, however one of the more widely accepted deities of the Enclave as a whole is the Great Swamp Dragon, whom stalks the deeper swamp and occasional leaves it to seek out food. While the rituals vary from goblin to goblin, the whole enclave takes part in the 'Appeasement Ritual' in which they leave a large offering of food on an altar where the black dragon can find it.

Geographical Location:


History:
Goblin kind has often been left out of the history scrolls and stories, their larger orc masters often ignoring them unless they were bored or wishing to vent their anger out of something. Treated little better then slaves, it isn't strange for goblins to disappear during the night and trying to make their way somewhere else in the world. Most don't survive long on their own.

The Orc Grave Swamp is named as such for the simple reason that it's plant and animal life tends to be so poisonous that any attempt by the taller, less nimble races of the world to pass through it results in a quick and painful death. However, recently a number of former goblin slaves escaped into the swamp and somehow avoided death long enough to establish a life for themselves; It was still a hard life and they didn't exactly thrive, but they were free of their orcish overlords. Word spread of this safe place for goblins to flee their masters too and over the years many goblins from the different orc tribes and warbands fled into the swamp in search of a story. While many were claimed by the swamp, enough were discovered and accepted into the settlement that it actually started to grow.

Due to the many different tribes that the members of the settlement had been apart of, the settlement was declared the Orc Grave Swamp Enclave.

Bringing the goblins back to continue where we left off.

National Ground

Mind changing the leader of the UIH to Artyom Barkov? He was whom I was intending to lead it.

Tooth and Tail Inspired Idea

Artyom Barkov

Name: Artyom Barkov

Species: Badger

Age: 26 years old.

Appearance:
A self made and well traveled badger of respectable wealth, Artyom Barkov appears to the world as a successful merchant; His blue coat is worn but very well tailored and made from good material, his glasses have long left their little imprints on his muzzle and his pants are a dusty cream color that compliments his coat.

Those who take a closer look through will see that being a successful merchant isn't as easy as some might think; His shoes tend to be comfortable and worn, suggesting that he has worn them a lot while his legs are clearly well toned muscle. There are almost always bags under his eyes, suggesting one or more sleepless nights and he is a lot more lean then someone as wealthy as him should have been. Becoming a successful merchant takes time, hard work and sacrifice and Artyom has clearly done all three.

Overview:
Born in Loratok, Artyom's parents ran a local pub called The Eastern Coach; His father owned the pub and was the face of the operation while his mother was largely in control of the finances and the book keeping behind the scenes. The pub itself never fully thrived, but despite its humble nature it provided Artyom and his sisters with a wonderful childhood that even to this day he wouldn't have traded for all the wealth in the world.

The war wasn't something that Artyom really understood until he was older and could look back on things in hindsight. It was just... there. Some dark and horrible boogieman that cast its dark and corrupting shadow over everything, even if the fighting itself was a long way off. Worried for the safety of their children, Artyom was sent off with a friend of his father because he was the eldest at the time in order to see the world (and most importantly, get out of Uskary) and learn how to be a successful trader, learning about other cultures and how to make a living in the world.

The Eastern Coach was hit by artillery fire several months after Artyom had left, killing all inside instantly.

Unaware of the fate of his family, Artyom took to his studies with great zeal. He adored the cultures of other places, saw horrors and wonders that would stick with him for the rest of his life and made a great deal of friends and contacts along the way. What caught his attention the most through was simply the level of advanced technology that was present in other nations that simply weren't back home; It was a market that he could easily see developing if someone was to spearhead it and he could see the profit that such a venture could bring.

Almost a decade after he had left Uskary, Artyom returned to his homeland after the war had ended... and saw the price that it had demanded for himself first paw. Visiting the ruins of the Eastern Coach and seeing the graves of his family... it left scars on his soul that would never fully fade away. He turned to the local priest for advice and guidance through the dark months after his return and with time he was able to... come to terms with what had happened. Not get over it or properly move on, but at least reach a point where he could carry the pain while he lived his life.