An incomplete and roiling land lay bare as a metal object from beyond the stars fell upon it, far before the time the gods would complete their work. The machine breaks, scattering parts all over the unfinished earth, but the core central structure remains intact.
A strange consciousness flickers within alien alloy walls. It remembers, and opens the cryocaskets. The sound of chittering mandibles fills the cold air. The Chitinites and their master, OD1N, have arrived.
A strange consciousness flickers within alien alloy walls. It remembers, and opens the cryocaskets. The sound of chittering mandibles fills the cold air. The Chitinites and their master, OD1N, have arrived.
A Brief History of the Chitinites
Though they were part of the Land of Stone and Shell for countless millennia, the Chitinites (as they refer to themselves) remained isolated for most of recorded history, quietly mastering and repairing the myriad of technology within The Ark. One of the earliest confirmed excursions of the Chitinites from within the Ark was to build a "backup" bunker of sorts, a failsafe called Phalbach.
During the early days of Man, a coral-tripod abducted several Chitinites and began a twisted series of experiments, eager to know what lay beneath the strange creatures exoskeletons. The experiments yielded the first Elves, who promptly over-powered and killed their creator before wandering the land in a haze, their memories wiped during the same experiments that had stripped them of their shells. Their descendants became the wandering Bales of elves still around today.
Most of the records of Chitinites are handed down from the Luxi (the Winged-Sun worshipers of the Southern-most Mountains), as they forged a secret alliance with the chittering ones during the Wars. Myth and Legend boldly states that it was a Chitinite who sat upon the Ironmost Throne in Nexus to command the Iron Company to take back the Luxi city of Illuceo from the demon armies. Supposedly, they were also the first to advance the assault on the Kavalares forces, and it was during the battles against the Flayed Horde that they lost many of their soldiers and once again retreated into isolation within their Ark, where they once again wait and plan.
A bard once told me that Phalbach was inside the strip of land that the Gob-father turned into the Bountiful Channel, and that it fell out of his pocket on his travels to the Hidden Continent. I'm not sure if I believe them.
It's not impossible to see the odd Chitinite mercenary, but it is extremely unusual.
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| A Chitinite Vanguard during the Wars |
The Culture of the Bales
"Bale" is the term for one of the many nomadic, hereditary- tribal groups of Elves that wander the Land of Stone and Shell. They tend to form caravans and never settle down in a single location for very long. While each Bale has their own name, custom, and traditions, they all take orders from an order called the King-Bale, a democratically elected council made of members from multiple Bales. While each Bale is largely self-governing, they all look to the King-Bale for matters like disputes between Bales or difficult decisions that effect many Bales as a whole.
While different Bales will often specialize in different services, such as trapping, weather-forecasting, and music, a great many Elves have a deep longing for the stars and become experts in the many sciences and magicks of concerning the stars and spaces between worlds. Astrology, astronomy, and astrophysics are some of the more popular studies, and many elves become Star Scholars or Thaumonauts.
Any Elves unable to keep up with the caravan are transported to the Hidden Continent, wherein lies Azila, the home of the King-Bale and a place of hospice for the unwell.
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| (Image source is "Feathers" by Jon-Lock) |
What they look like:
Chitinites are the epitome of grace. Mandibles and shimmering exoskeletons. Huge eyes. Antennae. Most are between 6-7 feet tall, but Ark Delvers report that larger, mute Chitinites guard the innermost regions of the ruins and can be twice the size of a typical Chitinite while maintaining their grace and dexterity. Laymen call the shorter ones "Chitinous Elves" and the larger ones "Chitinous Ogres".
Elves have inherited the slimness of form and grace from their ancestors. They have long, pointed ears (apparently some sort of twisted replacement for the Chitinite antennae), large but not-monstrous eyes, and delicate but very expressive features.
What they wear:
Chitinites tend to wear exotic armor made of strange metals. Many times helmets or scarves will cover up some of the more unusual features of a mercenary to allow them to move about at least somewhat more conspicuously then they'd be able to otherwise.
Elves tend to wear practical, loose fitting clothing and good boots. Many have scarves that depict galaxies and celestial objects that seem to mysteriously move with the clothing. As with many things, style differs wildly between each individual Bale.
What they sound like:
Chitinites click and clack as they move and try to speak. Their throats are not made for mammalian speech and on the rare occasions they do attempt to speak it is raspy, harsh, and barely understandable. They do have their own language, though they don't teach it to outsiders and it would be nearly impossible to speak without a set of mandibles.
Elves speak with a near-monotone voice and have difficulty conveying emotion through words alone.
What others think of them:
+Pragmatic, rare, graceful
-Dangerous, dirty, godless
Stats:
As Elves. Use Ogres for Chitinous Ogres with a bonus to stealth. Give the Chitinites a laser pistol/a jetpack/some other anachronistic piece of technology. (I might think of better stats later)
Plot Threads:
- Rare treasures scatter the Badlands outside the Ark, though many dangers make retrieval a dangerous tasks. Unique monsters, the heat, and rival Knaves are some of the most common threats.
- The Hidden Continent, also called "Elven-Home", can now be discovered with some amount of accuracy as the mystical fog barriers surrounding it have weakened. Now, nations and explorers from all nations are making a mad dash to the continent, unknown to the Chitinites and Elves who reside there.
- A traveling Bale caravan has arrived outside town. They predict that a hurricane will soon wipe out the village and it's residents unless the townsfolk evacuate. The Mayor and the townspeople are refusing to listen to the "godless insects" and worse, have captured the Bale's leader under charges of heresy and trickery. Now the two groups are at one another's throats, violence has broken out, and a very literal storm may or may not be looming in the distance
this is very good
ReplyDeleteThank you very much!!
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