Why is it that only I have posted my next action within 2-3 days of the previous turn's posting? Come on people, I'd like to see the game progress as quickly as Vanigo is willing to progress it.
From the writings of explorer-turned-historian Jhonston. Excerpt from the Book of Restoration, volume II, chapter 5, a brief overview on the goblin culture of Zrlv:
And, in the year 14 AR, I came upon the goblin city of Glrk’nr, in a vast cave network in a mountain chain. Though I was not welcomed with open arms, and was regarded with near hostile suspicion, they allowed me to work amongst them for a time. So long as I worked, I was given adequate food and lodgings. Many of them spoke broken Common, and so I was able to communicate with them. Here follows a brief account of them, to be elaborated on and further analyzed later:
On strength and weakness
The goblins valued strength, and did not tolerate weakness. When a goblin became too old to perform physical labor, he would often leave the city of his own free will, hoping to expire in one last good fight in the wilderness. Families of the elderly saw this as a necessary duty, though some continued feeding and caring for their aging relatives. Particularly wise or intelligent elderly goblins, however, were encouraged to stay and help devise new methods of waging war.
The strongest goblins had first choice of jobs. They often picked the most difficult jobs as a matter of personal pride; the weaker goblins doing simple menial labor were often looked down upon.
On government and leadership
Zrlv’s style of government could best have been described as benevolent despotism, ruled by the strongest and most intelligent goblin. Any goblin could challenge the current ruler at any time for the position, so long as it was formally declared beforehand and the leader had time to prepare for the armed fight to the death. This system both kept the populace from rioting most of the time, and kept the ruler in check. If a ruler became corrupt, or was incompetent, he could have been offered a rapid series of challenges in succession, and eventually be beaten.
Had a ruler ever denied a challenge, I have no doubt that his people would have immediately risen up as one and destroyed him. The then current ruler, Glrk’nr, had ruled for over 17 years without any major incidents.
Though the goblins weren’t spiritual creatures by nature, the ruler, being the most physically and mentally capable, was revered as a near-godlike being. The “best” goblin, the one everyone strove to emulate. The one who’s power was coveted by all, and sought by only a slim few.
On honor
The goblins, despite usually having been portrayed as brutal savages by humans, had a definite concept of honor. They disliked directly lying, but common goblins nothing wrong in bending the meanings words to fit their desires. This had helped make them many enemies prior to the Age of Disasters. Anyone making a contract with a goblin would have been wise to carefully review the wording, and usually better off not letting the goblins write it.
There also existed the concept of a ‘blood-vow.’ A blood vow was a formal binding promise, and was only very rarely made. In my three months amongst them, I only saw one. Making a blood-vow involved a large ceremony, with the family and friends from both goblins spectating. I shall detail it more in chapter 12. Any goblin found breaking a blood-vow was subjected to gruesome torture for a month, before being killed. Falsely accusing another goblin of breaking a blood-vow entailed the same thing, for the accuser.
On recreation
As far as recreation, goblins were easily amused. Nearly any sort of violence or fighting satisfied them. This often hindered diplomatic relations, especially with newly met civilizations during times of peace. When there were sufficient prisoners, it was common practice to stage mock-battles with them for the enjoyment of the crowds. Few prisoners survived these events; prisoners were poorly treated.
On personal rights
The goblins saw nothing wrong with the practice of slavery. As they said to me, “Why should the weak not be ruled the strong? Having the weak rule the strong is not right.” I suspect that any slaves strong enough would be able to free themselves easily, and work whatever job they sought. I saw no reason why a particularly strong human wouldn’t be able to be the leader, but slaves were the only caste not allowed to challenge a leader. They were property until they beat their captor in a wrestling match.
All goblins, slaves included, were allowed sufficient food. During my stay I did not see a single goblin go hungry. There simply were no homeless goblins. Any goblin able to work did so, and was given sufficient wages for an acceptable standard of living.
The aforementioned prisoners were still fed and worked, but weren’t allowed to fight any goblin other then another prisoner; if caught fighting any goblin that was not a prisoner they were immediately sent to the torture rooms. Other goblins often tried to provoke them into fighting.
Please note that I have no intention of betraying anyone with a "Nope, the agreement was [THIS]. I'm upholding my end, even though you thought I said [THAT]." It's the common goblins who do that; Glrk'nr's above that. I'm aiming for a bloodthirsty lawful evil culture.
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Topic: Age of Restoration game discussion (Still one spot open!) (Read 52103 times)