Damn I Am Pretty Art Laboratories

The Greenfolk: Sabizi The human tribe known as the Greenfolk, or Sabizi claim to have no true homeland.  At the center of their culture is family and the Dance.  They once had lived what they call the Greenlands, but those lands were lost according to Sabizi songs long before the Ursyklons came to conquer Orphos. The Sabizi's Greenlands were close to the Jade Lands, where the Tengu nations rule.  The Sabizi Aliphair ancient historian recorded dozens of songs on the loss of the Greenlands.  According to the songs, the Sabizi had been brought to this world as slaves a hundred thousand years ago.  The Nagaorochi settled verdant, tropical lands.  The Sabizi were chattel and livestock for the Nagaorochi. The Sabizi were forbidden from writing.  They developed a complex language through dance, something the Naga saw as entertainments between the dark rituals they performed.  Over time, the Sabizi and their secret dance became the basis of the l...

Aspect: The Wind That Watches Quote: "I can see the Path, all the twists and turns... it has already happened, and it will happen again." For the Tengu her name is held in reverence, but amongst the rest of Crux, she is a mysterious master of ninja and menial laborers.  The birdfolk rarely share any of their secrets, including who or why the Prophet is at the center of their community. Common Knowledge The Prophet of the Winds is the holy high priestess of the Tengu.  Like everything else, they tend to avoid talking about her.  The Tengu hold her in high regard, like the Church of the Twins and the Archbishop or the Ursyklons and their Archdruid. The Tengu are everywhere to be found in Crux.  They take up menial labor for pay lower than even Android crews.  Tengu run foodstalls and other tiny shops are scattered throughout the City of Curses.  The Prophet seems to be queen of a empire of tiny exotic shops, low-paid labor or foreign wanderers th...

Technologies in Crux are something I've neglected to be precise about.  Crux, City of Curses is based on 1830s era tech, although some are more or less advanced. The Rails of Crux In the 1750s Othebea unveiled steam engines, the end result of finding nonmagical means to avoid arcane magic.  Teleportation, conjuration and other means were all under suspicion.  But any artificial means that could replicate them Othebeans pursued vigorously.  The Othebean Crusades had been fought to constrain magic after all, but it did mean a significant lag for commerce and industry. The advent of railroads in Othebea (and Ainesia to a lesser extent) led to the creation of steam engines.  Until arcanists and artificers in Crux tackled the problem, most steam engines were dangerous.  Boiler plates were known to explode, limiting their usage and leaving them with lethal reputations.  The Esoterium Machina in Crux created a new foundry in the city's Iron District,...

Here is part three of a Crux short story about of an old witch, Yorani Cruxi Ama'Ka, a boring ball, and what happens to make it not so boring. Part One | Part Two The word Sabizi made them flinch.  Outsiders call us all sorts of names.  Names like the Greenfolk ogda'epona , which means something like dancing wanderers.  Others spit at our name.  But we Sabizi know what that word means.  Sabizi are all family.  And Sabizi know better than to cross a brother or sister. are the nicest, or the Ursyklon word for us, All Sabizi are brothers and sisters.  The two Azuro-masked children stared in horror at me.  They were losing control of the situation. "Yes.  You mock my name."  I twirled as I approached the stage.  Even if it were just for a minute, feeling this young again felt amazing.  "I am Sabizi.  I know the dance, I remember the song of the Azuro, and I grow tired of your mockery." The Azuro-masked boy stammer...

Part 2 of a short story in Crux about an elderly witch, Yorani Cruxi Ama'Ka and her boring night at the Banker's Ball. First Part | Part 3 "Well, at least something interesting happened."  I struggled to my feet.  I remembered it not taking so long, it felt a eternity to execute the action. "You wanted a party," Adanya purred.  "You think they've been hiding here or are they going to make a daring entrance?" "Ugh."  I shrugged.  "5 wands that the idiots drank invisibility potions." "Ropes of climbing.  Been awhile since I last saw them."  Adanya leaped onto the table.  Her eyes glowed with a bit of purple.  I remembered that look. A crowd of people had circled around the dark mess left behind by the photographer's explosion.  I didn't join the young people gawking in horror.  I've seen enough dead bodies.  No, I anticipated the arrival of the people looking to make a distraction. "...

Here's part 1 of a new short story, about Yorani Cruxi Ama'Ka, a very old witch and wealthy woman whose boring ball gets upended... Part 2 | Part 3 "Ugh."  I hoped the wine would make the boredom go away.  Instead, I remembered how it never agreed with me anymore.  Oh to be young and able to drink again.  To really drink, to swallow and gulp, not this prim and proper sipping non sense. "Grandmother I don't understand why you still go to these things, if you find them so boring."  Durrig gave me a pitying look.  Poor boy goes to the university, you would think they might've taught him something.  Still doesn't know how to control his mouth. "It isn't like I have a choice, Durrig."  I put the wine on the table.  "Why does the Banker insist on such cheap wine?  At least get something exotic, like what the Spice Khan serves." Durrig sighed.  "Grandmother-" "I have to make the regular appearances, Durri...

Aspect: Atop Windswept Towers Connected To: Havershill (below it), Perdition Hill (to the North), North Crown (to the Northwest); Spirit World (numerous gateways) Most Significant Icon: The Prophet of the Winds Well Known For? Isolated Tengu Villages Notable Sites and Locales: Yashi's Cafe; The Prophet's Temple; The Tengu Bazaar; The rungs on the rope ladder up are nerve-wracking.   The tall towers of Havershill are almost as high as the Skullmount or Perdition Hill; the fall would surely shatter my bones.  I didn't dare look down.  One must climb the spell-bound heights of Havershill's towers if one wishes to see the Aerie-Towns.  The height is only one way the Tengu ghettos keep themselves from mixing with the rest of the city of Curses. As I cling to the ropes, I remember what I've read about the birdfolk.  A Tengu once claimed her people had lived atop Crux's buildings since the Ursyklon first conquered Necruxa ten thousand years ...

“May you live in interesting times." -Anonymous I'm in love.  And my skin is burning.  I can feel it melting. We were going to meet here, in the plaza.  I had spent all day dreaming about it.  And now I can feel my body dying from the shrapnel in my chest.  I can't feel any pain- just hot metal.  I remember hearing how if you can't feel any pain, that's a bad sign.  The nerves are cut off. We were about to meet.  That's the cruel joke of it all.  That's when the bomb took us. Electric purple hair glowed from his head.  Artificial skin glimmered as he saw me.  I tingled.  Texas looked at me, his artificial eyes full of the same feelings I had.  A bot, Texas preferred to look like some extra in some music holo.  A body had been made mostly of shiny plastic and smooth purple steel.  He didn't like to brag. He loved to brag. I was in love with a machine. My could see bone.  My legs.  Fire. ...

Currencies in Crux Most precious metals and gems can't be alchemically reproduced, but the ease of finding them through planar travel or conjuration has long made them not the most reliable basis for currency.  The first coins on Orphos came from Rruk, before its devastation.  Ursyklon spurned coins initially, but even they adopted the practice of using them. Othebean Banks first emerged in response to the Ithic Dollar and the various combating Ainesian currencies.  Arcane magic made markets collapse during the Othebean Crusades.  Magically replicating the silver or gold in the coinage introduced large economic stresses.  Those who used coins didn't trust gold or silver in that age.  Othebean Monarchs, vigilant against such arcane manipulations, banned the use of gold or silver as the basis for currency altogether.  The Othebean Banks emerged to facilitate the use of a new standard, one that helped solidify Othebea's place in trade. The Adamantin...

You didn't want to go.  But you wound up at summer camp anyway.  You're 8, and this is your first time at Summer Camp.  Your parents insisted you would learn something from the experience. They didn't expect the monsters to come either. It started when something attacked the dining hall the third night.  It ate three counselors and ten campers.  You just started running when your counselor screamed to run. So you and your fellow campers fled deeper into the woods.  The cellphone the Counselor had didn't work.  It had battery power, but no signal.  Worse, the messages the phone had you didn't understand. Your counselor just remained quiet about it.   Now you and your fellow campers are stuck in the wilderness.  Each night you can hear the monsters coming.  But they aren't what's going to kill you.  Trees, the cold, the rain, the animals- the Wilderness doesn't care if monsters are coming for it.  You learn this...

Associated Icon: The Chancellor Aspect(s): Eye of the Chancellor; An Eye For Talent; "Ever Consider Getting An Education, Kid?" Agents of the Chancellor, the University and the Esoterium Machina, Provost-Oculi recruit, observe and test potential admissions to the Esoterium Machina.  Sometimes they admit them into the University of Crux, others they arrange specific tutelage within specific fields.  They also look out for the Esoterium's interests, keeping an eye out for potential new sources of research or intrigue. The Provost-Oculi predate the current university, having established themselves during the Othebean Crusades as a secret order helping to protect knowledge from destruction by the Church.  When Esoterium Machina founded the current iteration of the University, the Provost-Oculi became known for finding potential students.  Diviners, Rogues and anyone with an eye for talent. All Provost-Oculi are gifted with an Robe of Eyes, and a golden gear rep...

The Gold-Vampires, or Visconti of Crux's Blood Quarter.  Another kind of vampire, in addition to my myriad of "other" vampires in the City of Curses. Aspect: Nothing Glitters Like Gold! Invoke: Whenever using magic that manipulates metals or when underground. Compel: When presented with a chance to increase one's own wealth or to preserve it. Lord Visconti's charity had no limit in the old days.  His estate always helped others.  Their home, their wealth, their servants, all of them were open to anyone who could ask.  With such kindness, one must ask how could Visconti become cursed?  How could such a line be befouled? Sometimes sugar and honey disguise the poison underneath. Visconti's dark secret, one he shared with his wife and three daughters, abused the basic right of charity so many praised him for.  At the end of a tired road they would enter his humble manor.  His wife and daughters would cater to the weary travelers.  Viscon...

Aspect: Knowledge is Power; Connected To: Old Crux (via the East Gate), Old Crux (via Bellamy's Stair), The Catacombs (Underneath), Port of Crux (via elevator crane), The Blood Quarter (underground); Most Significant Icon: The Chancellor of Crux University Well Known For? Education; Arcane and Scientific Research Notable Sites and Locales: Bellamy's Stair, Scrolls and Bones Tavern, The East Gate Bridge, The Clocktower, The Deepstair At the center of Crux is the city's most well known landmark.  I walk up the east gate, but the Skullmount has at least three other ways into it.  The east gate connects the Skullmount to Old Crux, across a bridge that connects with an ancient tower.  As I walk through the gate, it feels smaller than it should be.  The ironoak doors are covered in a dozen different wards.  Even then, a pair of guards stand ready. They look bored to me, though. The campus is dominated by a massive building, on the highest part of the mo...

Inspired by thinking on the crossover between Tengu and Lycanthropes,  +Mik McAllister 's comments got me thinking on what happens with Tengu and contracting a form of were-bird-ness (that's a technical term).  So, I ended up with this after musing on it.  The Mockers, loosely based on Cherokee myth of sorts. Tengu: The Mockers Tengu, as a whole, refuse to acknowledge lycanthropy.  In the Jade Lands, there is little to no actual record of Lycanthropy.  Spirits and others sometimes take over the body, but unlike the lycanthropy of the nations of the Maru Sea, the Spirits can be excised.  If true, it might be significant about the nature of Lycanthropy.  Perhaps it hasn't penetrated the Jade Lands, or maybe the nature of the curse is tied to a specific region. Or perhaps, the Tengu refuse to acknowledge it, somehow thinking it will make it less true. But in Crux, Tengu have proven to be just as susceptible to lycanthropy as any other group.  B...

Ach.  The original Skinwalkers article I posted for Crux I re-read, and didn't like.  It doesn't carry the Art copyright: Me.   weight it should.  Skinwalkers and Lycanthropes deserve better.  This is a rewrite, possibly changing my canon a bit.  Lets get into it... Cursefolk of the Beast-Blood: Lycanthropy, the curse of the moon.  In Crux itself, Lycanthropes have been banned from the city limits since the city's founding.  Wolf-Mother Worshippers claim Lycanthropes were cursed as a punishment for their crimes against nature.  The Church of the Twins has long claimed  demons caused Lycanthropy, corrupting the innocent and emboldening those who oppose law and community.  Others, like the Church of the Machine, have no opinions other than curiosity. Lycanthropes born with the disease have been around for as long as civilization on Orphos.  If Ursyklon records are to be believed, it even existed on other worlds.  B...

Session Report 8 of the Keepers of Crux. Ash Wiseowl ain't going to take it anymore. Part two of Srady's Penny continued from the cliffhanger of the last session: the Keepers faced a trio of Bounty Hunters, hired to take Ash alive.  Continuing their hunt for the lost relic known as Srady's Penny,this session would see them dive deep into the ancient ruins of a lost Ursyklon city. Scene Question: Do the Keepers manage to defeat the three Bounty Hunters? Three figures meet them in Tengril Square.  A man with a bronze-plated rifle.  A fat woman in the dark robes of the Black Rose.  A young boy licked his lips at them. "Give us the halfling lass, and we'll leave you be."  The sharpshooter said, a hand on his tattered hat. He tipped it respectfully in the Keepers direction.  "We ain't afraid to cause you harm." The Keepers stood their ground. "Uh, no."  Gav replied.  Ishida ran around, quickly trying to catch them offguard. ...