Muttonhawk

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Gallus nodded. He had no doubt that there would eventually be a proper confrontation between Ri'vashi and her fellow council member, but it was good to hear that things were going smoothly for now. The last thing they needed was an unstable authority in the clanhome.

As for Ri'vashi's offer, Gallus seemed slightly surprised, but after a second found no reason not to agree. "Of course," he said lightheartedly, "I think we've been working hard for so long that I've forgotten to sit back and just make small talk." He gave a proper smile this time. "It would be a pleasure, clan leader."

Mid/High Casual - Divinus: The Deity Roleplay Mk.II

@Cyclone

And GoT isn't even finished yet. Good god.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"I think Meesei's approach to her position is more in responsibility than desire for power," Gallus responded. "She may seem disconnected and emotionless, but she suffers in just the same way as we do. Rest assured, I have seen it." Gallus looked off to one side, "In fact, with her being in charge of it all, I would say she has it worse than either of us."

Gallus narrowed his eyes and asked Ri'vashi a question. "I mean, think about it; we all put on a strong face to reassure others, no? It does not make us much different." He tapped a finger against the air in front of him, "Meesei is a very stoic individual, but don't ever think she's given up her heart." Gallus gave a tired smile, "Now, come. Let's not keep trying to hide our crushing guilt behind desperate ideals. How has your interaction with the council been lately?"

The Jade Stream

Vita can go ahead and pick.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

So, I've hit the ground running with uni. Posts will remain slow, I'm afraid.

Mid/High Casual - Divinus: The Deity Roleplay Mk.II

@MuttonhawkThere are non-metal weapons very capable of crushing hard surfaces. Adzes, macuahuitl, Fijian maces, stone maces -- they're all pre-metal, and all very good at getting through material. Would it be fair to say Hain had developed these kinds of weapons, at least for ritualised combat?

@Fabulous Knight

I guess that's a good point (apart from macuahuitl - I was under the impression that they were bladed weapons). I guess the hain would develop these, so inter-tribal violence would become apparent fairly quickly. However, after a long enough past without them, murder would still be serious business.

Also, Knight, I love your post and the little story you wrought, so I'm going to be an absolute bastard and nit pick:

Hain don't know what aluminium is yet. The closest equivalent would be giant bone (from white giants), and even that would require the tribe to encounter a dead white giant. Though, they do eat aluminium silicates, so if you wanted the food fantasy, you could go for 'tasty rocks'.

Mid/High Casual - Divinus: The Deity Roleplay Mk.II

<Snipped quote by Fabulous Knight>

I'm unsure if it has been decided that we're not developing humans on Galbar - if we haven't, then the hain will be an interesting species to play around with and evolve into various sub-species over a period of some 200,000 years. Though note that they are not very war-like and we are going to have to be mindful of that fact when playing their development.
For some reason, after reading the Urtelem sheet, I had the sudden notion that they seem like the kind of species that the hain would choose to develop around/stay near. That can protect them and also ensure that intelligent Ashlings don't develop xP

@Kho

Yeah, like I said on their sheet, they can change in culture as they develop. I'll make it clear now that the hain are definitely not pacifists, here's why:

The current technology level means that they won't be doing serious harm to one another until metal impact weapons and other means of cracking their shells are invented. Until then, their tendency to compromise is more by necessity. They do fight each other, but only when physically driving out a rival tribe is a more preferable option to others. This is more difficult than human on human stone age combat as hain have a much harder time killing or incapacitating others of their kind due to, as mentioned, their exoskeletons. In fact, when a hain is killed by another hain (normally an accident), it's such a rare occurrence that other hain tend to freak out and ostracise the culprit.

That said, hain are more collectively minded than humans tend to be. They prefer to work in a team for the good of the group rather than strike out on their own to win personal glory. This collective mindset is also present in their breeding habits and should bleed into ways in which they could develop. That's really the greater trait to keep in mind, apart from the knack for new ideas.

EDIT: Oh yeah, and the hain would be definitely be suited to try to tame urtelem. They would know which were the tastiest rocks to feed them!

<Snipped quote by Muttonhawk>

Pretty soon I'm going to try to give them the small gift of body art, mostly by shell etching. Also a cult the earliest major artistic movements.

@Antarctic Termite

That sounds appropriate. I was actually wondering if a god or a sentient race would end up decorating white giants with cute paintings and other decorations as well.

The Jade Stream

Kyang gave an acknowledging "hmph" to Liu as they walked. It sounded like the grand master was one of those 'uncarved block' types; the wisdom of the world in their being, but still appearing perfectly human. He probably has that easy-going attitude that they normally have, based on what Kyang briefly saw of him before.

The search as they approached the mountains required more focus, so chatter died down somewhat. In response to Liu's question about where they should look, Kyang squinted up at terrain ahead and breathed in to speak. However, before she could answer, she was interrupted by a tapping nearby. Kyang turned her head to see Torako apparently checking every rock she could find. Kyang actually suppressed a laugh and held a tight smile. That method would take forever. You're an odd case, Torako.

"If you know of caves around here, I see no reason not to check 'em out," Kyang said to her companions. "But, just to cover all avenues, keep an eye out for tracks, campfire smoke..." She shrugged, "We might even run into a scout or a lookout. Let's just try not to stumble into the den of an angry animal or spirit, mkay?"

Mid/High Casual - Divinus: The Deity Roleplay Mk.II

Going off what Kho mentioned a while back, I think the periods leading up to medieval times are going to be stretched out a bit longer than before. I must admit, though, that I'm not sure how long it was in earlier iterations.

Anyway, the hain should be clever enough to follow basic cults if people want to get in early with that. Depends what people feel like doing.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Gallus broke eye contact and his face went into the kind of blank expression one takes on to obscure other feelings. "She's, uh...the prisoner has been...difficult to behold and question, yes. I would never want to be in her situation."

Gallus looked down with clear guilt and sighed. "We'll just...when she's dead, she won't suffer any more, but..." Gallus paused for a while, then looked to Ri'vashi with a small smile. "She's an enemy," he said tersely. "We should remember that."

Gallus' eyes spoke of his dishonesty to himself in this matter.