Sun Fall

World building project and side blog of goosenamedcasidy

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Sun Fall is a post apocalyptic Bronze Age-esque fantasy project

It takes place in the world of the Ekimenae. 700 years after the Long night, an event where almost all the great empires and nations mysteriously collapsed in only a few decades.

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My dealer: got some straight gas💯🔥it’s called “The Golden Flame” you’ll be zoinked out of your gourd😳

Me: yeah whatever. I don’t feel shit

10 minutes later: dude, I swear we’re maggots feasting on the divine corpse of God.

My good friend Caeshos pacing: something moved in the water.

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Esh Mae-kton (rough draft)

In the waning hours of the stagnancy, before the first song, naught existed, except the dread Tower of IAM-UT-ADA. “Behold,” announced the unassailable Godhead, “behold, the way we are wreathed in white and gold flame.”

The Tower murmured about themselves for uncountable eons or seconds, about the nature of things. Soon they grew tired, and longed for others to discuss with. They knew all that was and all that is, but all questions asked were already answered, and all answers were not questioned.

And so the Godhead struck its self in Twain. Divine suicide. Division through multiplication.

And so the rivers flowed and the inferno raged. dark and ebon things nursed on the rotten carcass of God, for it is and was, mother to all. And they grew strong and great, in the dark waters below.

After six and one days, out of the divine ruin of the Tower, crawled a vile worm. Cloaked in great flames and silent rumination, the corpse-god IAM. It fashioned a drum out of its body. Its steady rhythm the heart beat of the world. It sung the first song and many great spirits and gods joined it, and they fashioned the corpse into the world.

Such is decreed by the crow-eyed god, the mountain serpents, and the wheel turning king.

~Esh Mae-kton: revised Hoteph edition by the scholar-priests of lord Hoteph

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The port-city of Nakaida

Nakaida is one of the most important cities in the Riverlands. Even if it’s overshadowed by its sister city of Tel shelad. It is an incredibly important holy site for the cult of Kairos, as it’s said that this is where they appeared to bless the high Prophetess, long ago.

When I first arrived at Nakaida, the first thing I noticed was the smell. It wasn’t bad, it was just very intense, a thousand different perfumes and candles, food and birds. The second thing I noticed was how colourful everything was. People were waving flags everywhere, and I saw many different and strange people. I met up with my guide, a Nokk by the name of Voski. We travelled down a canal into the heart of the city. Apparently Nakaida is famous for its network of canals, most of them were built after a great flood submerged most of the city.

Most people in Nakaida can read, as all of the shrines also double as schools.

Voski told me that the ziggurat in the middle of the city, is where the high prophetess is buried and it’s where the city council lives.

~The journey to the east by Arippus, of the six river walk

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The fifty year war

The fifty year war was a series of raids and skirmishes in the 3rd century A.D, happening mostly on the northern half of the Bul-redalir river.

The aggressors were a group of pirates from the bay of Akkrae, they mostly attacked small villages and hamlets with little defences. There was at most, around 350 of them. Nobody from Akkrae has ever confessed to being apart of it, and some even deny it happening.

Raiding has always been a problem in that region, but never to this extent. The agreed upon, first raid happened in the village of Ibra niwan. A few got hurt and nobody died, but most of the village burned down and all valuables were stolen.

This continued for years. The raids growing intensity and frequency, as they travelled down the river, until the raiders attacked Asharada. It’s an incredibly important city even today, the entrance to the central Riverlands, and a holy site for the Cult of the bleeding God.

The raiders sieged the city for one and a half weeks, while Asharada called for help. City further down the river, sent reinforcements, fearing that if Asharada fell, they would be next. The reinforcements attacked the raiders from the back and killed most of them.

Raids still happen in that region, but significantly less and most people agree that the war ended there.

~A traveller’s guide to the Ekimenae by Viktor Dumont

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History of Talistic religions ch.1

Talistic religions are some of the oldest religions in the Ekimenae and some of the most confusing. Everybody has their own interpretation of them, and every interpretation has several plot holes and caveats in it. Some have even caused civil wars.

In order to understand Talistic religions, you have to understand their history. The oldest known depiction of Talistic religions was found in the Nadiz-riha caves in the southwest Riverlands. People found paintings of a dark lady with multiple limbs guiding several stick figures toward something. This was most likely Iam, the divine corpse god and creator of the world.

After this there are several sporadic appearances of familiar Talistic iconography, in things like cave paintings, carvings, and rock formations, in and around the Riverlands.

The first written record was found in a small village outside of Tel shelad. It was a clay tablet that told a famous story about Kairos, the god of mysteries, catching a fish so big, the planet started to shift when they pulled onto land.

All of this isn’t addressing oral records, but those are hard to date, so we’re not talking about them.

~History of Talistic religions by Vēs, of Bul-zerun river, child of Nahrōw, etc

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The Wall of Galili

The Wall is a strange formation in the mountains of northern Galili. Too steep and rigid to be natural, but too large to be manmade. The earliest recorded sighting of the Wall was circa 400 B.D. in the travel logs of Ametsa Ul Easho. Although it probably wasn’t the first, and there are some Nokkian stories about the Wall that might be older.

The Wall makes travel in and out of northern Galili difficult, but thankfully there are some cracks. The largest one is called, St. Rosae’s wake. There is a town in and around it also called that. Technically the largest opening is an underground river, but most people would drowned before swimming across.

Some people think that it is apart of Suwalis, the legendary lost city that might have been in the western Istalae. Tech hunters have found rooms in the Wall, with the corroded remains of weapons and armour in them.

~A travellers guide to the Ekimenae by Viktor Dumont

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Spearhead herons

These wonderful birds are one of Galili’s most popular animals, several tribes have them on their flags.

They are very tall, adults are around 1.5 meters, although most of that height comes from the legs. Their feathers are mostly white or grey, but their belly is sea green.

Spearhead herons live in shallow ponds and rivers in southern Galili. They spend hours sitting completely still, waiting until a fish passes by, suddenly it catches the fish with its beak and carries it to the shore. During the fish migration season, groups of spearhead herons will crowd a single river. A group of spearhead herons is called a syndicate.

One of the reasons they are so popular is that all of their body parts are useful. The meat tastes pretty good and is nutritious. The feathers are often used in coats or sometimes pillows. Since the bones are hollow they can easily be ground up and made into medicine or spices. The talons are often used as jewelry and good luck charms. And most importantly, the beaks can be used to make spears.

Before trading was more common, most spears were made from heron beaks. Whenever two tribes would go to war, they would hunt a lot of Spearhead herons. This still persists today in the saying “The heron’s are leaving town.” which means that something bad is going to happen.

~Creatures of the Ekimenae by Maket Ku Bidinoe

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The Prince, the Priest, and the Pauper

Once upon a time, on a road well travelled. An old man sat, begging travellers for money. Down the road, a prince strode, his head held high. When the prince came to the old man. The beggar said “please, spare me a coin, I am so hungry.” And the prince looked at him in disgust and spoke “don’t bother me, I have more important things to do, like going to a party.” Then the prince strode away.

Later, a priest trotted down the road, covered in gold and gems. When the beggar saw the priest, he said “please, spare me a coin, I am so hungry.” And the priest looked at him with hate and spoke “whatever happened to you, you clearly deserve it.” Then the priest trotted away.

Soon after, a pauper trudged down the road, coated in dirt. When the beggar saw the pauper, he said “please, spare me a coin, I am so hungry.” And the pauper looked at him with pity and spoke “I have no money, but I have some food, would you like some?” Then they had a feast, and even though they were poor, they were happy.

~Book of whispers By Saint Eyos

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The cities of Galili

The island city of New Akkrae, is technically not apart of Galili, but you can see it from the mainland so it counts. It is a very important port, as if you are travelling to Galili on boat from the east or south, you will probably stop there. It’s also close to the entrance of the waterways, so if you’re planning on going through there, you can stock up in New Akkrae. The first recorded mention of it, was when it was given to a group of Ankaric merchants, in exchange for 3 acres of salt grapes.

Seoleous is the political capital of Galili. It’s located on a natural outcropping. According to some Inori, the founder of the Inoric empire, Suliana Urahea, landed here. The Inoric empire lasted for around 300 years. At the height of their power, they controlled the southern half of Galili and some heavily contested parts of Sehel. The Urahealian dynasty lasted for 200 years, until they were ousted in a coup. The new dynasty was significantly worse and lost most of its land in only 50 years. The final death blow came when a collection of Deutain tribes and some exiled Inori raided Seoleous and formed the Dernua federation.

Ko Sveta, is a less well known city, being in northern Galili. It was built to store food and to combat the lords of Famine. A wine cult also lives there, they’ve been trying to make a drink so potent that it would give a god a hangover. Their latest batch has been fermenting for 1200 years. In order to fight the lords of Famine, Ko Sveta throws massive parties where you are encouraged to eat as much as physically possible.

~A travellers guide to the Ekimenae by Viktor Dumont

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A catalog of saints ch.1

The saints of Talism are one of its most interesting features as they come from all different walks of life. Some of them are simple farmers while others are ancient gods.

Saint Isadorae was born circa shortly after the arrival of the Touta twaros in Sehel. While we don’t have any records of their life, stories state that they were a kind farmer, who died defending their crops from the wild herbivorous wolves that lived in the region long ago. Over the years they became the patron saint of scarecrows, fences, and home defence.

Many saints are from Galili, with a lot of them being Nokkian folk-hero. Saint Adria was a sky whale that lived in Galili. They died sometime during the Long night, with their skeleton being located in Ossiderae. Their skeleton for some reason produces oil, which has helped Ossiderae maintain a thriving candle industry.

Some saint are very old, coming from places like Takulon and the Riverlands. Saint Parhousti is one of them. In some versions of the story they are the thing that cut Takulon off from the main land. Most people consider them one of the followers of lord Mykena.

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The Inori

The Inori are one of the most widespread races in the Ekimenae. They come in many different colours from blue to black. Most Inori are around 1-2 meters tall, though some grow up to 4 meters. They also glow in the dark or when they get excited.

Most Inori live in Galili, or the fortress-city of Illunalta, although there are some wandering caravans. The Inori first appeared around 700 years ago, around the time of the Long night. It’s likely that they had something to do with it.

Most northern Inori practice a form of star and moon worship called Koensa. While it shares some similarities, it is not a form of Talism.

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Galili

The land of Galili, (also known as the Northern tooth, or the Golden isle) is the sister peninsula to Sehel and part of the Istalae.

It is mostly inhabited by the Nokk, which are a canine-like race. The southern half does have a sizeable population of Inori.

Unlike its counterpart in the south, Galili has a relatively centralized government called the Dernua federation. It was formed after the fall of the 2nd dynasty of the Inoric Empire. The main capital is called Seoleous.

Galili is mostly made up of flatlands, with the north being a little more mountainous. It is renowned for its agriculture, with fields of rice and wheat being commonplace. The border with Sehel is called the Waterway, it’s a series of islands connected with ancient stone bridges, although most of them have crumbled away.

~A travellers guide to the Ekimenae by Viktor Dumont

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Saint Eyos

Saint Eyos is one of the most famous saints in Sehel, since they were born there. They are commonly depicted as wearing something around their mouth to signify their laryngectomy. However some newer depictions show them breathing fire or their mouth glowing. They are also shown with papyri, signifying the countless books they wrote.

Saint Eyos was born in the city of Osikarae, as a Vret. Their historical childhood was uneventful. When they turned 17-18, they joined a philosophy caravan, and travelled around the country visiting different cities.

When they came back to their city, it was ruled by four tyrant kings. And when saint Eyos called them out, saint Eyos was imprisoned and tortured. Thankfully their inspiring words and courage caused a revolution which freed saint Eyos. And they spent the rest of their days in a monastery writing philosophical treatises and children’s books.

~A catalogue of saints by Custanti Khero-dearsi

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Varieties of Death ch.1

Necromancy is considered illegal and highly morally dubious, in the Ekimenae. As pulling someone back into the land of the living is highly traumatizing for the victim.

It’s important to know that communing with the dead is not considered necromancy.

A form of necromancy that can only be used on victims that have died recently, is piercing the victims sternum to trap the soul underneath. Note that the weapon has to be made out of metal, if it’s made out of something like wood, the soul will escape.

The band of warriors known as the Fearni-drun drink a concoction before battle, so that if they die mushrooms will shoot out all over their body and puppet them to fight again.

In 416 A.D. (after dark) an incident called the great pickler massacre happened. The council of Ur-ula decided that the process of pickling is necromancy, and all picklers are necromancers. So over the course of twenty years, seven hundred picklers were killed. This decision was eventually reversed.

~Varieties of Death by Hashur, of house kairos, 156th of its name, etc

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The Dead mountains

These mountains are an offshoot of the Zergul mountains, and form the border of eastern Kara-kesh They extend into the sea and form a archipelago, called the Takulon islands. This is where a group of people called the Touta Twaros were from, they now live in Sehel.

The reason the Dead mountains are called that, is not because Hourochlar is a tomb city like some people think. It’s because for some reason nothing grows there, and no mountain spirits live there. Ironically there is a shrine to Kat-hra in those mountains, They are the Kara-keshite god of perseverance and mountain life.

~A Travellers guide to the Ekimenae by Viktor Dumont

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Kara-kesh

It’s a land of jagged mountains, volcanic plumes, and sparkling beaches. Kara-kesh is the meeting point of three different mountain ranges: the Zergul mountains in the east, the Maemarzi Kara volcanoes in the south, and the Maeha-talo mountain range in the west.

The black sands of the northern coast is where Kara-kesh gets it’s name from. Most people that live here, live on the eastern half of the coast, as Istalic pirates have started raiding the western half of the coast in recent years. The largest city is called Hourochlar, it’s build into the Dead mountains, which are a branch of the Zergul mountains. It’s surprising cold there.

The inland region, also know as Kara-kesh proper, is filled with dense misty forest and grim mountains. It’s quite unlike anything in the area around it. A lot of Kiri live here as they consider it to be a holy site. The temples up here look very unique, as apparently they are carved out of the rock without pickaxes.

The biggest city in Kara-kesh, is called the forge keep of Atal karalar, located in the Maemarzi Kara volcanoes. Back in the Golden age, it was used to make many great things. But now only a few forges are still functional and they only make weapons.

~A Traveller’s guide to the Ekimenae By Viktor Dumont