Culture Notes;
- Sankar
- Asian aesthetic, think Vietnam or Burma rather than Japan.
- They like immigrants, as long as they have great work ethic.
- religious/racial Tolerance Through Indifference, byproduct humanism.
- The Mother is nice, pretty okay.
- The government is stiff but functional.
- No mages allowed publicly (except in secret circles, wink wink).
There are some traits that date back pre-split that they still share to this day, for example, in both countries women can be soldiers, but just police (or city guards, rather), they don’t go to war. Men go to war, women protect the home.
Also, something to add in regards to the Mother in Sankar; her counterpart is a god of death. Who, ironically, is known as "Arryn" or the (Great) Father. The name "Arryn" is almost never used in case they invoke the Father's Wrath, so they definitely prefer the Mother over him. And a quick note on, like, era-wise stuff; think like 1500s/1600s in terms of, say... travel/technology/etc (so using "okay" is not gonna work here).
NOW MAGES. There ARE Mages alive in Sankar and quite a few of them are Nobility. Often, they're treated like a noble family's Dirty Little Secret. Sooo, there's places they can go; pubs and brothels, secret noble mage clubhouses. That sort of stuff. There's a brothel-slash-tavern that exists that's very pro-mage, but also still very hush-hush about it. Commoner mages often have a distant noble ancestor but aren't technically part of the noble mage houses. Mages, noble or otherwise, often have to leave home in order to control their magic--depending on the magic--and a lot tend to go to Raj Mahija in Asturia to train. Some, like the blood mages, who're pretty much only ever found in Belasi or Sankar, don't. Mostly because they're pretty secretive and dangerous and just generally avoid anyone else. They don't go to Belasi, even though there's a mage school there. There is also a secret group that most commoner mages join up with.
So to summarise;
- they usually have noble blood (sometimes common with a distant noble ancestor)
- most are a family's Dirty Little Secret.
- they have various places they can go to interact/train/etc.
- they go to Raj Mahija in Asturia if they can to train/live.
- blood mages are dangerous to themselves and others and tend not to interact with other mages (blood mages are Loners (usually)).
- blood mages are (usually) only found in Sankar or Belasi.
- there are noble mage houses that exist and are secretly influencing Sankar's king and court.
- mages never, ever go to Belasi's Raj Midar if they can avoid it.
- secret underground group commoner mages join.
- and they're paranoid AS ALL HELL.
Mage Schools:
There's only one in the Sankar-Belasi region, and it's in Belasi. It's called Raj Midar and it is a lie. The mages there are essentially slaves that serve Belasi's Sultan and only him. And maybe his family if they can afford it. Some nobility may be able to afford them as well, but anyone who's not the Sultan or his family has to ask permission first. Usually it's granted because they're making the anti-mage bracelets. They're trained to use their magic under the careful eye of their headmistress or headmaster who's essentially a head guard that the Sultan's hand-picked for the task. Mages wearing the anti-mage devices are, essentially, slaves to whoever has the master control device. Belasi's choice of anti-mage devices are bracelets.
Sankar has mostly kept out of Belasi's crazy nonsense, but they've taken notice sice Belasi got thoroughly thrawted. They've begrudgingly started trading with Belasi and have recently seen their anti-mage technology at work, and decided to start in on mages with it. It's not gaining much traction yet, as mages who break the unwritten code of Mage Secrecy are often killed. Those that are caught as sent to a massive anti-magic-infused prison called Irondark and it's in an undisclosed location. Plus, the secret Mage Noble Families are deliberately road-blocking the anti-mage tech's traction in Sankar and especially Yaska. Most mages live in Yaska, too--or in Davoli--and they'd prefer to stay there if they can help it. They definitely don't want anti-mage tech in their city or their country.
Yaska, Sankar's Capitol:
A little more info on the city; Most of the buildings in Yaska are up to four stories at the highest, including the palace. There's also a port and boatbuilders area. Which means that, yes, the river is big enough for sailing down.
Also, a little info on Yaska's (or rather, Sankar's) colours and symbols. There should be a touch of dark red to your uniforms if you're a soldier, and there'll probably be a wolf's head etched into armour or stitched into fabric. Have fun with it. There's an example on the city map. The wolf is strictly a Yaskan symbol. It's called the Yaskan Wolf. Usually a symbol related to royalty. So if you're a soldier or guard, that'll be on your uniform.
sooooo, for a quick glance;
- Yaska's pretty built-up (up, not so much out).
- most buildings are like, four stories high, especially the Palace.
- there's a port and boatbuilders area in the city.
- the river is both wide and deep enough for ships to sail down so trade is a big thing here between Yaska and the port-city of Davoli.
- Yaska's symbol is a Wolf Head (this is called the Yaskan Wolf).
- the wolf head is usually related to royalty somehow, so probs on a soldier or guard's uniform!
- dark red epaulettes on the shoulders to show rank in the Sankaran Army, specifically the Yaskan City Guard and the Palace Guard.
Other info & The Guild:
So, SB-time (present-time), the king and queen are already dead. So we're getting dropped into the story right after it's happened. Maybe a day or two afterwards. It was to try and change the status quo. A group called The Guild are trying to instigate a revolution. It wasn't going so well, so they had the genius idea of getting rid of the problem, as they see it. They were hoping the prince and/or princess would be more open to discussion... But, yeah, that's probably not going to work, either.
As for blood mages; they gain power from hurting people, especially if it draws blood. They can also manipulate blood to a degree, like boiling it or freezing it. Of course, all of this has it's drawbacks. The major one being insanity, especially if the mage hasn't got anyone to keep an eye on them. Of course, every blood mages are disturbed by themselves. So they're outcasts even among mages. It's a very destructive magic.
The Guild includes mages, thieves, assassins and other magic and non-magic users. Think of it as kinda like Dumbledore's Army from Harry Potter or the League of Assassins from Arrow. They work behind the scenes and aren't particularly open about their presence in the city.
quick reference list;
- SB-time-wise, king and queen's dead and it's not long after that that OB&R starts.
- The Guild consists of non-mages and mages, including but not limited to mages, thieves, assassins and various other shady professions.
- The Guild is determined to give mages better lives by overthrowing the Sankaran Royalty.
- The Guild are pretty hush-hush about themselves and you'd have to be pretty in-the-known in the criminal underground in Yaska to even hear rumours of them, but of course people outside that still hear of them.
- The Guild is like a boogeyman for Yaska and some people threaten their children with it.
- there are factions of the Guild outside of Yaska, but they don't communicate with any kind of regularity or anything.
- blood mages gain power from hurting people and manipulate blood.
- they can eat anothers' magic, if they kill them.
- blood mages go insane without a Balance (someone to anchor them and their magic).
- they are REALLY DESTRUCTIVE if they lose control.
- and they are also outcast even among mages.
And I think that's all I have for now. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask!
