The more you draw her the more I get a hopeless crush on Relonia, oh noooo... I'd love to know more about Sirn! I know it's somewhat inspired by ancient Egypt, which is cool... are there any interesting cultural triva bits you haven't shared yet? Also wondering about the goddesses... does all of Pangaea worship the same ones, or are there other religious practices (iirc Ku'Ombos has some sun worship going on) slash deities?
“I’m sorry, brother. I heard father refused you military aid this time, too. I know he’s scared to provoke the Warlock to fall on Sirn next, but me? I’m tired of looking to the North with fear. That Ititshi has kept your throne warm for you long enough. Between you and me, your Carrysh retinue and my private guard...? I think we should go take it back.”
Relonia is great. She started out a typical cliché “arrogant, not-like-other-girls spoiled princess” but I love where her character growth has taken her! She’s still headstrong and rash and arrogant, but there is so much heart there. ♥
Sirn is one of those places I’d really need to stroll around in with notepad out; there’s a lot I still don’t know about it! Lots of inspiration from ancient Egypt, yes, and north Africa/near east in general. A harsh and unforgiving desert kingdom for the most part, although there are grasslands to the north-east (Where Relonia’s mother Eilah hails from) and south, down against the Ku’Ombos border.
In central Sirn, the great river Cal traces a green thread of life through the desert, to finally empty into the great inner sea that I haven’t named yet. The royal family have a summer palace there.
When we first see Sirn, it’s ruled by Relonia’s father, Hanyohl, but I’m 99% sure he dies some time during the time Rion is a prisoner in At-ni Cal - exactly how is something I’ve changed so many times I’ve lost track. (Rion vehemently assures he’s blameless this one time)
It hits Relonia hard since he was practically the one to raise her - her mother has been very sick and bed-bound for a very long time. One good aspect of claiming the medallion, though, is that she finally learns to control its power enough to heal her, and Eilah steps up as de-facto ruler after Hanoyhl’s death. I’m fairly certain Relonia has siblings, at least one younger sister, but while I know I even named her once, long ago, I can’t remember anything about her. (She will have to pick up the crown-princess title once Relonia dallies off to marry the King of Kayalana, though, so I need to go through my old piles of art and notes and see if I can revive her a bit. I... do think she kind of adopts Ziradess as her heir, though? I’m sure there’s some really good reason why.)
Aside from the royal family, there are four exalted tribal Lords who hold great influence in Sirn, and their advice is often requested in manners of politics, if only to keep their egos stroked and their fierce pride placated.
Here’s an old sketch I made of some of them way back - the woman to the left is Medreth of the Nehren region, Eilah’s older sister, Relonia’s aunt. She’s made of steel, a very strongly opinionated woman, and not one in favour of Relonia’s future marriage to an Ititshi. (I seem to recall Relonia jokingly suggesting to Rion when he came on that state visit to Sirn to make their engagement official that if that fell through, they should totally marry Medreth to Rannon instead and see who killed whom first.)
Middly guy is Lexandir. He doesn’t like Ititshi either.
I think right guy’s name is Sajid, although I could remember wrong. While another strongly opinionated character, he doesn’t particularly dislike the idea of Relonia’s marriage - he knows what the princess is made of, and if any Ititshi would try to take advantage of her politically or domestically against her will, you’d better start planning the poor sod’s funeral.
And yes! All of Pangaea worship the five goddesses, subtle proof that there has been contact between the peoples before - either that, or the goddesses are very much real and have manifested on both sides of the mountains, sparking the same religion separately in multiple places.
The details differ though, and I have no doubt there will be all sorts of clashes once the people come in closer contact with each other.
Then there are smaller local religions and faiths. The Reed People living on the rivers that crisscross the mountains far south have their completely unique culture and religion, for example, and are generally considered odd by all the other nations of Pangaea. And of course Ku’Ombos have their monotheistic religion centered on the Sun. I think they may share this with some of the Ngali lands further to the east, that I... know virtually nothing about.