with the release of tftk 25-29, all redesigns of the 3 most prominent characters of zant's army are now relevant. presenting ghirahim's (chapter 29 and onward), zant's (chapter 27 and onward), and yuga's (chapter 25 and onward) new outfits! full solos under the cut, with some design notes!
zant's full design, + armor and helmet, + sketches/notes
a ko-fi commission for @yiga-hellhole, the wonderful author of gz fic Twilight Forest, Twilight King. I'm so glad I could draw this collection of bits both from the fic and from my imagination! It's on AO3 (i'll put the link in replies) so go read it!
so for when my fic (and other series and roleplays and-) inevitably delves more into the twilight realm i thought it'd be handy to make an overview of all the settlements within the twilight realm paired with some general information. inspired wholly and blatantly by @pomgore who wrote a kickass post about hyrule in the wilds era and i remembered i'd been sitting on a WHOLLY SIMILAR CONCEPT for a year now. aaaaand one of my special interests is (pre)historic socioeconomic networks. so. if you like worldbuilding... here's a whole lot of it!
so the general idea of the twilight realm is that its a wasteland that was completely empty upon the arrival of the Interlopers, aka the first Twili, and that they had to make do with the rare bits and bobs that would grow in the landscape, what they had on their persons at time of banishment, and the occasional crate of supplies once Hyrule realized they'd sent their criminals to a fully-fledged world instead of just cramming them in a spirit prison. in Twilight Princess, we only see the Palace, hovering in the nothing... but i like to think this wasn't the realm's full expanse, but rather, the result of Zant lifting the whole thing into the sky so nobody could stop him from taking the throne.
so! with that background. here are some territories.
The Twilight Palace
the central place of the Realm! before the start of Twilight Princess, it is being ruled by House Borinu, aka Midna's father. it is seated atop a cliff near a dried-up lake, where a comet struck a long time ago.
the twilight throne is partially elective. all noble houses in the realm send their most talented children to the Palace to be educated as throne candidates. these candidates are then decided by vote.
that being said, the palace is basically the royal seat, the religious capital (huge massive temple dedicated to the clergy and worship/maintenance of the sols), and a university. mostly the candidates are educated here, but it's also where the state library is
culturally, it's a melting pot. mostly tradespeople, nobles, and clergy take residence here.
the best runesmiths are here - where the raw material for the magical runes that operate the realm's magitech are worked into final products of the highest quality. all settlements have a runesmith or two but these make the most complex spells. it's kind of like neon. you'll read more about this later
a fun little souvenir you may get here is a fossil harvested from the dried up lake below castle town. however, these were all harvested about a century ago, so either you're lucky and found the one guy who managed to land a legitemate fossil, or you're getting scammed.
Serrin
central plains settlement, south of the old lake of the Palace. ruled by house Hairai (descendants of the hylians)
first and foremost the territory houses a lot of carpenters. the wood from a different settlement, Ilitok, is processed into just about whatever piece of furniture or tool is in demand. wooden furniture isn't comminly used among nobles, but in many places is common for the average joe
"horses" are bred here. they are not horses. don't think too hard about what they are. they have four legs (usually), are strong and fast, and can be yoked to vehicles and ploughs. the plains are a good place for grazing (???) animals, and thus are best bred here, but used by all territories.
remember when i said a comet struck the old lake by the palace a long time ago? turns out there's a magically potent ore inside it. this is processed into long, thin threads in Serrin and transported to runesmiths to be worked into the final products
grains are produced here, but they are mostly fodder for the animals
Ilitok
a forest settlement, in fact the only place with reliable forest coverage. owns three sols to power the whole territory, ensuring its lushness. vegetation tends cluster around light sources! ruled by House Sadi (descendants of the kokiri)
this territory has a complete and total monopoly over forestry and logging. nobody else is allowed to even as much as think about touching these trees. locally, the logs are produced into planks and whatnot, but the finer carpentry is mostly done in Serrin.
silk is produced here. greenhouses are stationed around the territory. you'd think the white haze is from the moisture, but it's actually webbing. from very large spiders. the silk is collected, boiled, and weaved into precious fabrics. popular all around the realm!
foraged and farmed vegetation, like medicinal plants, spices, and foods like fruits and mushrooms, are produced here
as you can see from the array of high-status goods, Ilitok has some of the more skilled and clever tradespeople that can be seen in just about every corner of the realm
Uriyenil
a seaside/desert settlement. the ocean is so salty it's ruining the soil, so scarcely anything grows here! ruled by House Latiso (zora descendant). aka, Zant's family!
first and foremost the city is known for its salt refinery. seawater is channeled into an underground facility where the water is boiled, the salt is harvested, and the steam is collected for drinking/bathing water. there's bathhouses and fresh water available all over town thanks to this very sophisticated system. the salt is exported all throughout the realm - food is precious and often preserved, so salt is in high demand
pottery is produced locally, of a more coarse wear due to the salt-rich, sandy ground, tempered with seashells.
a few times a year, the whole city goes to the shore to catch seafood. it's treated as a festivity. if they're lucky, the molluscs will have pearls, which are worked into jewelry and sold. pearlescent seashells are also used for various art pieces. very bespoke!
metal ores are not mined locally, but metallic objects are fashioned here with intricate designs. not really weapons, think more like tools (pliers, scissors, pens, other equipment...)
given the prevalence of fine, silky sand, a lot of glass is made here. mostly the glass tubing for runesmithing is mass produced here as long single tubes.
other subsistence consists of vegetation that does well underground at low light, think "rhubarb" and "mushrooms". there are also some arid fruit trees that can beceaten as is or pressed for oil.
Qa'Yi
a steppe/desert settlement across the desert from Uriyenil, ruled by House Borinu (Gerudo descendant). this is Midna's family!
you can see this territory from miles away from the fruit orchards. these produce fruit all year round, given the twilight realm doesnt have seasons. this puts quite a strain on the trees, though, and significantly shortens their lifespan. big harvests are impromptu celebrated, making it a pain in the ass to visit the relatives for the holiday season
grain is also produced here but the yield isn't great
reeds and grasses grow better here, which can be woven into things like baskets and furniture for a more delicate, light look
pastoralism is a primary way of subsistence. herds consist of large, pillbug-like insects, roughly the size of small pigs, mutated through twilight exposure. the exoskeletons at slaughter can be used to fashion all sorts of objects
woolly dogs are also part of the herd. these are shorn for their thick, coarse fur, used mostly for weaving tent fabric. it's very durable and keeps the rain out.
glassware is produced here too, but more decorative, fine glass vessels in various colors.
overall a very trendy place, fond of fien fabrics and jewelry. tradespeople test new products first in Qa'Yi, and if it catches on there, you'll be seeing it all over the realm
Hokekyo
a wetland settlement of a mild climate, ruled by House Pinam (sheikah descendant)
due to the wet soil just about everything soppy you can imagine is produced here. think grains, primarily, but also all sorts of edible molluscs and a type of flax, which can be pressed for oil as well as used for fabric
being descendants of the Sheikah, they also kept weaponsmithing alive. cooking knives are made from the leftover ore, but nevertheless very finely produced and will last you years. military conflict is kept to a very careful and delicate minimum in the realm, so weaponry is mostly used for hunting and personal protection of the noble houses. more frequently, the clergy have a good few armed soldiers as well, to protect them while hunting for shades (a phenomenon that happens when new prisoners arrive in the realm). for that reason, there are always some Hokekyo craftspeople at the palace to arm the soldiers with spears
a kind of thick, yellowy paper is also produced here from reeds grown in the paddies. as you can see lots of crafts in this place involve a lot of waiting. very easygoing.
the clay here is very fine and makes for good porcelain, which is made a lot here
Kurun Katon
a settlement at the foot of a large mountain, near the sulphuric hot springs, ruled by House Minadar (descendants of the Gorons)
the clay here is somewhat acidic which produces some very interesting patterns on pottery when fired with glazes. the most reliable producer of pottery in the realm, with geometric patterns favored by the nobles as well as the commonfolk
they also quarry and sculpt massive amounts of stone in and around the mountain, which is used in much of Twilit architecture and furniture among nobles. those that want to emulate the solid stone style but don't have the money for it in their own homes, will make clay imitations.
more mining activity centers around the harvesting of ores and gemstones. the raw look of geodes is in popular tastes, but the more fine goldsmithing is done here too. even the ruling monarchs have some showpieces from here
you can fish in the mountain rivers but I don't recommend it
Nupriri
a settlement higher up the mountain than Kurun Katon, reigned by House Papei. up until a few centuries ago everyone else forgot these guys existed until one day their patriarch came down with a candidate for the royal throne. it is said a group of citizens from Kurun Katon decided to try and settle on the mountain and simply never came back down. (based on @sadnessisavegetable 's Roz!)
given it's very cold up the mountain, colder than anywhere else in the realm, a lot of fur clothing is produced here. these are very resistant to the elements and often used during storms. little fur gloves and shawls for decorative purposes are also in vogue.
coal is also mined for fuel. runesmithing is the primary form of energy in the twilight realm, but not always accessible to every person for every task. this gap is filled with coal from Nupriri, usually for cooking and heating smaller homes.
precious stones are mined here in smaller quantities, but given their rarity, much more expensive.
when i catch up with the illustrations for the previous chapters, i'll be making a proper tumblr post. for now i couldn't pass up on the joke. enjoy!!!
